1956 Maserati A6G-54 2000 Spyder

Pietro Frua was one of Italy's most renowned coachbuilders. His worked clothed everything from Ferraris to Rolls-Royces, and the designs were equally as vast, ranging from calm to outrageous.

This Frua-designed Maserati A6G is both muscular and crisply tailored. It is believed that three of these Spyders were built, with one being fitted to A6GCS chassis 2054 and delivered to dealer Guglielmo Dei, of Rome, who delivered it to an American client in early 1954. This was the only Frua Spyder mounted to a A6GCS car. The other two were mounted on A6GCS chassis, but they were engineered with the more street-friendly A6G/54 engine.

The small bumperettes in the front and rear give the impression of sporty lightness. It has chromed side exhaust, emerging from behind the front wheels and travels down the body of the driver's side.

The current owner of this car found the original Frua Spyder body from chassis 2054 in the ownership of Maserati enthusiast and Concorso Italiano founder Francis Mandarano, who had acquired it in the American South sometime earlier. While the original chassis was long gone, as it had been converted into a racing car, the body was immaculately complete, aside from a single missing bumper bar, retaining all of its original details, including the original 'pFrua' badges, the original instruments, all the door hardware, and unaltered curvaceous lines.

The body was mounted upon an original A6G/2000 chassis, number 2190, and reportedly fitted from new with an A6GCS engine. It had its chassis frame shortened appropriately. The goal of the restoration was to return the car to as near as possible as 2054 had first been when delivered in 1953. Upon completion, the car was finished in light silver-blue paint with a blue leather interior with royal blue carpets along with Jaeger instruments.

The work earned the car the Best Maserati at the 2003 Concorso Italiano. It also made an appearance at the concours d'elegance at the Cavallino Classic XIV in Palm Beach in 2005. It has completed two Colorado Grands, as well as the California Mille.

The car was given a five-speed manual transmission from an Alfa Romeo for better modern rallying purposes. The Maserati transmission correct to this chassis still remains with the car. The engine is a 1985cc double overhead-cam twin-plug inline six-cylinder engine with three Weber 40 DC03 carburetors. The car produces 150 horsepower and has four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes. The wheelbase measures 100.4 cinches.

By Daniel Vaughan | Jan 2014