1954 OSCA MT4

The OSCA vehicles gained a reputation in the racing community as the 'Giant Killers.' They were built by the Maserati brothers in Bologna, Italy after exiting the eponymous company they founded and later sold to industrialist Adolfo Orsi. With OSCA, an acronym of Officine Specializzate Costruzione Automobili, the Maserati brothers reclaimed their original competition mandate with their sights set on sports car racing.

The Maserati Tipo 4, or MT4, used a spry lightweight tube-frame chassis with independent front suspension with coil springs and an anti-roll bar. In the back was a live axle with leaf springs and coil springs. Four-wheel drum brakes provided the stopping power. Initially, the MT4 was aimed at the under-1100cc class with its aluminum, single overhead camshaft four-cylinder engine. In this guise, it raced in the 1948 Pescara Grand Prix and the Naples Grand Prix where Luigi Villoresi drive it to victory. In 1949, a slight increase in displacement brought it to 1,342cc. In 1950, the engine received a new dual overhead camshaft earning it the name, MT4-2AD. In 1953, it grew to 1,453cc and engine output was rated at 108 horsepower at 6,200 RPM. Eventually, engine displacement grew to a 1,491cc displacement size, and the 1.5-liter MT4 1500 became a formidable force in small-displacement classes during 1954. The all-new tipo 372 DS twin spark engine was later used in the O.S.C.A. MT4 TN (meaning Tipo Nuovo or 'new model') of 1955. Five of these FS 372 examples were built.

It is believed that as many as 72 examples of the MT4 were built with approximately 50 examples clothed in the original Pietro Frua design. Most examples were Barchettas, but a few were built as Berlinetta bodies. Early examples were mounted with open-mouth spider coachwork from Frua and later examples were clothed by Morelli.

Among the racing highlights of the MT4 were racing in the 1,500cc class at the 24 Hours of LeMans in 1953. At the 1954 12 Hours of Sebring, Stirling Moss and Bill Lloyd racing under the Briggs Cunningham Team banner finished first overall.

by Daniel Vaughan | Sep 2021