Maserati A6 1500

At a glance: Maserati A6 1500

The A6 1500 began a line of Maserati road cars that later included the Maserati 3500 GT. The company's models are listed in the Maserati catalogue.

History of the Maserati A6 1500

Development began in 1941 under the Maserati brothers, was interrupted by wartime production and was completed after the war. The name explains the concept: "A" stands for Alfieri Maserati, one of the founding brothers, and "6" for the six cylinders.

The first chassis, with a body by Pinin Farina, was presented at the Geneva motor show in March 1947. Production ran until 1950, when the A6 1500 was gradually replaced by the A6G 2000, officially the 2000 Gran Turismo.

Design by Pinin Farina

Pinin Farina designed the two-door, two-seat berlinetta body of the A6 1500. For the production cars the prototype's design was toned down: the cars received conventional headlamps and a second side window. Later cars were also offered with a 2+2 fastback body.

A few special bodies were also made. Pinin Farina showed a convertible at the Turin motor show in 1948, of which two were built, and Zagato made a one-off "Panoramica" coupé in 1949.

Engine and chassis

The engine is a straight-six of 1,488 cc with a bore of 66 mm and a stroke of 72.5 mm and a single overhead camshaft. With one Weber carburettor it produced about 48 kW (65 hp); from 1949 some cars had three carburettors. Wikipedia's specification for the A6 family lists a four-speed manual gearbox.

The chassis is built from steel tubes and sheet steel. The front wheels are suspended by double wishbones, the rear by a solid axle, with coil springs and Houdaille hydraulic dampers at all four corners. Depending on the gearing and the body, the top speed was between 146 and 154 km/h.

The racing link

In parallel, Ernesto Maserati and Alberto Massimino developed the 6CS/46, a racing barchetta also known as the A6 Sport. Wikipedia notes that this car "became the A6 1500", although it was a racing prototype rather than a road car. The A6 name went on to cover a whole family of road and racing cars into the mid-1950s, including the A6G 2000 and the A6GCS racing sports cars.

The A6G 2000 and the A6 family

The A6 1500 was the first member of a family that Maserati built from 1947 to 1956. Its direct successor, the A6G 2000, was introduced in 1950 with a 1,954 cc straight-six, still with a single overhead camshaft, and triple carburettors that gave 67–75 kW (90–100 hp). Only 16 were built in 1950 and 1951: nine 2+2 fastbacks by Pinin Farina, five convertibles and one coupé by Frua, and one coupé by Vignale designed by Giovanni Michelotti.

On the racing side, the A6GCS was developed from 1947 as a two-seat sports racer with a 2-litre engine. It started with about 89 kW (120 hp), and the A6GCS/53 of 1953 reached about 127 kW (170 hp); the cars weighed 580–670 kg, and 15 were made between 1947 and 1953. The A6 road and racing cars were eventually followed by the 3500 GT on the road and by the 150S and 200S on the track.

Legacy

The A6 1500 is remembered above all as Maserati's first production road car. Its successor, the A6G 2000, followed from 1950. For the full story of the company, see our history of Maserati.

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