Maserati Tipo 151

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Maserati Tipo 151

The Maserati Tipo 151 was a sports car prototype that was developed by Maserati in 1962 .

Development history and technology

With the design of the Maserati Tipo 151, Maserati chief developer Giulio Alfieri returned to racing car construction in the late 1950s in 1962. The Tipo 151 was built primarily for the Le Mans 24-hour race . Alfieri decided on a closed body, a Berlinetta variant that, in contrast to the Spyder shape, enabled a higher speed on the long straights of the Circuit des 24 Heures . Internally, the design was controversial, because at first glance it was a step backwards: It had a chassis made of round, oval sheet metal on a tubular space frame, independent wheel suspensions at the front and a De-Dion axle at the rear . The front axle had double wishbones of unequal length. The De Dion axle had double trailing arms and coil springs. The axle was guided laterally with a sliding block that was mounted on the axle drive. Instead of the aluminum wheels already used in the Tipo 64 , there were spoked wheels. Most notable, however, was the front engine . Since mid-engines had already been used in the previous models, the engine of the 450S from 1956 had to be used and revised. The displacement was reduced to 4 liters. To keep the front section of the car low, the engine was given dry sump lubrication. The four Weber 45IDM carburetors were carried over from the 450S. Except for the large bulge on the bonnet, which made space for the carburetor battery between the cylinder banks, the lines of the Tipo 151 were elegant and strongly reminiscent of the 450S from Zagato from 1957. Allegretti e Gentilini produced the bodies .

Maserati built a total of three Tipo 151 that were unsuccessful in international motorsport. The wagons were very susceptible to defects and always looked unfinished in the years they were in service. Due to the sparse use in a few races a year, many problems could never be completely eradicated. In 1962 there were considerable problems with the rear axle. The drivers who competed in Le Mans complained about major handling problems in fast corners. These problems were solved by new springs in the winter of 1962/63. In addition, there was the new 5-liter engine from the 5000 GT , which made 90 hp more and had gasoline injection.

In 1964, the wheelbase was lengthened by 10 cm and the air resistance was reduced by a steeply sloping rear. The rear window was now vertical and the engine sat deeper in the chassis, eliminating the bulge on the bonnet. The body of this version was created at Sports Cars in Modena .

The last change to the car was made in 1965, when the chassis was revised and the engine capacity was increased to 5.1 liters.

Racing history

1962

Maserati hadn't planned to use the Tipo 151 in sports car races on its own. This task was to be taken over by the American Briggs Cunningham , who had already worked with Maserati in previous years, and the long-standing French general importer Johnny Simone . The Scuderia Serenissima of Giovanni Volpi should have taken over a first test run in June 1962 at the 1000 km race on the Nordschleife of the Nürburgring , but the car, chassis 002, was not finished in time, so that Graham Hill and Masten Gregory could not start.

The Tipo 151 therefore made its racing debut at the Le Mans 24-hour race in 1962 . Briggs Cunningham reported two vehicles: starting number 2, chassis 004, driven by Walt Hansgen and Bruce McLaren , and starting number 3, chassis 006, in which William Kimberly and Dick Thompson were at the wheel. The planned partner of Dick Thompson was Roy Salvadori . The tall Englishman felt uncomfortable in the narrow cockpit and swapped places with Kimberly, who was registered with Cunningham in the Jaguar E-Type . Johnny Simone had reported another vehicle for Maserati France. This car, starting number 4 and chassis 002, was driven by Maurice Trintignant and Lucien Bianchi . In 1962, the Automobile Club de l'Ouest caused some confusion and astonishment among the regular Le Mans riders with a new classification. Winners should be chosen in no fewer than 18 classes - including the Index of Performance and the Index of Efficiency. The three Maserati were entered in the class for experimental vehicles up to 4 liters. In practice, the Maserati were among the fastest vehicles on the Ligne Droite des Hunaudières . Top speeds of up to 320 km / h were achieved there. In the qualification training the Tipo 151 reached the ranks three (Dick Thompson), five (McLaren) and seven (Bianchi). In the race, Dick Thompson was in the lead for a long time and even took the lead after almost two hours of racing, but was dropped out after 62 laps due to an accident. He lost control of the car in the Esses and crashed into a barrier. The car caught fire and burned out, but was later rebuilt. The Bianchi / Trintignant car had a suspension damage after 152 laps and the drive of Walt Hansgen and Bruce McLaren stopped in the 13th hour of the race with a valve damage. Thus all three Maserati had retired just after half time of the race.

The Tipo 151 was next used in September 1962 at the 500-mile race of Road America . This time Walt Hansegen and Augie Pabst drove the Cunningham undercarriage 004. Again there was a failure; this time a defective wheel bearing stopped the efforts of the Americans. Cunningham used his two cars several times in sports car races in the United States in the fall of 1962. The first finish was at the 200-mile race at Riverside ; Augie Papst finished seventh overall with chassis 006; another disappointment for the team. At the finish, Papst was three laps behind Roger Penske's Zerex Spezial and was left behind by far less powerful racing cars such as the Cooper T61 , the Chaparral 1 and the Maserati Tipo 61 . Chuck Daigh , in chassis 004, finished eleventh.

1963

At Cunningham, the Tipo 151 era ended in 1963 at the 250-mile Daytona race , where chassis 004, driven by Marvin Panch , went up in flames after a training accident. Chassis 006 was sold to the American racing team Team Meridian , whose driver Skip Hudson achieved the only podium finish of this racing car in 1963 with third place in a national sports car race in Cotati.

In Europe, Maserati concentrated on working with Johnny Simone and supplied the Frenchman with the revised Tipo 151 for use in this year's Le Mans 24-hour race . Despite faster times again in the test drives in April and in training before the race, there was again no finish. André Simon , a very experienced pilot at the age of 43, led the first refueling stop. Lloyd Casner , who took over the car, however, retired after 40 laps due to gearbox damage. Lucien Bianchi's eighth place in the Trophée d'Auvergne was little consolation for the renewed retirement at Le Mans.

1964

In 1964 Trintignant and Simon contested the 24-hour race in Le Mans again and this time failed due to an electrical fault. At the 12-hour race in Reims the ignition went out and the 1000 km race in Paris ended prematurely due to an accident.

1965

The project ended fatally on April 11, 1965. During the test drives for the 24-hour race , the racing driver and Camoradi Racing team boss Lloyd Casner had a fatal accident in a Tipo 154 . On the long straight in the direction of Mulsanne, Casner had an accident at almost 300 km / h. The exact cause of the accident could never be completely clarified. Then Johnny Simone and Maserati stopped further development of this vehicle.

Technical specifications

Parameters Maserati Tipo 151
Engine: Four-stroke 8-cylinder V-engine (front engine)
Cooling: Water with centrifugal pump and cooler
Displacement : 3944 cm³, 4941 cm³ (1963), 5046 cm³ (1965)
Bore × stroke: 91 × ​​78.5 mm, 94 × 89 mm (1963), 95 × 89 mm (1965)
Compression: 9.7: 1 or 9: 1 from 1963
Carburetor: 4 Weber twin carburetors, from 1963 indirect Lucas injection
Power: 360 hp at 7500 rpm, 430 hp (1963), 450 hp (1965)
Power transmission: Multi-plate dry clutch, from 1963 two-plate dry clutch; 5-speed transmission plus reverse gear,
rear-wheel drive
Frame: Tubular steel frame
Front and rear suspension:  Independent suspension at the front, De-Dion axle at the rear
Brakes: hydraulically operated disc brakes
Track width front / rear: 1250/1280 mm
Wheelbase : 2300 mm, from 1964 2400 mm
Tire size front / rear: 6.00-16 / 7.00-16
Length × width × height:
Empty weight (without driver): 895 kg, from 1963 860 kg
Top speed: approx. 320/330 km / h

literature

  • Maurizio Tabucchi: Maserati, All Grand Prix, Sports and GT vehicles from 1926 until today . Heel, Königswinter 2004, ISBN 3-89880-211-6

Web links

Commons : Maserati Tipo 151  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Anthony Pritchard: Maserati - Die Renngeschichte Delius Klasing, Bielefeld 2008, ISBN 978-3-7688-2513-9 , p. 205
  2. ↑ Tipo 151 1962 in its original form  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.supercars.net
  3. ↑ Tipo 151 in Maserati France livery
  4. ↑ Clear lines due to the lack of a bulge on the bonnet ( Memento from November 14, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
  5. ↑ Vertical rear window ( Memento from November 14, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
  6. ^ Anthony Pritchard: Maserati - Die Renngeschichte Delius Klasing, Bielefeld 2008, ISBN 978-3-7688-2513-9 , p. 205
  7. ^ Anthony Pritchard: Maserati - The history of racing Delius Klasing, Bielefeld 2008, ISBN 978-3-7688-2513-9 , p. 206
  8. ↑ 1962 Riverside 200 Mile Race
  9. ↑ 250 Mile Daytona Race, 1963
  10. ^ Ski Hudson third in Cotati 1963
  11. ^ André Simon 1963 in Le Mans
  12. ^ Karl Ludvigsen: Ferrari vs. Maserati. Relentless motorsport rivals. Heel, Königswinter 2008, ISBN 978-3-86852-051-4 , p. 205.
  13. ↑ Trophée d'Auvergne 1963
  14. ^ Anthony Pritchard: Maserati - Die Renngeschichte Delius Klasing, Bielefeld 2008, ISBN 978-3-7688-2513-9 , p. 208