Description
1956 Maserati A6G 2000 Zagato
One of just twenty A6G 2000 Zagato berlinettas
Pebble Beach and Villa d’Este class wins
New to California and U. S. car for life
Multiple Mille Miglia appearances
Suitable for the world’s greatest collections
Surely one of the most beautiful designs to emerge from any postwar Italian carrozzeria, this Zagato-bodied A6G 2000 Maserati is arrestingly beautiful and has garnered awards at the world’s greatest concours events.
Chassis 2160 was ordered by Mille Miglia Motors of San Francisco, the firm of the colourful and elegantly dressed Charles Rezzaghi, a gifted salesman. Arriving at Carrozzeria Zagato in chassis form on April 15, 1956, 2160 was one of just twenty A6G 2000s bodied by Zagato as berlinettas, plus one spyder for twenty-one total.
One of the most exquisite designs of this Italian coachbuilder or indeed any other, the Zagato A6G 2000s were suitable for competition due to their lightweight construction including thin-gauge alloy and Perspex windows. No two were exactly alike, of course. Chassis 2160 was delivered on October 22, 1956, with red over blue seating and bearing an EE registration (Escursionisti Esteri) marking it for export.
According to historian Walter Bäumer, nothing is known about the apparent brief initial stay in the United States, but by 1957 she returned to the Maserati factory on Via Ciro Menotti, then spotted by Maserati mechanic Luigi “Lou” Borgognone. Seemingly with family means, his mother was persuaded to buy the car for younger brother Oreste “Rusty” – the pair then emigrated to Oakland, California, taking the Maserati with them.
Through about 1960, the Borgognone brothers used the Zagato to commute to college on weekdays (!) and raced in a variety of area tracks at weekends. Later restoration work revealed no trace of racing damage from these years, leaving 2160 a very well-preserved example.
With intervening years including a brief ownership by Judd Lotts of Ojai, California, the Maserati was purchased by Ivan Zaremba of San Francisco, who rebuilt the Zagato, then campaigned it in race events at Laguna Seca, Sears Point, Thunderhill and other California venues across a fourteen-year ownership.
Acquired from Zaremba in 1994 by the present U. S.-based owner, this A6G 2000 Zagato is now remarkably offered from thirty years’ long-term ownership, during which she earned multiple concours honours and joined many of the world’s greatest motoring events.
In 2006, 2160 was restored to the highest standards by the team of Tommaso Gelmini at GPS Classic in Parma, Italy. Testament to the works performed, she earned Best in Class at the 2007 Villa d’Este Concorso d’Eleganza, where she was photographed with family member Andrea Zagato. She also took First in Class at Pebble Beach that year, believed to be the first Zagato-bodied Maserati to earn this coveted award. More recently, the Zagato has appeared and gained further honours at the 2019 Greenwich Concours d’Elegance, and the Audrain Concours d’Elegance in Newport Rhode Island.
True to its competition DNA, 2160 has also participated in seven runnings of the Mille Miglia, three editions of the Colorado Grand, Tour Auto events in France, VSCCA events at Lime Rock Park and elsewhere, and in the Shell Ferrari/ Maserati Historic Racing series – an inspiring record of use and enjoyment suggesting joyful possibilities for the future.
Surely one of the most beautiful Italian coachbuilt berlinettas ever, highly sought after by the world’s greatest collections, this A6G 2000 Zagato is offered in outstanding condition and is suitable for the world’s greatest concours and motoring events.
Que bella!
