Maserati celebrates the 60th anniversary of the "Eldorado"

The Italian super and luxury vehicle manufacturer "Maserati" is celebrating the 60th anniversary of the great model "Eldorado", on 29th June 1958, it was launched as the first sponsored single-seater racing car took to the track at Monza, with "Stirling Moss" behind the wheel.

This was the first example of modern sponsorship, where the car was painted in the colors of the partner company, abandoning the traditional color assigned to each country by the International Federation, this was a real revolution for the day, of vital importance to the future of motorsport, which from that moment on opened its doors to new financial backers.

Maserati was commissioned to build the car by Gino Zanetti, owner of the Eldorado ice-cream company, Determined to promote his brand on the international stage, Zanetti turned to the House of the Trident to create a single-seater car to compete in the "Trofeo dei due Mondi" (Race of Two Worlds) at Monza: the Automobile Club d'Italia had organised a 500 Mile race at the circuit based on the Indianapolis 500, with top American drivers lining up alongside Europe’s cream of the crop.

The Maserati 420/M/58, chassis number 4203, was thus finished with a cream coloured livery, instead of Italian racing red, The name Eldorado was emblazoned in bold black lettering along the sides of the car, with two additional smaller logos on the nose and below the small deflector that acted as a windshield.

The long silhouette of the "Eldorado" also bore the name of the driver chosen to race it in the “Monzanapolis”: Stirling Moss, one of the greatest drivers in the history of motor sports, and a former Maserati driver.

Despite the success in terms of spectator numbers and entertainment value, the 500 Miles of Monza did not become a regular event on the racing calendar. Based on the findings from the race, the “Eldorado” was modified by the Gentilini bodywork shop, which removed the rear fin and reduced the hood scoop, after which the car was entered in the Indianapolis 500 in 1959.

This time it was finished in red, the colour denoting Italy in competitions, but still emblazoned with the Eldorado sponsor’s name in white lettering on the sides, as well as the cowboy logo in a white circle on the nose and tail.

The inexperience of the gentleman-driver, Ralph Liguori, meant that the car failed to qualify, as it set the 36th fastest time, with only the first 33 qualifying. With a professional driver behind the wheel, it would have been a very different result. But that is a whole other story.

The Indy 500 race was dear to Maserati, which took victory in 1939 and 1940 with the driver Wilbur Shaw behind the wheel of an 8CTF. Shaw almost made it a hat-trick in 1941, but was forced to withdraw during the penultimate lap while out in front, with victory denied to him by a broken wheel.

Maserati is the only Italian car manufacturer to have won on the Indiana race track and the only European brand to have triumphed on two consecutive occasions.

The Maserati "Eldorado", perfectly restored in its original white livery, is part of the Panini Collection, housed in Modena.