Maserati 200S

Manufacturer	Maserati
Main type	Barchetta
Production	from 1955  to 1957
Produced	28
Length	3900  m m
Width	1450 mm
Height	980 mm

The Maserati 200S is a competition car built by Maserati from 1955 to 1957 . It was prepared, similar to the 150S.

History 

 The Maserati 200S, was a sports car prototype , which was developed in 1955 at Maserati .The design of the car, called "Type 52", was started in 1952 by Giulio Alfieri . The vehicle had a motor in alloy light to in-line four-cylinder , with overhead valvesand double overhead camshaft head . The engine, derived from the one installed on the 150S , had a displacement of 1994 cm³ . To get the new engine, the stroke and bore were increased now, respectively, by 75 mm and 92 mm . The car had two Weber 50DCO3 carburetors (for the first cars) and 45DCO3. This engine had a power of 187 hp at 7500 rpm .Many chassis components were identical to those mounted on the 150S , except the rear deck. n the rear deck . The first three specimens had installed the back bridge of the GCS , while the following ones the De Dion bridge  .

The first three chassis were produced by Maserati, while a subsequent tubular chassis was built by Gilco . The first five bodies in aluminum , as for the Maserati 150S , were the work of Celestino Fiandri . The other 23 were assembled by Medardo Fantuzzi . The brakes were drum-type with hydraulic control. The "200S" had no doors and was two-seater.

As early as 1953, the development of a 4-cylinder in- line engine started at Maserati . The 1.5-liter variant of this unit was later used in the 150S , the 2-liter engine in the 200S. The two variants differed only by the bore-stroke ratio. Externally, the two engines were indistinguishable. All 200S had no own chassis and body concepts. The first 200S was an adapted A6GCS , whose 6-cylinder engine was replaced by the 2-liter, 4-cylinder engine. The installation of a De Dion rear axle was discarded. Since you were not satisfied with the driving characteristics of the car after the first test drives, you built the following vehicles on 150S chassis. The first four were made by Maserati, others were built by Gilco Design . The Spyder bodies came from Fantuzzi and Celestino Fandri . 1957 followed on the 200S of the 200SI .

The race debut was the 200S at the Grand Prix of Imola in 1955 , with Franco Bordoni-Bisleri behind the wheel . Bordoni could not finish the race, which was won by his team-mate Cesare Perdisa on a Maserati A6GCS , due to a technical defect . The first finish there was the Grand Prix of Venezuela in 1955 with the sixth overall by Luigi Villoresi and Roberto Mieres (won the race Juan Manuel Fangio in the factory Maserati 300S ) .

The first victory celebrated in the spring of 1956 Giuseppe Musso in the Trofeo Vigorelli . It followed the success of Maserati test driver Luigi Bellucci at the Gran Premio di Napoli and the second overall place of Perdisa and Stirling Moss in the 1000 km race in Monza behind the plant - Ferrari 500TR Touring by Peter Collinsand Mike Hawthorn .

The 200S has a long racing history. Between 1955 and 1966, there were 277 race missions with 19 overall and 31 class victories. The last mission was the start of Pietro Termini at the Coppa Citta di Enna in 1966 , which ended the Italians in tenth place.

The 200S is a competition car built by Maserati from 1955 to 1957 . It was prepared, similar to the 150S , to replace the obsolete competition variants of the A6GCS .