Maserati Tipo 26B

The Maserati Tipo 26 B was a two-seat racing car that Maserati built from 1927 to 1930. After the Grand Prix regulation changes that took effect at the end of 1926, the original Tipo 26 was revised: the straight-eight engine grew from 1.5 to 2 litres, from 1,492.9 cc to 1,980.5 cc, while keeping the same layout. Its body was reworked with an inclined radiator and bonnet air intakes made by craftsmen including Medardo Fantuzzi, and the supercharged engine produced 155 CV at 5,300 rpm. It debuted on 24 April 1927 at the Targa Florio, and a 1929 car finished twelfth at the 1930 Indianapolis 500 with Letterio Cucinotta. A 1929 example belongs to the Carlo Biscaretti Automobile Museum in Turin and is the oldest surviving Maserati racing car. The Tipo 26 R of 1928 and the Maserati V4 derived from it, and a Tipo 26 B MM version took part in the 1928 and 1929 Mille Miglia.