Maserati 8c 3000

This Maserati is one of only two examples of this two seater that were built in 1932, partly because it is a transitional model to the single seater Grand Prix racer, the 8CM.

It is only a minor burn that the legendary racing driver Sir Henry 'Tim' Birkin suffers during the 1933 Tripoli Grand Prix. Lacking a good mechanic, he tops up the oil of his racing car himself, this Maserati 8C 3000, and in doing so his arm touches the red hot exhaust. He grits his teeth, carries on and finishes third in the race. He pays little further attention to the burn, but it proves fatal. The wound causes blood poisoning and Birkin dies shortly afterwards. Birkin was a two time Le Mans winner (1929 and 1931) and one of the famous 'Bentley Boys', a group of drivers who in the late 1920s and early 1930s achieved great success with Bentley racers. Actor, comedian and car enthusiast Rowan Atkinson ('Mr. Bean') made a television film in 1995 about Birkin's life, titled 'Full Throttle'. This Maserati 8C 3000 is one of only two examples of this two seater built in 1932, partly because it was a transitional model towards the single seater Grand Prix racer, the 8CM. The first one won the 1933 French Grand Prix with Italian driver Giuseppe Campari at the wheel.