Replica 250Fs

Sir,

In his excellent book “The Maserati 250F-A Classic Grand Prix Car” author Denis Jenkinson wrote: “This information supersedes anything previously published and the facts are correct at the time of going to press; rumour and surmise have not been included”. In order for there to be any history, rumour and surmise should be seen for exactly what they are. The wilful distortion of numbers to simulate fact is tantamount to forgery, thus reproduction racing cars can have no true place in history and can only be seen as making a mockery of the historic racing car scene.

Jenks, in the January issue of Motor Sport, at least airs his opinion of replicas and suggests a method of identifying fake 250F Maseratis. This should be done now so that the copies are not lost in the mists of time and fading memories to re-emerge as original cars. The interesting feature of the 250F situation is that replica versions are being made to account for the ones supposedly missing or broken up by the works. Embarrassing if they are not truly missing and eventually turn up, but embarrassing for whom? The replica builders, replica owners, one-make clubs, committees, historic racing sponsors? Are there enough original people in the right places who can put things in order, or are some of them pouring the new wine into the old bottles? And what has become of the reproduction 250F’s that got away, or is that history?

Is the American magazine Road & Track right when it says; “A replica is just an overdressed whore giving about the same lasting satisfaction and having about the same intrinsic value”?

Waltham Cross, Richard Crump