Saturday 6th May 1939

The Maserati 4CL race car debuted in the Brooklands International Trophy dash in Surrey, England. The entry of private owner Reggie Tongue, finished third. The 4CL was introduced at the beginning of the 1939 season, as a rival to the Alfa Romeo 158 and various ERA models in the voiturette class of international Grand Prix motor racing. Although racing ceased during World War II, the 4CL was one of the front running models at the resumption of racing in the late 1940s. Experiments with two-stage supercharging and tubular chassis construction eventually led to the introduction of the revised 4CLT model in 1948.