I
guessed it looked like a Maserati, but I'm advised by Michael
T. Lynch that the photo-02 car is not one of the four like and one unique
Maseratis at Indy in 1940. The similar cars were numbers 1, 22, 29, and 49. The
other, looking only remotely like the car in 02, was number 39, Henry Banks in
the Hollis A. Chessman Maserati V8Ri. Michael said the drilled-out rear suspension
arm on the car in 02 is inconsistent with that Maserati.
Banks did not qualify, "Did not complete run," but relieved
Chet Miller in the number 34 Alfa Romeo that finished 17th.
Banks was one of five drivers who saw relief duty that year, and
his number 39 one of sixteen listed cars that did not qualify. Both
groups included Rene Dreyfus, whose number 22 Lucy O'Reiley Schell
Maserati he had driven to "second alternate" in qualifying;
he relieved Rene LeBeque in the number 49 Maserati. Information
from "Johnson's
Indy 500" pages.
I have a Brumm model of the 1940 winning number
1 Wilbur Shaw Maserati, and another of a number 2 Maserati purported to be from
1950. They are both dark red with large numerals in white. I can't reconcile the
car and number with the 1950 information I have.
Mike O' identifies the
mystery car in photo 02 as the number 32 Sampson, driven by Bob Swanson. Mike
said perusal of the Indy 500 Chronicle showed it's likely the lettering
says "Sampson '16' Special," the numerals referring to the Sampson engine's
16 cylinders. Records show Swanson
qualified it at 124.882 mph, started 20th and finished 6th,
196 laps completed, earning $2,463.