The long search for an Aurelia B12

[Sliding Pillar]

The rear leaf spring leather gaiters are by Wefco, a period accessory. The previous owner had them made.
I like them so they are staying put.

[lancialulu]

Have those gaiters on my Sport 1600. Still going strong after 100,000 miles but not as clean.....

[stanley sweet]

It really is fantastic - and great that it's fallen into the right hands to keep it that way.

[Sebastien]

Ade, fascinating pictures of the bottom of your car!

I did not know that those louvred panels each side of the engine ever existed!
I checked the parts book, and they are in Tav. 62, pos. 22 and 23, Grembiale destro e sinistro completo (a richiesta) - so it was an option - does it appear on a period price list, I wonder?
There is one type for the LHD, and one for the RHD car! With two small closing plates, pos. 19. and the necessary screws, pos. 73!
Grembiale could be translated "Apron".
I wonder who ever specified this option on the purchase of a B12 berlina.... and how many of those are still existing today..!

I shall from now on check all B12 to see if I can find another one so equiped! 

Well done!

PS: The gaiters on the rear leaf springs are also interesting - I have the same on my Lambda, now I know who produced them!

[Sliding Pillar]

Sebastien, I am glad to have enlightened you! I can only presume that as Lancia (England) used the car a a demonstrator they had the aprons to make it look a bit more special. (Not sure what the do for engine cooling though!)
The Wefco gaiters are still available, the Wefco trade mark was bought by Pritchards Coach trimmers of Yatton, just south of Bristol a few years ago.  http://www.wefco-gaiters.com/
A close up of the 'Apron' which shows the closing plates and screws.

[rogerelias]

Hi Ade, are we going to see this car in the flesh at the AGM ?

[Sliding Pillar]

Yes, I do plan to be at the AGM in it.

[Sliding Pillar]

Another sunny day for a drive, I have now done more miles in the B12 than it has done in the last seven years, and it keeps getting better.
I have added a couple of door mirrors for safety in modern traffic. They clip onto the quarter light windows, so it is not necessary to drill any holes and they can be removed in seconds if necessary.
The side light bulbs have been upgraded to LEDs so that it is more visible if I ever drive it after dark... last minute dash for the ferry comes into mind.
More rape seed field photos.....

[Parisien]

Ade, achingly fabulous........and thats just the rapeseed field as for the B12, words fail me!

P

[Niels Jonassen]

Provoked by Sabastien's finding I searched the parts catalogue from January 1954 to see what that might reveal. The louvered panels are not there, so they must have been introduced with the B12. Comparing the two "tavole" I found various interesting differences. The most striking is that on the earlier cars the front bumper seems to be mounted on a bolt with a spring at the back. Has anyone ever noticed if the front bumper on a B10 can be pushed backwards? Of course they might have rusted too much. Incidentally there ar no springs on our B20, so presumably they only went on to the berlina models.

[Sliding Pillar]

Just returned from the Sliding Pillar Rally, over 500 miles and it just gets smoother to drive.
A bit of cleaning to do now before the AGM.

[chriswgawne]

I thought about starting a new thread entitled 'The long search for an Aurelia B12 number 2' as it took me 3 to 4 years to find ours but as there are so few around I reconsidered and decided to add to this thread.
I am on my own here this week and so its a good opportunity to get on with some car related things so I have started refitting our B20 S1 which has been stripped and repainted its original black colour. This car has never been rusty and so is a pleasure to work on. We have owned and driven it for well over 20 years and being an early car it has a character all of its own.
Anyway, whilst Jacky is away I have taken the  the opportunity to get the front seats in our Fulvia GTE 'daily driver' restitched and refoamed locally. The seat covers themselves are like new.
(The same guy is refurbishing our Ercole leather saddle type seat which is a work of art but that's another story.)
Therefore my current daily driver for the last week has been the B12 and what a capable car it is whether on the Autostrada, in the hills or just cruising around. Its quiet, comfortable and refined with great brakes and I really enjoy driving it.
Chris

[DavidLaver]

Is that a side exit exhaust...?

[simonandjuliet]

Or the cat with a bandage on its tail

Hoping to see lots more pictures whilst J is away !

[chriswgawne]

Yes, its a side exhaust on one side only using a 2 into 1 under the floor and its quiet!
It was on this car when we bought it in Europe in the early 1990s. At that time the car itself  was pretty complete but had a B12 2.3l engine (which on opening it up was actually 2.5l!) with a nice pair of Weber 36s on top and a 'longer' transaxle as it was purportedly being readied for La Carrera Panamerica!
Money changed hands to three people in the end - one for the car as it stood, the second for the original engine and the third for some paperwork, the original front axle and the original transaxle.
What particularly attracted me to it was the apparent absence of any corrosion anywhere and at that time I was trying to obtain one each of 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th series B20s for future restoration. 1st Series were very few and far between (as they are today) and this car looked like it could be put on the road at minimal extra cost which is what happened and until 3 years ago when the Fulvia GTE arrived it was our daily driver over here in the fine weather.
Over the 25 years or so of ownership I have refitted the original engine (having rebuilt it with new pistons etc) but then a couple of valve springs broke on the M3 and I lunched a piston comprehensively. After that I changed all the valve springs. I have also had the mainshaft in the transaxle fracture - no idea why - but I have grown to like driving it very much as it is so tactile being so light, quiet and nimble. When the Fulvia arrived I decided to have the body stripped and taken back to its original black and this exercise has taken well over 18 months. The end result is superb and I am just beginning to refit the car which is a pleasure as there is no new metal apart from one door skin which had filler in it from a bump and the rhs sill which was the incorrect shape from the same bump by the A post. I have had a complete correct fabric covered wire loom made as this seemed wise so I will fit that and as all the trim is aluminium apart from the headlamp rims, its just needs polishing to bring it back.
Early B20's, particularly S1  now seem to have been discovered by the cognoscenti according to one or two dealers I regularly chat to and so I am looking forward very much to driving it again soon. The only negative is that I think we are going to want to have the car fully retrimmed as it was done in the 80s but not very well.
Chris