– I “discovered” this car model in the early 1990s. As usual for us men, it was the exterior, the forms, that attracted me, Nenseth explains and quickly adds that he still thinks she is very beautiful, even when she is 30 years older.
– It was only later that I was also to be impressed by the inner qualities – the technical finesse, smiles the owner.
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The mid-1950s was a golden age for Italian coachwork, and Pinin Farina dressed up some of the country’s finest car models, like this Lancia Aurelia B24S Convertible. Photo: Ivar Engerud / Finansavisen
From dream to reality
The first time he saw a live example was in Switzerland in the spring of 1997. It was a completely restored and polished car, but so expensive that he immediately dismissed the idea of buying one.
However, not completely.
It moved a little extra every time an advertisement with the model appeared in classic magazines. But with only 521 examples of the Aurelia B24 Cabriolet produced, they are not on the market every week.
In the spring of 1999, a few appeared in the USA. Cars that were quickly turned away because they were in too bad a condition. However, an advertised example from Dragone Classic Motorcars in Bridgeport, Conncticut in Classic & Sports Car in August of that year seemed far more interesting.
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– I went to the US to look at the car, got an offer and hesitated until I made a purchase. Later I discovered that the car was one of those I had previously rejected because they were in too bad a condition. Now they had “decorated the bride”.
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After building 240 examples of the Aurelia Spider in 1955, Pinin Farina followed up with 521 examples of the Aurelia Convertibile from 1956 to 1958. Photo: Ivar Engerud / Finansavisen
Continuous improvement
The car arrived at Vippetangen in Oslo on 5 October 1999 in a container. Excited, Nenseth could state that everything was “okay”. It was the right car, it started, and everything was fine and dandy.
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– There was of course much more to do with the car than what I had seen with my rose-colored glasses at the seller’s. But it was a solid and good renovation object. Therefore, it took time and work before the car entered traffic. I had a few rounds of test plates, until I thought the time had come for registration in the spring of 2001.
Still not completely restored, but the technical aspects had been reviewed and improved where needed, so that it could be put into use.
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A full review of the bodywork was taken at Jon S. Braathen at Minnesund the following year and revealed minor collision damage from the period of use on the left front side. After professional repair, it was time to add a new layer of paint in the same gorgeous color that this particular example was delivered with when it left Pinin Farina’s workshop in 1958: “Celeste” – sky blue.
Finally, the then 44-year-old lady was restored back to the appearance and condition she was in when she was new.
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The line at the top of the doors on this Lancia Aurelia flows into a lovely arc on the rear fenders. Photo: Ivar Engerud / Finansavisen
Spider and Convertible
Lancia first commissioned Pinin Farina to build a series of Spiders on a shortened (20 cm) Aurelia GT chassis in 1954. It debuted at the Brussels Auto Show in January 1955, but the main market for the gorgeous open sports car was the US.
After completing the order for 240 Spiders without side windows, production at Pinin Farina was switched to building far more comfortable and usable Convertibile editions with side windows and a working canopy.
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– It leaks a little less in rainy weather, reasons Nenseth, with some experience.
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Tor Nenseth has had the pleasure of using the lovely two-seater Lancia Aurelia B24 Cabriolet for the past 20 years. Photo: Ivar Engerud / Finansavisen
Fourth owner
He is the fourth owner of the car that has a rather delightfully impressive name from the factory: Lancia Aurelia B24S Convertibile, series 6. “B24” refers to the engine volume of Lancia’s V6 engine of 2.4 liters, “S” for sinistra, left-hand drive, and series 6 suggests that a number of improvements have been made along the way from the start of production.
The birth certificate shows that this example, with chassis number B24S 1669, was started on Friday 16 May and finished on Saturday 2 August 1958. If you think that was a long time, remember that this was the golden age of Italian bodywork, the period when every body was handmade. Here it was Pinin Farina’s skilled craftsmen in Turin who hammered out the sensual forms the designer had created.
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– The car was exported to the USA in the autumn of 1958 and delivered new in 1959 to Francesco Burgosser in Connecticut. He sold it after a few years to the second owner, who then sold it on in 1964. It was then in the same ownership for 35 years before I took it over as the fourth owner.
The Aurelia B24S Convertibile was built in the period 1956 to 1958, and Nenseth’s example is number 490 out of a total of 521 examples. This means that it has received all the technical improvements Lancia made to the model along the way.
The car is today as it was delivered from the factory 65 years ago. Like most vintage cars, it has benefited from an enthusiastic owner, who, in addition to regular maintenance, has also rectified both mechanical and cosmetic weaknesses over the course of more than 20 years of ownership.
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The interior is minimalistic and clean with light brown leather interior and a beautiful steering wheel from Pagliani & Provenzale. Photo: Ivar Engerud / Finansavisen
Expensive and advanced model
The list price in the US when new was $5,475. It was on par with, say, a Cadillac Series 62 Convertible, but only a third of a Ferrari 250 GT Pinin Farina Cabriolet.
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For that, customers received a beautifully designed convertible with a weight of 1,250 kilograms powered by Lancia’s own V6 engine of 2.4 liters and an output of 108 horsepower. Far from any racing car, but still very sporting characteristics for being in the late 1950s.
Right from the start, Lancia was a car manufacturer that never went out of its way to introduce new technology to its cars. Be it on the engine and driveline side or on the chassis constructions. It was no coincidence that it was precisely Lancia that was the first to come out with self-supporting bodies with Lambda in 1922 and that the Aurelia B20 is considered the first GT.
– Lancia was an engineer-driven company. Financial compromises in the development of new cars were not in the spirit of the company. Lancia was technically very advanced, both in terms of engine and drivetrain. Several construction principles have later been continued by brands that have become more famous. Among the novelties launched with the Aurelia were the V6 aluminum engine, the transaxle principle with independent rear suspension and the use of radial tires as standard, explains the owner.
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Lancia had introduced the Aurelia series in 1950. First in sedan form, then a sleek two-door coupé and in 1954 the first open two-seater.
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No such model was sold new in Norway, and this is the only one that has been imported in recent times. Photo: Ivar Engerud / Finansavisen
Only in Norway – at the Oslo Motor Show
As mentioned, America was the main market for the Aurelia Spider and Convertibile, and no such new ones were sold in Norway. Nenseth’s copy is the only one on Norwegian signs. In addition, there is one Convertibile in Denmark and one Spider in Sweden.
The very active Lancia club in Norway, Lancicsti Norvegesi, is making a strong bid Oslo Motor Show in the weekend.
There you will also be able to view this beautiful, sky-blue dream on four wheels.
This article was first published in Finansavisen Motor
2023-10-28 06:34:05
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