Lancia Motor Club

Did some Irish bloke on the forum embark on an Aurelia B12 restoration about 12 years ago?

Whatever became of it...........

https://www.lancia.myzen.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=5254.345


Well fellow forum readers, things indeed have moved on, from the photos below, taken at a very low point in the restoration, which I hadn't shared before as it was dare I say a little traumatized at that time in 2019.

Much more to follow, please put your feet up, grab your favourite beverage and read on......

P

Photos a bit big ........one by one ....

P

....more ....

.......

......

Another twenty months were to pass before I happened on another body/paint guy who said he'd do the job for me. Up til then I'd asked and enquired of at least another dozen guys from far and wide.

This guy was a pleasant enough chap, based about 12 miles away, seemed to be working through endless hours, rubbing and filling, lining up, sorting out minor body work issues, slowly but surely getting there. He'd said initially it would take about six months or so to do.

We got around to agreeing a price after 3/4 months but we didn't seem to be getting to a point were it actually would get painted.

The six months period came and went , work slowed, busy periods of doing his main type of body repairs, a bout of illness, COVID raised it's ugly head, then a burst pipe.

Before I knew it 18 months had passed and I was no further on.

Photo of it on its travels again April 2021

P

Can’t wait for the continuation!
Popcorn and cola ready:)

Looking forward to progress. Forgotten about his one.

  Richard

In the interim, via the forum, internet and interactions with other individuals and companies, I'd been amassing information, contacts and supplies.

As the B12 was progressing, albeit slowly towards being ready for paint, I'd browsed the Thornley Kelham site and spotted this fabulous series III B20 in the correct colour, Amaranto.

https://www.thornleykelham.com/gallery/lancia-aurelia-b20gt-series-3-2/

I inquired off them as to how they'd sourced the Amaranto colour. They very helpfully came back to say after a spectrum analysis and further research, this was indeed the exact colour as used in the 50s on Lancia Aurelias.

As this was done in about 2016, they dug out the tints list used to make up the colour required using the Standox system. They even gave me the address of their paint supplier so I could order it .

There then followed another truly facial episode in the B12's story.

Firstly they asked their delivery guys to deliver it to NI, sorry we don't deliver to NI any more due to onerous new regulations implemented after Brexit.

I tried further delivery companies, one said they would but only after I'd applied for an import license in my name and filled out several forms and then paid them roughly a quarter of the value of the paint to cross the North Channel!

I did explore other avenues, and enquired of a local paint shop who informed me that there was a Standox supplier in Belfast, another small celebration took place in my home!!!!

P

I was putting the cart before the horse in the last post, we had actually tried a local motor factors to mix up a batch, based on the colour found under the dash to see how close we could get it, wasn't bad but it wasn't Amaranto!

P

Thats more like Fulvia Rosso York!!!

As above, work continued

Constant reworking, the indicator opening, being refashioned, several times, noting again the rear indicator apertures has been cut out of other rear wings and welded back into mine, aluminum welding required

P

Time moved on, COVID lockdowns, illness, supply issues continued to stymy work, visits and mood.

These photos were taken in March 2022, it was moving on but, it had been with him for nearly 2 years now

Great to hear that this project is still alive Frank!
When you get it on the road I feel sure you will value it as B12s are great for everyday motoring. Long legged with sufficient power & brakes c/w an excellent ride.
Keep up the good work.
Chris  

Coming back to the paint, having gotten this far and the promise of it all being painted shortly ( can anyone define shortly, because it doesn't fit the OED definition!)

I'd ordered up the 6 litres plus thinners etc from the paint supplier in Belfast. I told them I'd send up the mix ratios for the Amaranto colour in advance, they'd mix it the following week.

Belfast is about an hour and 30 mins away so I'd lined up a few more things to do on that trip

As I queued with 4/5 customers to receive my paint, I felt a tad giddy, like an overgrown school boy waiting for his first "99" ice cream of the season on a warm summers day.

Standox supplies paid for, then safely stashed in my boot, things are looking up!


P

I'm looking forward to seeing it painted  :)

And then there was quite an hiatus, weeks turned into months, excuses and reasons why no further progress got a bit tedious and exhausting.

Of course some work was done, I'd inspected it in occasions, noting one of the  back doors couldn't be fully opened, realising there was an issue with panel  gaps/lines.

Eventually he agreed to paint up some panels, to see how they looked.

P

Usually, as this paint guy told me, when he gets a paint delivery in he does a quick check, but as this was from a different supplier, first time he'd used the Standox paint system ( noting its suitably expensive price as a premium product), plus all neatly labelled and packaged/sealed, he felt confident all would be hunky dory.

Finally after being sat in his store for nearly a year he opened one of the tins .......


P

the suspense!   :D

Quelle horreur!  (As they'd say in South Kensington!)

P

Upon receipt of the attachment on his text message I felt quite nauseous/panicked even.

How could this have happened, was the ratio from Thornley Kelham completely wrong, was it the suppliers fault?

A quick flurry of phonecalls/emails resulted in this information.


"My paint supplier got back to me, they incorrectly added each tint to overall figure each time instead of clearing scales and doing each tint individually!"


Thankfully they agreed to remix and deliver the correct colour later that week!

Panic mode dialled down several notches!


P

I'll let you all recover from the paint cauchemar as relayed above. .......


I'd signed off on the first segment concerning the water pump.

I'd left it with James Parry in Wales a while back, I'd also left the refurbishment kit from Cavilitto with him too. As James reported the body of the original pump was completely corroded and unuseable, luckily a member of the forum was able to help me out with a decent one, looks magnificent doesn't it?

Turned out it needed both bearing replaced, Omicron helped out for second one.

Hi Frank

I was only thinking about this project about a month or so ago and wondered what had happened. Glad to see it is still ongoing albeit very delayed, cannot imagine your frustration.

You started this a couple of years after I started my Beta Spider, that was finished in 2021, but the difference was the time taken was due to me, not any third party which is not the same.

All the best for the future, hope the road is less stressful….

Peter