Lancia Motor Club

Spotted this Augusta Casaro for sale in Italy:

http://www.autoscout24.eu/Details.aspx?id=li3ixn4avxip

Ed

Lovely!!

So that would have been coachbuilt on a platform chassis... 

David

Don't be so sure without seeing under the bonnet. It should be, but remember the "Targa Florio (or was it Mille Miglia?) special" we saw in Fobello which was plainly made from a saloon. It looks like it's got the cabriolet front seats, but why no under bonnet photo? It's a pleasing shape, but I wonder how the boot opens, if indeed it does? It looks good, anyway.
 Regards, John

...I was looking at the rear footwells.  

Last time we played "spot the difference" on the forum my conclusion was that getting the back seat lower appears to be the motivation for the differences between the factory saloon and platform.  The platform chassis has clear foot wells below floor level and the cross members are in different places to permit that.

From the interior photo it does seem to be wells lower than the floor upfront.  Fuel filler at the back.  I was wondering if the back seats folded forwards to access the luggage locker at the back rather than a boot lid.

David

John,
I've just zoomed the photos up to 400% and there is no sign of the boot being able to open, also looking at the back seat there seems to be a pull tab behind them, I suspect access to the boot is via the back seat.
Must admit I wondered why they had chosen to ommit any photos of the engine compartment. but like yourself I think it looks good.

Brian
8227 8)

There is a picture of a similar Casaro Augusta in the first edition of La Lancia, page 91.

Bonnet vents are a different shape though and the two-tone paintwork suits it very well.

I haven't seen a dash like that before either - the way the extreme left and right rolls away into the door shut.  I really like the timber dash capping and window frames.  Can't put my finger on why but the carpets seem odd.

David

Carpets are too loud, and off putting. The interior may be a bit off too, but that could be the flash and the shadow highlighting each little gap. Somehow this seems like some old and some new put together - but its a pretty car for sure.

This is what my contact in Italy says:-
The owner put advert on subito.it in Autumn 2009, the price was 30.000euro. It's a partially restored car, the bumpers aren't original, the price was high because the price for a standard 1935 Augusta was 20.000euro in Italy in 2009. Now Morlacchi, a greedy dealer in Bergamo asks more. Take a look to the Flaminia convertible on his website: 85000euro for a 2500 single carb, nice in the photo, but badly re-painetd in real. I saw it last year for a US friend of mine. Anyway, i don't know how many Augusta Casaro survived, (2/3?) i think it's just a rare car if someone likes it.

Luzzago had this one for sale last year

Nice but not as pretty or as balanced IMHO.

Brian
8227 8)