B20 Basic maintenance

[timdaw]

I'm new to the B20 and am finding some everyday maintenance and basic stuff challenging...stuff which is easy on other cars! I have the workshop manual but it has some omissions.

I'd be very grateful for some guidance on the following please:

1. How best to rotate the engine when adjusting points, and where are the timing marks to be found?

2. Where is it best to jack the rear of the car?

Thank you.

[impaw]

Hello Tim!
I´ll try to answer a couple of you questions

The flywheel has a tiny "0" stamped on one of its teeth.
It can be hard to spot if the flywheel is dirty.
Clean and perhaps accentuate with a dash of white paint?
This mark should line up with 1 I 4 on the flanger of the engine, when piston #1 is at TDC.
When you time the engine with a strobe light it should line up with A A

Regarding turning the engine, there nut on the crankshaft pulley is 22mm, if you can reach it (my engine is out of the car, so I'm not sure if it is possible to reach it with the radiator in place).

[williamcorke]

Hi Tim,

Jacking question. Depends on what you're jacking the car up for. The jacking point in the sill with the standard jack is a surprisingly effective way to get both the wheels on that side off the ground if wheel removal is your goal.

Alternatively, the mounting points of the trailing arm (where the the big bushes are) are solid enough to take the weight of the car and I sometimes jack up the entire rear of the car with a high-lift trolley jack under the transaxle (with a wooden block to protect the aluminium casing).

Others may disagree with my choices!

Best, William

[timdaw]

Thank you to William and Torstein for your replies.

I see that this post has been read over 200 times, but only 2 replies. Does nobody maintain their own Aurelia?

[williamcorke]

Good question Tim. There are a few of us here who do maintain and restore our own Aurelias. I think owners who don't get hand-on into the engineering and construction of these lovely cars are missing out on a lot of the fun, but each to their own.

I'm sure we'd all love to hear more about your S3 B20. How long have you had it, and what was your 'journey' to Aurelia-land?

Best, William

[chriswgawne]

I dont think Aurelias are particularly complicated and so maintenance is similar to other early 1950s vehicles.
There are lots of greasing points, some of which are a bit of a pain to get to but nevertheless are worth doing at least once per year. I have a couple of period SHELL greasing charts which I can photo and send you if you wish.
Oil changes - I always use Mobil 1 10/40 and change every 3 to 5,000 miles even if the oil still looks clean. On all our Aurelias I have converted the oil filter to a full flow modern canister type BTW.
Engine coolant - keep the antifreeze % content up to minimize corrosion.
Brakes - use the car regularly to avoid rear wheel cylinder leaks - they are a pain to change! Brake shoe adjustment is occasional as the front shoes are so large, particularly on the 2.5l cars. The rears hardly wear at all Ignition points - Its important to have the points accurately set 180 deg apart and also that the distributor itself isnt badly worn.

Hope this helps.
Chris

[chriswgawne]

I see you have a S3 B20 - does it have the original 'Lancia' lever arm shock absorbers? They are beautiful things with quite a range of adjustment but over time they can leak around the main shaft. Important to keep the level maintained with the correct sort of fluids which I believe are detailed in the manual.
Chris

[timdaw]

Good question Tim. There are a few of us here who do maintain and restore our own Aurelias. I think owners who don't get hand-on into the engineering and construction of these lovely cars are missing out on a lot of the fun, but each to their own.

I'm sure we'd all love to hear more about your S3 B20. How long have you had it, and what was your 'journey' to Aurelia-land?

Best, William

Hello William,

I bought the car just a couple of months ago. I used to have a 6th series car, which I bought about 25 years ago and owned for a few years. I did some long trips in it, including London to Basel via Le Mans 24hr. I've hankered after another one in recent years and have always considered the B20 to be one of the most beautiful designs ever, both aesthetically and technically. The one I bought was restored at vast expense by Omicron...pretty much everything done, including engine rebuild, but its not without its faults! I've always looked after my cars, primarily Porsche 356's, but also Alfa Giulia SS and Giulietta Spider Veloce, as much as possible as I enjoy having an input into the car. I'm finding the Aurelia a bit intimidating though! Paul Mayo's manual is very helpful of course, but it is missing some basic stuff for 'beginners' with the cars.

Best wishes, Tim

[timdaw]

I dont think Aurelias are particularly complicated and so maintenance is similar to other early 1950s vehicles.

Hope this helps.
Chris

Hello Chris,

Thank you for your helpful response. The first thing I did on the car was to familiarise myself with the greasing points, which as you say are many! I also changed the engine and gearbox oils, topped up pot joints. I drained some water off and introduced plenty of anti freeze.

The brakes squeal a bit at first, but are fine when they are warmed up. I intend to use the car regularly and agree that this is important.

The rear shocks had been modified to telescopics long ago. It's fitted with Spax, which I'm not a big fan of. I prefer Koni, but I'd have to have some specially made by them.

I would love to see the Shell greasing chart if you don't mind please.

Best wishes, Tim

[chriswgawne]

I have a pair of rebuilt early 1960s (by Koni) telescopic Konis but I think are for 4th srs and later I believe. What min/max lengths do your Spax open/close to?
Here are poor photos of one of the Shell charts I have.
Chris

[timdaw]

I have a pair of rebuilt early 1960s (by Koni) telescopic Konis but I think are for 4th srs and later I believe. What min/max lengths do your Spax open/close to?
Here are poor photos of one of the Shell charts I have.
Chris

Many thanks for that Chris!

[Sebastien]

Hello! Welcome (once again) to Aurelia ownership!

Here is the chart from the B20 user manual

[timdaw]

Hello! Welcome (once again) to Aurelia ownership!

Here is the chart from the B20 user manual

Many thanks Sebastien!

[cundyalex]

Hello Aurelia owners!

Like Tim, I'm new to B20 ownership (be gentle!) and I've recently joined the club.

'My' car is WPD10 which is fairly well known in the club I think.  Actually - 'ownership' sounds a bit overblown in this case. I've taken it on after my dad John passed away last year. Really I consider it to be my dad's car and that I'm just looking after it so I want to do a decent job!

My first job for winter is fluid and lubrication check/replacement but otherwise it's in pretty good fettle in the short term.

First basic question - hence the use of this thread - can anyone recommend an antifreeze? My dad left a lot of notes about the car (some of it researching suitable antifreeze types) but I can't find his conclusion. Is there something specific to use that will inhibit corrosion? Or just some general good quality stuff?

Anyway - I look forward to B20 disucssions - and thanks in advance,

Alex.

[lancialulu]

Hi Tim

I knew and respected your Dad for his extensive engineering knowledge not restricted to Lancias. We exchanged ideas on such matters of Aurelia suspension (I have a B12), and I was sad to hear he passed.

We did not discuss antifreeze but if we would have done I am not sure we would have agreed but maybe.

Anyway I have found empirically the blue glycol based anti freeze at 50% concentration seems to give protection to corrosion. I use this in my other Lancias as well as my B12. I think, but could be wrong, but blue glycol based is same as Lancia specified  called Paraflu.

Good luck with your custodianship and welcome to LMC!

Tim