Pick of the Day: Rare 1947 Lancia Aprilia cabriolet

From 1937 to 1949, Lancia produced more than 28,600 of its Aprilia models, some of them chassis delivered to coachbuilders. The car was the last developed under the leadership of company founder Vincenzo Lancia, who died the same month as production began. 

Of those thousands of units, only 10 were outfitted with cabriolet coachwork by Pinin Farina. One of those 10 is the Pick of the Day.

In addition to being the founder’s last model, the Aprilia was one of the first cars designed using a wind tunnel, at the polytechnic university in Torino, Italy, where Lancia designer Battista Falchetto helped shape a car with what at the time was an exceptionally aerodynamic coefficient of drag.

The Pick of the Day is a Pinin Farina-bodied, 2-door coachbuilt 1947 Lancia Aprilia cabriolet being offered from the private collection, the advertisement on ClassicCars.com notes, of the owner of a Ferrari dealership in south Florida.

According to the ad, the car, chassis 11854, was delivered new in Switzerland and was located decades later by Lancia historian Jean Pierre Baumgartner in disrepair outside a Swiss barn. The car was restored by “the leading Lancia specialists across Europe,” the advertisement adds.

“Though no records of this restoration — which reportedly took over five years to complete — have been retained, the quality of work is evident,” the seller adds, “many correct parts were sourced by noted Lancia specialists Autoricambi Cavalitto in Torino, Italy, with work on the car completed by reputable Swiss workshops.”

In 2014, the car was sold to a German resident, who kept it until the consignor took possession in the summer of 2018.

“Presented in its factory-correct color combination of white over dark-red leather, 11854 is a sight to behold,” the seller reports. “An attractive navy-blue top provides stunning contrast; when not in use, it is secured below a dark-red boot cover. 

“The driver and passenger face a dashboard color-matched to the white exterior and set with a striking composition in Bakelite and chrome. The Aprilia Cabriolet’s tasteful brightwork, radiused wheel arches, and subtle modeling established Pinin Farina’s post-war direction as much as their legendary Cisitalia 202 of the following year.

“This Lancia Aprilia is a highly significant Pinin Farina design. Equally importantly, its advanced engineering makes it as usable as it is beautiful and as rewarding to drive as it is to admire.”

The original Aprilias were pillarless 4-door sedans with narrow-angle V4 engines. A second series was introduced in 1939 with larger but still V4 engines. Pinin Farina did a coupe and a very few convertibles.  

The car is being offered for $213,900. To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.