Lancia D20 Pininfarina

Vehicle Overview

Immediately after the war, as soon as he was installed at the top of the family business, the engineer Gianni Lancia showed a particular interest in motor racing, differentiating himself in this from his father – the unforgettable Vincenzo – who, after having successfully participated in first person behind the wheel of Fiat cars at the first car races at the turn of the century, once he became a manufacturer he did not aspire to make his cars competitive. Immediately after the presentation of the Aurelia model – which, especially in the B20 coupé version seems particularly suitable for this purpose – the engineer decides to take the field in the sporting arena: in a first phase (1951) at Lancia we are satisfied with ” assisting “customers who wish to take part in the most important races, then (1952) they take the field” officially “with the specially set up and prepared Aurelia B20s, after which they decide to try their hand at racing with a specifically designed product, which debuted in 1953. Thus was born, between 1952 and 1953, the D20 model, which many initially define a bit too simplistically and hastily as “Aurelia 2900”. In reality this is not just another version of the Aurelia (which, in the event, should have been marked by the initials with the letter “B” as used in those years at Lancia) but a product, also designed by the famous Vittorio Jano, which, although derived from Aurelia, differed in many technical features. From the moment of the decision to build this racing car and that of the competitive debut (April 25, 1953) it seems an abundant year has passed. The designers who work alongside Vittorio Jano respond to the names of Ettore Zaccone Mina (specialized in engines), Francesco Faleo (chassis), Mattei (engine tests) and Luigi Bosco (transmission). In the first half of 1952 a first engine (type B110) was built with a displacement of 2494 cm3 and delivering over 180 HP, which, however, evidently did not fully satisfy and was soon set aside in favor of a more powerful unit. The engine – always a 6-cylinder V 60 ° – that equips the D20 in fact nearly three liters of displacement (the engine is almost “square” in the sense that the bore and stroke measurements are almost identical, that is 86 mm and 85 respectively) and exceeds 215 HP at 6500 rpm. Peculiar characteristics of the engine are: four overhead camshafts, double ignition, fueling by means of three double-barrel carburetors. The suspensions are four-wheel independent: front with transverse leaf spring and oscillating arms, rear with trapezoid and transverse leaf spring. From an aesthetic point of view, the D20 looks like a sleek and elegant coupé due to Pininfarina’s pencil. Since Gianni Lancia definitely aims to have his Turin manufacturer participate in the World Sports Car Championship (established in 1953), it is clear that the D20 can only represent a sort of experimental springboard, as it is a model with insufficient power to contrast the most famous brands (Ferrari in primis). Four of the eleven “D20s” put in place are transformed during construction into the new type D23 spider, intended to act as a bridge between the D20 and the D24, the car destined to become famous for the victory at the Mexican Carrera and to really prove itself able to compete on equal terms with the best Ferraris, Alfa Romeo, Jaguar and Aston Martin.