Olio vegetale for Aurelia brakes

Ed Palmen · Unread post by **Ed Palmen** » 22 Mar 2001, 11:23

In the enginecompartment of a B20 I found a plate indicating: FOR THE BRAKES USE ONLY:OLIO VEGETALE"
But what is olio"vegetale" 40 years ago. You could buy SABIF p-2 (70R3) for the brakes, even more modern universal DOT 3 was more or less useble, but modern DOT 4 OR DOT 5 brake oils will destroy, without doubt, slowly (indeed very slowly) all the rubber parts! So, I would like to know what is "olio vegetale" and/or what kind of brake fluids are not destroying the Aurelia brake rubbers without renewing all the rubber pistons,etc.(in order to use dot4/5 oils)

Omicron · Unread post by **Omicron** » 22 Mar 2001, 11:24

Don't do what one person did and use vegetable cooking oil!!!!

Use DoT 4 fluid.

Andrew

Ed Palmen · Unread post by **Ed Palmen** » 22 Mar 2001, 11:29

It's good to learn that OMICRON, at least mr ANDREW has more knowledge with cooking of fish and chips in vegetable oil than with "olio freno vegetale" for Aurelias (not a kind of fish but older Lancias!) I presume mr Andrew is perhaps youngest salesman and hopes to sell a lot of sets remanufactured brake-rubber seals/pistons for Aurelias, because using modern brake fluid dot 4/5 with the original fitted rubber brakeparts,the additives in these oils will swell and make porous the original rubbers. If you have renewd all the rubber brakeparts by more modern replacement parts, and after flushing the brakesystem, you
can safely use modern brakebluid. Anyhow it would nice to hear from mr Andrew :the price if he delivers a complete new set rubber brakeparts for Aurelia??

Andrew Cliffe @ Omicron · 22 Mar 2001, 11:35

Dear Sir,

The Aurelia brake master cylinder states "uso sole olio vegetale" which translated literally into English is "only use vegetable oil" and this is referring to brake fluid derived from castor oil (itself
a product from the castor oil bean) - hence the "vegetable" name rather than mineral based hydraulic fluids which are made from products extracted during mining.

Modern brake fluid that conforms to DOT 3 or DOT 4 or newer DOT 5.1 specifications are non-mineral based (polyalkylene glycol ether), so natural rubber seals (as used in the Aurelia) will not
swell and cause trouble. DOT 4 has a higher boiling point than DOT3 and therefore performs better and for longer under more extreme conditions.

Mineral based brake fluids do exist, some Rolls Royce, Citroens and Maseratis use these, and this fluid is incompatible for seals designed for use with non-mineral based fluids. Another brake
fluid specification is silicone, often mistakenly referred to as DOT5. Silicone fluids meet the requirements for DOT5 in terms of the boiling point temperature, but not necessarily the chemical
composition.

We know that at least one person has seen the words vegetable oil and decided to use 'vegetable' oil rather than brake fluid which has caused trouble with original seals.

I would be delighted to give prices for new brake components on your Aurelia, but I need to know what type of Aurelia you have.

My father bought his first Aurelia in 1974, the hobby turned into a business in 1981 and since then we have worked on many, many Aurelias, always using DOT3 or DOT4 brake fluid. The late
Harry Manning, one of the foremost Lancia experts, always recommended the use of normal brake fluids dating back to times when the seals would have been of original Lancia manufacture.

The only time we have experienced problems with *original* seals is with silicone brake fluid and we have found that *original* seals are incompatible, despite the claims made by the
manufacturers who claim that silicone is compatible with all seals. Our reproduction seals are compatible with silicone brake fluid.

Yours sincerely,

Andrew Cliffe
Omicron Engineering Ltd.,
www.omicron.uk.com

Ed Palmen · Unread post by **Ed Palmen** » 22 Mar 2001, 11:50

The second answer from Omicron gives good and nice information about" olio freno vegetale for Aurelia's". Already 40 years I am using normal dot 3 brakefluid in my Aurelia's, all with still
the original Lancia rubber brake piston seals! That confirms the Omicron information!!
(I prefer dot 3 oil ( the cheapiest brands) hoping that these will not consist a lot of additives,these could perhaps harm "natural rubber" Lancia brakeparts)

Paul Blokland · Unread post by **Paul Blokland** » 10 Apr 2002, 11:25

Hello Andrew,

I always thought the Aurelia a very handsome car, and am now almost in a position to buy one.
How feasible is it to run one on a daily basis? I work from home, so there are no arduous slogs through city traffic, but I would use it almost every day for, say, 20 or 30km's.
Is there much difference between the 6 series for the purpose of using it quite intensively?
(I am not too concerned whether the vehicle would be LHD and RHD.)

On my next visit to the UK (July), I intend to drop by your premises to have a good look, and chat if possible. Do I need to make a prior appointment?

Thanks

Sebastien Simon · Unread post by **Sebastien Simon** » 28 Apr 2002, 18:45

In my opinion it is feasible to do so, but I would not do it. You want to enjoy the car. If you use it daily you will find some shortcomings: it is very exposed to minor parking damages, for example a car reversing carelessly will certainly damage the radiator grille, or the lights, the doors will get bumped into by other drivers.
The brakes are not optimal for stop and go traffic, you will worry about water temperature, and so on.
You will enjoy the car when you drive it on week ends, and have time to listen to it! Also use it for long trips and holidays.
As an everyday transportation mean, it is wasted.
(Just my opinion!)

Jean de Barsy · Unread post by **Jean de Barsy** » 08 Jan 2003, 17:39

I'm quite convinced you can do so, but I think it's a shame to use an Aurelia for daily shopping purposes. Also what Mr. Simon says is correct, you'll see 10.000 flaws when compared to a modern car. Most cars have ABS now and brake much better than the Aurelia... so why would you risk to crash it on a daily basis? On the other hand, if it's in good condition now, it will be a "car needing restoration" in a few years. Nobody seems to bother about the insurance. If it's used on a daily basis it must be in really perfect technical condition (brakes, lights...) because should you be involved in a serious car crash with severe injuries to others... I'm afraid you'll be in dire straits with an "oldtimer"...

graham lyle · Unread post by **graham lyle** » 27 Aug 2011, 14:18

Does any member have a copy of the Manual for my 1952 Lancia Aurelia B52
Please ring Graham Lyle
01788 869065

lucasgeheniau · Unread post by **lucasgeheniau** » 27 Aug 2011, 14:49

Hi Graham,

On the Viva-lancia homepage you will find links to order CD's

On CD Aurelia 1 there is the Italian User manual and on CD Aurelia 2 there is the factory Partsbook.

Cheers

Lucas