A ticket to the Mille Miglia can look like this Lancia

They say that with concours restorations, all you need is the serial number and the rest is just bodywork. That's what often happens when a lot of money is exchanged for something that, if you squint hard enough and tilt your head, can look like a car. Often times it's just the frame and bits of an engine, but if there is upside in a six-figure restoration then that's all you need, especially with marques like Bugatti.

Restoration specialist Thornley Kelham had a lot more to work with than a frame and a partial engine when bringing back this 1953 Lancia Aurelia B20 GT Series 3, but it wasn't all that much more. This rare right-hand-drive Lancia was found in the U.S. in the condition you see above, with paper-thin panels that were see-through in more than a few places and no floor to speak of — but complete with an engine.

"The usual rust points of these vehicles — namely floor pans, sills and door bottoms — had been totally ravaged by years left exposed to the elements," the shop says. "So severe was the problem that even the top of the wings had rusted through, the transmission tunnel had completely eroded and the body required strengthening prior to being media blasted as the car had so little structural integrity."

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