1967 OSI 20M TS

1967 OSI 20M TS
Chassis no. EX54GE01574
1,998cc V6 Engine
Solex 32 DDIST 2-Barrel Carburetor
90bhp at 5,000rpm
4-Speed Transmission
MacPherson Struts Front, Live Axle Rear
Disc Brakes Front, Drum Brakes Rear

*Rare limited-production, hand built European coupe
*1 of less than 200 examples believed to be in existence
*Freshly restored to concourse standards
*Styled by one of Italy's best

THE OSI 20M TS

In 1960, coachbuilder Ghia, seeking contracts to put some of its designs into limited volume production, formed a parallel company to carry out the work. The brainchild of Luigi Segre, owner of Ghia, and Arrigo Olivetti, owner of automotive component manufacturer Fergat, Officine Stampaggi Industriali – shortened to OSI – set up modern production facilities in Turin, adjacent to Ghia's operations. Its first commissions were for the Innocenti 950 Spider, and the station wagon variant of the Fiat 1300/1500 sedan, the Familiare.

In January 1965, Ford's European subsidiary, headquartered in Cologne, Germany, commissioned OSI to build a successor to its flagship Taunus Coupe. The new luxury coupe was to seat four in comfort, and use the fourth-generation Taunus 20M executive car chassis and as many of its components as possible. It would be sold and serviced by Ford dealerships.

The new OSI 20M TS was first shown in concept form on the Ford stand at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1966. Principal credit for the styling went to Sergio Sartorelli, whose hand shaped the Volkswagen Type 34 "razor edge" Karmann Ghia and the Fiat 2300 S Coupe. At the time, Sartorelli was director of OSI's new central styling department.

Designer Tom Tjaarda, who worked with Ghia at the time, believed that designer Sergio Corgiolla may have contributed to the lines of the OSI, which might have been influenced by a sketch by American designer Virgil Exner Jr. In an interview Paul Hardiman in the November 2002 issue of Classic & Sports Car magazine, Tjaarda recalled that Exner would often send sketches to Luigi Segre, the head of Ghia. "I think that the 20M coupe was one of Exner's designs," he said. "I remember very well these sketches in general but not the 20M coupe specifically, but they were only rather general concept drawings and both Corggiola and Sartorelli deserve much credit for their development and refinement of these cars."

The 20M TS was offered with the Ford Cologne pushrod V6 engine, in either 2.0- or 2.3-liter form. Mechanically, it was virtually identical to the volume production car, with MacPherson strut front suspension, a live rear axle, front disc brakes and rear drums. It shared the sedan's 106.5-inch wheelbase. The luxurious interior was hand-tailored, with leather bucket seats and complete instrumentation.

The OTI 20M TS remained in the catalog only through 1967. Approximately 2,000 of these handbuilt coupes are believed to have been produced, with sales limited to the German market. It was succeeded by the Capri coupe in 1969. Marque experts agree that only about 200 examples still exist, only a handful of which are on this side of the Atlantic.

THE MOTORCAR OFFERED

The example on offer is an early car, produced with a 6-volt electrical system and 2-liter V6, rather than the later cars' 12 volts and 2.3 liters. It was brought back to the United States by a service member serving overseas. It was then sold to a collector in Stayton, Oregon, from whom it was acquired by the current owner.

The car had been disassembled to a bare shell, and stored in a dry barn for 26 years. It still possessed the majority of its components, including its numbers-matching engine and four-speed manual transmission. Remarkably straight and rust-free, it provided the perfect basis for a nut-and-bolt restoration, which was carried out between January 2018 and April 2019. The seller believes the 5,100 kilometers, less than 3,200 miles, showing on the odometer to be accurate.

With so few still in existence, this beautifully restored example is highly collectible. It would almost certainly be the only one of its kind on any concours lawn, or in any motoring event.