Automobili Ferruccio Lamborghini SpA, S. Agata Bolognese, Italy. 1963 - 1980

Nuova Automobili Ferruccio Lamborghini SpA, S. Agata Bolognese, Italy 1980 to date

Ferruccio Lamborghini built up a successful business making farm tractors and air conditioning equipment after demobilisation from the Italian air force in 1945. He had always been interested in cars and built Fiat specials before being able to afford more exotic machinery which included a Mercedes 300SL gullwing coupe, various Alfa Romeo, Maserati and Ferrari.

A desire to build his own supercar may have resulted from a rebuff from Ferrari when he criticised their cars. Whatever the reasons he started work on the 350GTV which was announced in 1963 but it received a poor reception and not continued.

The 350GT of 1964 was built around a 3.5-litre V-12 four overhead camshaft engine designed by Giotto Bizzarrini who had recently left Ferrari. The car, engineered by Gianpaolo Dallara, was based on a multi-tubular chassis frame, with independent suspension all round by wishbones and coil springs, the brakes were servo assisted. The engine was fitted with six Weber carburettors, delivered 360bhp and was mated to a 5-speed ZF gearbox. The body was styled by Franco Scaglione with rather ugly treatment of the twin headlamps. There were 143 350GTs were made of which 23 were the 4-litre engine option. By this time the cars with the "fighting bull" logo were serious contenders in the Grand Touring stakes and were challenging Ferrari in the marketplace.

In 1966 the 400GT was subtly restyled by Touring of Milan but was similar to the 4-litre 350GT under the skin. It was available in open 2-seat form in addition to the 2 + 2 coupe and 250 were built.

Also announced in 1966 was the Muira which really set the pace for super road cars. It used the same 4-litre engine but this was set transversely across the middle of the car on a steel fabricated platform chassis. The impressive body was styled by Marcello Gandini and with an equally impressive top speed of 174 mph it could now be regarded as the world's first supercar. It's only drawback was a tendency to lift the front end at high speed. The Muira S was tuned to give 375bhp and a top speed of almost 180 mph whilst the wider track Muira SV with another 10bhp could exceed 180 mph and really upstaged Ferrari. In all 765 Muiras were made up to 1972.

Supercars were fine but the main thrust of Lamborghini was the production of practical Grand Touring cars so the Islero was developed from the 400GT and 250 were made from 1968 to 1970. The 2 + 2 body was designed by Marazzi and included power steering, air conditioning and electric windows. The Islero S with an engine giving 340bhp was capable of a very respectable 124 mph. The Espada, announced in 1969 was a 4-seat GT car styled by Bertone with chassis components from the Islaro and the same engine, which by 1972 was producing 365bhp. With a top speed of 124 mph it was a popular model with an automatic gearbox option and 1,217 were sold by the time it was phased out in 1978.

1970 was a year of significant change for Lamborghini as the Italian economy faltered and his agricultural business suffered he sold a major stake in the car company to Georges-Henri Rosetti a Swiss clock maker. Unfortunately the Swiss clocks and watches were severely hit by the new battery operated and much cheaper products from the far east and so he was forced to sell part of his holding. This was acquired by René Liemer a Swiss property developer.

The engineering department also saw changes, when Paolo Stanzani replaced Dallara, and a new generation of cars were conceived.

Before these new cars were announced the Bertone bodied Jarama continued the front engined range to replace the Islero and although heavier had similar performance. It was virtually a short wheelbase Espada with 2-seats and the same 350bhp 4-litre engine and automatic transmission option. The Jarama S was tuned to give 365bhp and a correspondingly better performance. The Jarama production was 327 cars in total.

The first entirely new model was the Urraco, which was a direct challenger to the Ferrari Dino. There was an entirely new 2,463cc V-8 single overhead camshaft engine producing 220bhp mounted transversely in a lighter chassis with independent suspension by MacPherson strut and lower wishbones and coil springs. The 2 + 2 Urraco was made in three engine sizes, the 2-litre P200, the 2.5-litre P250 and the 3-litre P300. The latter had a twin overhead camshaft engine giving 265bhp but there was much more demand for the smaller 2-litre P200 which was in a favourable Italian "tax bracket". The Urraco was intended to appeal to a wider market but took two years to develop and although it could out perform the Ferrari Dino never made the volume of production envisaged at outset, nevertheless 776 Urracos were sold.

The Countach LP concept car was the talk of 1971 for car enthusiasts. The aggressive wedge shape and "butterfly" doors were highly unusual and so it was a surprise when the car was offered as a production model with a top speed of nearly 170mph. The styling was not the only unusual feature as the 4-litre engine was rear mounted in-line but facing backwards with the drive to the rear 5-speed transaxle stepped down through the sump. The LP stood for Longitudinale Posteriore and Countach is Milanese slang for "that's it". There were developments of the Countach with the "S" in 1978 offering wider tyres, improved suspension and a rear mounted wing option. The 2S in 1980 had improved interior and instrumentation.

The Silhouette of 1976 was virtually a 2-seat version of the 3-litre Urraco P300 with a revised interior and Targa top. Unfortunately the build quality was poor and it was not type approved for the American market.

1981 saw a period of considerable uncertainty for the company with a series of owners in quick succession. Discussions with BMW fell through and it was first sold to Hubert Hahne and Dr Neumann who sold it on to Zoltan Reti an American. Reti soon discovered that the company was bankrupt and put it up for auction. It was finally acquired by Patrick Mimram a young man of 25 whose family had leased the Lamborghini factory.

The Silhouette gave way to the Jalpa in 1981. The main improvement was to the engine which was enlarged to 3.5-litres and with increased torque. This was the work of Giulio Alfieri an ex-Maserati engineer. However by 1985 the company was only producing the Countach in limited numbers.

The Countach LP500 with a 5,167cc engine was developed and this was capable of producing 325bhp with increased torque in spite of the American emission control requirements. The next development was the "Quattrovalvole" with 4-valves per cylinder and 455bhp (425bhp in American specification). This was a seriously fast car with a top speed of 186 mph and zero to 60 in 4.9 seconds.

In an attempt to keep the factory in production there was an off-road Lamborghini introduced in 1982 called the LM002. This had a V-12 engine of 7-litres driving all four wheels. They also produced marine engines and tried to capitalise on the name by selling Lamborghini watches and other fashion accessories. In 1987 the Mimram family gave up the struggle and sold out to the Chrysler Corporation.

The Diablo of 1989, styled by Marcello Gandini, was essentially a development of the Countach. Although it had a similar specification the Diablo was very different because it used carbon-fibre in it's construction and the engine was increased in size to 5,729cc to give 492bhp and a claimed top speed of just over 200mph. The acceleration was a staggering zero to 60 in 4.1 seconds. The recession of the late 1980s was not a good time to sell such an exotic car and as the backlog built up the factory ceased car production.

A Chrysler inspired attempt at a Formula 1 car was short lived as the V-12 engine was un-competitive and lacked sufficient stiffness for development.

The Diablo was relaunched in 1992 with permanent 4-wheel drive as the Diablo VT (for Viscous Traction) and power steering. The Diablo SE30 Jota was a limited edition with a power output of 590bhp and a top speed of 208mph was claimed. At the same time an open version became available. The Sprint Veloce of 1996 was an open version and the engine now had electronic valve timing and the acceleration to 60mph down to 3.9 seconds.

The Chrysler Corporation policy changed and the company was again sold, this time to a group of entrepreneurs from Indonesia. After two years the company was sold to Volkswagen in 1998.

Under Volkswagen ownership the Diablo was further developed with the engine increased to 5,992cc and acceleration to 60mph now quoted at 3.5 seconds. Top speed was 190mph to 208mph according to the axle ratio chosen. Production was limited to 80 cars.

Bibliography:-

Lamborghini, the Legend, by David Hodges, published by Paragon. 1998.

The Complete Book of Lamborghini, by Pete Lyons, published by Foulis. 1988.

Lamborghini Urraco and the V8s, by Jean-Francois Marchet, published by Osprey. 1983.

Lamborghini Countach, by Peter Dron, published by Crowood Auto Classics. 1995.