'79 Countach at auction-- 500 orig. miles

[RacerX1166]

Originally Posted by JJ 911SC

If you take the O out it make it easy to see where it derived from...:

--The word Countach (inroduced in 1971) is an exclamation in the local dialect of piedmonese, generally used when men see very attracrive women and apparently translates to "Holy s**t!". The name stuck when Nuccio Bertone (a famous car desinger and constructor) first saw "project 112".

--The name Diablo is simply the Spanish word for "Devil".
.

I seem to recall Diablo being a reference to a specific fighting bull with that name as well.

[dave 911]

Originally Posted by motion

I've always been amazed that Lambo had that car in the 70's and Boeing manufactured the 747 in the late 60's. And the SR71. Amazing designs well ahead of their time.

I'd add the Bell JetRanger to this list also....

Yeah, for those of us that grew up in the 70s and 80s, the Countach was THE car. Who didn't have the poster in their bedrooms? Right next to Farrah Faucett and Cheryl Teigs....

[Don Ro]

An old friend used to kid himself..."Many times I held up my poster of Farrah Faucett with one hand."
Maybe one of his Countach posters, as well.
He had them all over his garage walls.

[Christien]

I saw that exact Countach at RM's showroom a few weeks ago. To be honest, I thought the colour combo of copper with gold wheels was awful. They actually had 3 countaches there, one of which we were allowed to sit in. A few of us stuck around after everyone else had left, and they indulged my 10-year-old self by firing one up. What a sound - actually much more refined than I expected. When we smelled the exhaust, I said to my buddy "it's like smelling god's fart"

[Don Ro]

[Vipergrün]

Lamborghini Countach based on 1981 Body :--)

[Ferraripete]

I have come close to pulling the trigger on one on two occasions. I...wish I had. not great to drive but very cool to look at!!! they have also proven a decent place to park money in a car.

[9Thirty]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kkr4OzqkUqo&feature=youtu.be

[Steve Carlton]

The '70s called...

[asphaltgambler]

I drove one when the 'exotic' dealership I worked for had one; circa 2003. Me: Uber-rediculous cool in person just looking at it. As soon as I sat in it there was nothing cool about it. Everything seemed cheezy, once the door was closed you could not see out of anything but the windshield. It did drive like a truck.

[VaSteve]

I drove one when the 'exotic' dealership I worked for had one; circa 2003. Me: Uber-rediculous cool in person just looking at it. As soon as I sat in it there was nothing cool about it. Everything seemed cheezy, once the door was closed you could not see out of anything but the windshield. It did drive like a truck.

Someone described it as "you should never meet your heroes..."

[Don Ro]

On some weren't the dashboards coated with some kind of velour...or soft fabric of some sort?

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by VaSteve

Someone described it as "you should never meet your heroes..."

Richard Hammond I believe. Top Gear had a Countach on one of their challenges and really had nothing good to say about it. The F40 and 959 however were still spectacular, even 30 years later.

Originally Posted by asphaltgambler

I drove one when the 'exotic' dealership I worked for had one; circa 2003. Me: Uber-rediculous cool in person just looking at it. As soon as I sat in it there was nothing cool about it. Everything seemed cheezy, once the door was closed you could not see out of anything but the windshield. It did drive like a truck.

There was a beautiful Lotus Esprit Turbo at our local Cars and Coffee last week. The interior looked like a homemade car built in a shed.

[Don Ro]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

There was a beautiful Lotus Esprit Turbo at our local Cars and Coffee last week. The interior looked like a homemade car built in a shed.

As I recall that's the Lotus w/the funky spayed-on dash...looked like velour to me.

[javadog]

Originally Posted by Don Ro

On some weren't the dashboards coated with some kind of velour...or soft fabric of some sort?

That's Italian mouse fur. They used it because it helped prevent reflections from the dash onto the windscreen.

I wouldn't say a Countach drives like a truck. It's not particularly fun in town, poodling around at 3000 rpm from stop light to stop light, but it is entertaining on a twisty road when driven hard.

Lamborghini spent their money on the hard parts. The chassis, the gearbox, the motor... all those parts are well designed and made. The interior did not make the car go faster...

It was well beyond a Ferrari of similar vintage.

JR

[herr_oberst]

[javadog]

Originally Posted by herr_oberst

Humbler? Hell, that's the original prototype. Holy Grail would be more like it. If that car still existed (it doesn't) it would be worth a fortune...

That would rank right up there with Bob's Jota, which also no longer exists...

JR

[herr_oberst]

In spite of what you said, don't you think it's a humbler, prettier car than the cladded, bescooped winged version that became the reality?

[javadog]

No doubt. I hate the later cars, especially the ones with the taller roof. When I was looking for one, the only ones I considered were the early LP400 versions.

JR

[speeder]

I think that they are unbelievably ugly and classless in general and the one in the OP takes it to the next level. I knew a guy back in the '80s who had one, white with white wheels. I never asked for a ride, what if someone saw you in it?