Lamborghini supercars
Tue, 29 Jul 2008
By Tim Pollard
29 July 2008 12:00
As with so many supercar companies, Lamborghini was the vision of one man: Ferruccio Lamborghini. He founded it in 1962 after a successful career making tractors. The Sant'Agata Bolognese birthplace remains the company's home – and it has produced some of the greatest and most outrageous supercars of all time, giving this company equal rights with Ferrari to claim to be the world's best loved supercar brand. Now owned by Audi, and hence part of the sprawling Volkswagen empire.
Make and model
Year
Price
Engine
0-60mph
Top speed
1967
£8050
3929cc V12, 350bhp, 286lb ft
6.3sec
163mph
For
Gandini's styling: arguably the most beautiful car ever made
Against
Ergonomics and reliability: this will become a theme
Verdict
Its engineering was as impressive as its looks: changed the
motoring world
The steel monocoque chassis with its tranverse, mid-mounted V12 got the '65 Turin motor show so excited that the reluctant Ferruccio was persuaded to put a body on it and build it. The supercar was born
Related Articles: Other Lamborghini stories
Make and model
Year
Price
Engine
0-60mph
Top speed
1974
£16,134
3929cc V12, 375bhp, 286lb ft
5.6sec
174mph
For
In production for 16 years, and still gob-smacking now
Against
It took them most of that time to make it driveable and reliable
Verdict
Say supercar and you picture a Countach
How did Lambo top the revolutionary Miura? By slotting the engine and gearbox not just transversely, but backwards into its successor, and getting Gandini to produce an even more extraordinary shape
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Make and model
Year
Price
Engine
0-60mph
Top speed
1990
£156,000
5707cc V12, 492bhp, 428lb ft
4.1sec
202mph
For
The Audi-fettled 6.0 VT was the last, and best
Against
A playboy's plaything; never gained real credibility
Verdict
Lambo's thinking looked slow after the F40 and 959
Lamborghini's third mid-engined V12 supercar lacked the impact of the first two. A series of lightweight, race-derived special editions delivered the full supercar terror, but the Diablo didn't shock or innovate like its forebears
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Make and model
Year
Price
Engine
0-60mph
Top speed
2001
£170,228
6200cc V12, 580bhp, 479lb ft
3.7sec
205mph
For
With scissor doors and a mad cabin, it's a proper old-school supercar
Against
We call it character but it's crude compared to newer rivals
Verdict
New owner Audi produced the best Lambo in years
Same basic layout as the underwhelming Diablo – but so much sexier and better to drive. Amazingly, the latest 640bhp V12 engine is derived from Lambo's first back in 1963
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Make and model
Year
Price
Engine
0-60mph
Top speed
2008
£147,330
5204cc V10, 552bhp, 398lb ft
3.7 sec
202mph
For:
Visual drama, barmy performance. Our favourite junior supercar
Against:
Verdict:
German/Italian interbreeding shouldn't work, but it does – so you get the old-school supercar experience without the bad bits. But a Ferrari is more intuitive to drive hard
Related Articles: News | Car reviews | Other Lamborghini stories
By Tim Pollard