• e-mail

Lamborghini has gone to painstaking lengths to accurately recreate the LP 500 concept car - the vehicle debuted at the 1971 Geneva Motor Show that sparked a frenzy of orders and forced the Italian marque into creating the iconic Countach supercar.

The wedge-shaped concept went on to be used to develop the ferociously fast production car and was eventually used for crash testing and then scrapped. 

To mark the 50th anniversary of the concept vehicle debuting to the public, Lamborghini has spent 25,000 hours building a like-for-like version using the same materials and manufacturing techniques, before selling it to one of its most dedicated customers.

It provided no details of the cost for the project or the identity of the esteemed customer who commissioned it. However, given the hours required to complete it, special requests to other brands to support the build, and the creation of bespoke parts from scratch, expect the final bill to have run into multiple millions of pounds.   

Lamborghini's long-lost icon reborn: The Italian supercar maker has recreated the 1971 LP 500 original in a project that has spanned four years and 25,000 hours of man hours at the factory

Lamborghini recently revealed plans to build a limited edition run of new-era Countachs, drawing inspiration from the iconic supercar that was in production for 26 years from 1974. 

The Swiss motor show of 1971 will be most remembered for Lamborghini showcasing the start of those plans for a bonkers follow-up to the legendary - and original - Miura. 

The LP 500 was a V12-engined dagger on wheels with scissor doors - a feature never before seen on a road car and would go on to become a requirement of all 12-cylinder Lambos that have followed it.

So striking was the design that it instantly set pulses racing amongst the deepest-pocketed petrol heads attending the event.

Such was the impact of its arrival that Lambo was handed a bounty of blank cheques from customers desperate for the factory to create a road-going version of the sensational-looking machine.

Following its appearance at Geneva, the concept had a vital role in the three-year development programme for the first Countach LP 400 production model.

This included a round of crash tests, which saw the one-of-a-kind motor obliterated beyond repair and scrapped by the factory - a move Lamborghini must still be regretting today. 

While the Countach sold in showrooms went on to become a poster car for a generation, the LP 500 concept is still considered today as being among the most memorable of masterpieces of automotive design. 

‹ Slide me ›

The LP 500 debuted at the 1971 Geneva Motor Show with a V12-engine and dagger-like shape. It was so jaw-dropping that it set pulses racing amongst the deepest-pocketed petrol heads attending the event. Such was the impact of its arrival that Lambo was handed a bounty of blank cheques from customers desperate to secure the sensational-looking machine. Here is the original (left) against the recreation (right)

To mark the 50th anniversary of the concept vehicle debuting to the public, Lamborghini has produced another using the same materials and manufacturing techniques, before selling it to one of its most dedicated customers

With its supremely clean lines penned by Marcello Gandini, it was without the wings, vents, spoilers and extended arches that were added to the customer-facing Countach.

Like when the LP 500 first sent jaws dropping in 1971, it is a super-rich Lamborghini customer who has pushed for the car to be created so that it can be added to his glowing collection of rampaging bulls.

'It is a passionate reconstruction carried out by Automobili Lamborghini's Polo Storico that required over 25,000 hours of work on behalf of an important collector,' the brand says.  

The car was shown for the first time this weekend at the Concorso d´Eleganza Villa d´Este in Italy. 

Following its appearance at Geneva, the concept had a vital role in the three-year development programme for the first Countach LP 400

Part of the concept's development objectives was a round of crash tests, which saw the one-of-a-kind motor obliterated beyond repair and therefore scrapped by the factory - a move Lamborghini must still be regretting today

Lamborghini says the first months of the project were spent acquiring all the material available and undertaking an in-depth analysis of a rebuild project of one its most iconic one-off model

Speaking about the recreation, Lamborghini chairman and CEO, Stephan Winkelmann, said: 'The Countach reinvented high-performance cars and it became an icon in terms of stylistic language that even today, after decades, still inspires contemporary Lamborghinis. 

'Bringing the reconstruction of the first Countach to the concept class of the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, in the year we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of this model, is something extraordinary because it allows us to admire the legendary 1971 LP 500 in person for the first time in so many years.'

The project to recreate the LP 500 started back in 2017 when the 'classic car aficionado and important Lamborghini customer' asked the brand's specialist historical department if there was a possibility of creating a reconstruction of the written off concept.

Lamborghini says the first months of the project were spent acquiring all the material available and undertaking an in-depth analysis of a rebuild.

Giuliano Cassataro, head of service and Lamborghini's Polo Storico division said his team had to pay significant attention to all the details of the car via the brand's historic back catalogue of documents, as well as the technical specifications.

Photographs, meeting reports, original drawings, and the memories of some the protagonists of the time were all consulted to ensure that every detail could be recreated as accurately as possible.

All of the mechanical components - including the V12 motor - are either original production Countach parts that have been suitably repurposed and modified, or items that have been made bespoke from scratch.  

Under the wedge-shaped bodywork is the original LP 500's (pictured) unique tubular frame, as opposed to the more advanced set-up that was used for the production Countach built from 1974

Proving the unrivalled lengths Lamborghini went to for the project, it even contracted Pirelli to create a one-off set of 1971-specification Cinturato CN12 tyres, albeit using a more modern compound and structure than the original 50 years ago

Even the paint required special research, says Lamborghini. After plenty of digging through the archives, the technical team found the yellow colour used for the original, which is identified as 'Giallo Fly Speciale'

Under the wedge-shaped bodywork is the LP 500's unique tubular frame, as opposed to the more advanced set-up that was used for the production Countach built from 1974.

Proving the unrivalled lengths Lamborghini went to for the project, it even contracted Pirelli to create a one-off set of 1971-specification Cinturato CN12 tyres, albeit using a more modern compound and structure than the original 50 years ago.

Even the paint required special research, says Lamborghini. After plenty of digging through the archives, the technical team found the yellow colour used for the original, which is identified as 'Giallo Fly Speciale'.  

Mitja Borkert, Lamborghini's head of design, who was charged with the responsibility for the recreation, said: 'To arrive at the car that debuted in Geneva in 1971, a 1:1 scale styling model was developed, which along with the car itself was lost over time, but extensive photographic evidence of it remains. This is the same approach with which we decided to tackle the project.

'Starting from publications of the time, from images on homologation sheets and other material recovered from Polo Storico, we were able to reconstruct the mathematics necessary for creating the first 1:1 scale model.

'The biggest challenge was to create the exact volume of the car, and for this we used the opportunity to take a 3D scan of our LP 400 (chassis 001), which was an enormous source of information. 

'It took us 2,000 hours of work altogether to arrive at the final model with lines that satisfied us. The exact same procedure was followed for the interior.'  

Lamborghini hit headlines in August when it announced that the Countach will be reborn for 2021 with a hybrid power unit producing a massive 803bhp

The new Countach LPI 800-4 was revealed at Monterey Car Week at Pebble Beach, California in August. Pictured here alongside a white original

The 2021 Countach LPI 800-4 is set to be powered by a hybrid system made up of a 6.5-litre V12 engine with supercapacitor technology to boost performance and efficiency

Prices for the new Countach will start from around £2million and just 112 examples will be built - all of which are already sold to the most dedicated Lambo customers

Lamborghini hit headlines earlier in the summer when it announced that the Countach will be reborn for 2021 with a hybrid power unit producing a massive 803bhp.

The new Countach LPI 800-4 was revealed at Monterey Car Week at Pebble Beach, California in August.

It is powered by the same hybrid system as the Italian car maker's limited-edition Sián hypercar, using the 6.5-litre V12 engine and supercapacitor technology to boost performance and efficiency.

The stunning retro-inspired two-seater will hit 62mph in 2.8 seconds and has a top speed of 221mph. Prices start from around £2million and just 112 examples will be built at the Italian marque's Sant'Agata Bolognese factory.

But don't log into your online banking or start rustling through the drawers to find your chequebook just yet, because they're already sold out.

From recreating an iconic Lamborghini to preserving another 

The Lamborghini Countach that starred in the 1981 film The Cannonball Run has been on display in a glass case in Washington DC

The showcase was organised to mark the car being added to the National Historic Vehicle Register in the US

While Lamborghini has gone to extreme lengths to recreate its iconic Countach concept for a customer, one of its most famous film cars has been showcased in the US to mark its preservation in the country's national library. 

The 1979 Lamborghini Countach LP 400 S that starred in 1981 comedy film The Cannonball Run has recently been added to the National Historic Vehicle Register.

To mark its initiation into the library, it is being displayed inside a glass case at the National Mall in Washington D.C.

The supercar featured prominently in the Burt Reynold's cult classic, where it sped along a highway while being pursued by the police in the opening scene.

The film was many Americans' first glimpse at the exotic sports car, and it introduced the country to the iconic wedge shape and scissor doors.

All the information regarding the car, its history, a 3D scan of it and copies of all its documentation will be preserved in the Library of Congress: the oldest cultural institution in the United States, an official body of the United States Congress and America’s national library.

The supercar featured prominently in the Burt Reynold's cult classic and for many Americans was their first glimpse at the exotic sports car

All the information regarding the car, its history, a 3D scan of it and copies of all its documentation will be preserved in the Library of Congress: the oldest cultural institution in the United States, an official body of the United States Congress and America’s national library

Exactly 40 years after the film’s release, the vehicle has been on display close to the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument.

The display will be for one week only before the car is returned to its current owner, Je Ippoliti, who is an attorney in Florida who bought the movie car – chassis number 1121112 - in 2004.

In The Cannonball Run, racers Jill (played by Tara Buckman) and Marie (Adrienne Barbeau) drove the car and won the race - though the Lambo didn't technically cross the finish line because one of the racers crashed his pickup truck and blocked the road, resulting in Marie racing to the finish line on foot.

The movie featured a who's who of Hollywood stars: Reynolds, Roger Moore, Farrah Fawcett, Dom DeLuise, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jnr, taking $160 million at the box office.

It went on to inspire the Cannonball Run Challenge – an annual unsanctioned time trial for supercar owners that crosses the US over 2,906 miles between Manhattan in New Your to Redondo Beach in Los Angeles.