When the the Lamborghini Countach model came out it was an absolute uncontested Supercar for about a dozen years. In fact, it was the world's first Supercar. Challengers finally came on the scene beginning with the Ferrari F 40 and the Porsche limited production 929.in 1987.
Lamborghini is an Italian automaker that now operates as a subsidiary of Audi which itself is owned by Volkswagen. Audi took over Lamborghini in 1998 from a group of Malaysian investors who themselves had taken over the nameplate from Chrysler.
Marcello Gandini
Stylist Marcello Gandini gets the credit for the Lamborghini Countach's sleek styling.. One of the popular stories about the Lamborghini Countach is that, when designing the car, Gandini was considered relatively new to the field of auto design. With that being said, Gandini was hired in 1965 by Bertone to be it's head of design. His first design for Bertone was the Lamborghini Miura. Other automakers that Gandini designed for included Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, BMW, Maserati and Fiat. Gandini was also involved in the design of several concept cars.
The Lamborghini Countach
The Lamborghini Countach had a tubular frame with a skin of aircraft type aluminum. This makes the Lamborghini both very strong and relatively light weight. The 1989 Countach had an empty weight of 3,505 lbs.
Marcello Gandini gave the Countach it’s distinctive scissor doors and it’s Formula One style wing.
This rear spoiler was optional but certainly provided better handling a
higher speeds. The first series of Countach’s were the LP400 followed by the LP400S in 1978.
The LP-400 is thought to have the least drag of any of the Countach’s. In 1982 the models were called the LP500′s with increased engine power. After that were the LP500S. This model had a V-12 with it's bore and stroked increased which made displacement 290 cubic inches.
The 1989 Lamborghini Countach featured in this article, which is the 25th Anniversary Edition and one of 658 cars built, came with a 315.8 cubic inch V-12.
The prospects for Lamborghini to achieve the kind of scale in production enjoyed by Ferrari were increased when the company was purchased by Chrysler in 1987.
The 315.8 cubic inch 420 Horsepower V-12
The 1989 Lamborghini Countach was built with a V-12 315.8 cubic inch engine delivering 420 horsepower. The engine is mounted in the mid section of the car with air flowing in through the side vents and the warm air flowing out over the rear deck.. An interesting historical note is that when Ferruccio Lamborghini decided to build a car that would compete with the Ferrari, it was said he offered his engine designer a bonus for each additional horsepower than what the Ferrari V-12 could deliver.
This was the luxurious and powerful automobile built
for the American market. This American version included a fuel injection system as
opposed to it’s original six carburetors. This modification is what brought down the
U.S. version to the 420 HP. The European model with the six Weber carburetors
reportedly could deliver 455 HP.
Factory specs included a claimed top speed for the 1989 Lamborghini Countach as 183 MPH. This car could do the Zero to Sixty MPH run in 4.7 seconds. Fuel efficiency came in at an average 12.5 MPG This MPG of course will vary widely depending on how you drove the cart. The added horsepower on the European versions meant that the Zero to Sixty and the Top Speed ratings were somewhat higher.
See these additional articles on Muscle Car Journal and our AutoMuseumOnline websites on the links below.....
The 2011 SMS Bondurant Chevy Camaro
The Shelby GT 500 Super Snake
The 1924 Dodge Brothers Street Rod
1973 Ferrai Dino GTS
Excellent reference material and interesting reads include.... Complete Book of Lamborghini by author Pete Lyons....Lamborghini (Ultimate Cars) by A.T. McKenna.....Lamborghini (Superstar Cars) by author James Bow.
The Lamborghini Countach Rain_X Race Car
There was a heavily modified Lamborghini Countach built as a race car in 1994. The 25th Anniversary Edition car was used for this project. Modifications included a new adjustable racing rear spoiler, the air intakes behind each door were redesigned for better airflow, the interior was stripped and the engine was modified to deliver 550 horsepower. There were other modified Lamborghini engines built by private parties that supposedly delivered a whopping 650-700 horsepower.
The Lamborghini Countach Replicar
Several companies began to offer fiberglass bodies Lamborghini replicas beginning in 1984 to the end of the 1990's. Some of these may show up from time to time on Ebay and other auto sales websites. A 1989 Countach Anniversary replicar might sell in the area of $25,000 to $30,000. Original Countach's (non-replica) usually will be priced in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. You may see asking prices for these in the $300,000 to $500,000 range.
(Article and photos copyright Muscle Car Journal)
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| The 1989 Lamborghini Countach |
Marcello Gandini
Stylist Marcello Gandini gets the credit for the Lamborghini Countach's sleek styling.. One of the popular stories about the Lamborghini Countach is that, when designing the car, Gandini was considered relatively new to the field of auto design. With that being said, Gandini was hired in 1965 by Bertone to be it's head of design. His first design for Bertone was the Lamborghini Miura. Other automakers that Gandini designed for included Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, BMW, Maserati and Fiat. Gandini was also involved in the design of several concept cars.
The Lamborghini Countach
The Lamborghini Countach had a tubular frame with a skin of aircraft type aluminum. This makes the Lamborghini both very strong and relatively light weight. The 1989 Countach had an empty weight of 3,505 lbs.
 |
| Countach's large rear spoiler |
The LP-400 is thought to have the least drag of any of the Countach’s. In 1982 the models were called the LP500′s with increased engine power. After that were the LP500S. This model had a V-12 with it's bore and stroked increased which made displacement 290 cubic inches.
The 1989 Lamborghini Countach featured in this article, which is the 25th Anniversary Edition and one of 658 cars built, came with a 315.8 cubic inch V-12.
The prospects for Lamborghini to achieve the kind of scale in production enjoyed by Ferrari were increased when the company was purchased by Chrysler in 1987.
The 315.8 cubic inch 420 Horsepower V-12
The 1989 Lamborghini Countach was built with a V-12 315.8 cubic inch engine delivering 420 horsepower. The engine is mounted in the mid section of the car with air flowing in through the side vents and the warm air flowing out over the rear deck.. An interesting historical note is that when Ferruccio Lamborghini decided to build a car that would compete with the Ferrari, it was said he offered his engine designer a bonus for each additional horsepower than what the Ferrari V-12 could deliver.
 |
| Side airflow intake directly behind doors |
Factory specs included a claimed top speed for the 1989 Lamborghini Countach as 183 MPH. This car could do the Zero to Sixty MPH run in 4.7 seconds. Fuel efficiency came in at an average 12.5 MPG This MPG of course will vary widely depending on how you drove the cart. The added horsepower on the European versions meant that the Zero to Sixty and the Top Speed ratings were somewhat higher.
See these additional articles on Muscle Car Journal and our AutoMuseumOnline websites on the links below.....
The 2011 SMS Bondurant Chevy Camaro
The Shelby GT 500 Super Snake
The 1924 Dodge Brothers Street Rod
1973 Ferrai Dino GTS
Excellent reference material and interesting reads include.... Complete Book of Lamborghini by author Pete Lyons....Lamborghini (Ultimate Cars) by A.T. McKenna.....Lamborghini (Superstar Cars) by author James Bow.
The Lamborghini Countach Rain_X Race Car
 |
| 89 Countach's scissor doors |
The Lamborghini Countach Replicar
Several companies began to offer fiberglass bodies Lamborghini replicas beginning in 1984 to the end of the 1990's. Some of these may show up from time to time on Ebay and other auto sales websites. A 1989 Countach Anniversary replicar might sell in the area of $25,000 to $30,000. Original Countach's (non-replica) usually will be priced in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. You may see asking prices for these in the $300,000 to $500,000 range.
(Article and photos copyright Muscle Car Journal)
