Lamborghini

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Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A
Type	Subsidiary
Founded	1963
Headquarters	Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy manufacturing facilities in Bologna
Key people	Stephan Winkelmann — President & CEO
Industry	Manufacturing
Parent	Audi AG
Website	lamborghini.com

Automobili-Lamborghini S.p.A., commonly referred to as simply Lamborghini is an Italian manufacturer of high performance sports cars based in the small Italian village of Sant'Agata Bolognese, near Bologna. Lamborghini is now a subsidiary of German car manufacturer Audi AG, which is in turn a subsidiary of Volkswagen.^{[1] [2]} The Italian company was founded in 1963 by businessman Ferruccio Lamborghini (April 28, 1916–February 20, 1993), who owned a successful tractor factory, Lamborghini Trattori S.p.A..

Contents 1 History 2 Models 2.1 Racing Models 3 Ownership 4 References 5 External links

[edit] History

The most common version, as told by Ferruccio Lamborghini's son ^[3], is that Ferruccio Lamborghini went to meet Enzo Ferrari at the Ferrari factory to complain about the quality of the clutch in the Ferrari 250 GT he owned. Enzo Ferrari sent him away telling him to go and drive tractors because he was not able to drive cars. Lamborghini went back to his factory, had his Ferrari's clutch dismantled and realized that the clutch manufacturer was the same who supplied the clutches for his tractors. In his warehouse he found a spare part which he thought suitable, and when it was installed the problem was solved.

Ferruccio decided that his car was to have a V12 engine, and enlisted the services of talented engineer Giotto Bizzarrini, who had previously worked on a Ferrari V12. The new engine had 4 cams, a short stroke and 2 big bore valves per cylinder, and developed a surprising 350 horsepower. The engine featured aluminium construction, with a crankshaft supported by seven main bearings, forged aluminium pistons, and camshafts with their own half-engine-speed sprocket and silent chain. The car the engine was mounted in was designed by Franco Scaglione's Scaglione-Touring.

This Lamborghini 350GTV prototype began making public appearances in 1963, starting with the Turin Auto Show. Sales of the production model, known as the 350GT, began the following year with great success, with over 130 examples sold. Born under the sign of the taurus, Ferruccio Lamborghini used the bull as the badge by which to mark his new automobile.

The 350GT was followed up by the 400GT. The excellent sales of the 400GT and its predecessor gave the company sufficient funds to design its first supercar - the now-legendary Lamborghini Miura, which was premiered by Ferruccio himself in November 1965 at the Turin Auto Show. The car's engine was transversely mounted. The styling was executed by Marcello Gandini in less than a year; a completed car was displayed at the Geneva Auto Show in March of 1966 (the Turin car was only a chassis). The car's name was taken from that of a famed fighting-bull trainer, Don Eduardo Miura. The Miura was an absolute success for Lamborghini, 111 were sold in 1967, and it propelled the company into the small world of exotic supercar manufacturers. Because of it’s gorgeous looks and performance, the Miura is the most sought after Lamborghini among car collectors.

In 1971, Lamborghini brought the unusual looking LP500 Countach prototype, named after an Italian slang term uttered in surprise by a person who had just seen the new car. The production LP400 Countach was introduced three years later. The prototype was the first car to sport Lamborghini's now-traditional scissor doors, along with vertically mounted rear air intakes. The same 4-litre V12 engine was used.

In 1972, however, the company suffered a major setback. A massive tractor order for a South American nation was cancelled, rendering upgrades Lamborghini had already made to its factories in anticipation of the demand useless. The money lost drove Ferruccio to sell part of his share in the tractor factory, which was taken over by Fiat. The tractor business was eventually acquired by SAME (now Same Deutz-Fahr). Lamborghini tractors are still sold today, as part of the SAME Deutz-Fahr Group.

Throughout the seventies, sales of the Countach kept the company in business. Soon enough, the car division became self-sufficient and profitable. Lamborghini, however, sold all his remaining stock in the company to a Swiss investor. Ferruccio Lamborghini died in February 1993 at the age of 76.

The 1970s oil crisis plagued sales of high performance cars, and Lamborghini suffered budget and parts supply problems; cars were sold with two-year back orders, and customers became fed up with waiting for their cars.^{[citation needed]} Also, Lamborghinis were never raced and were never fully developed; the company developed a reputation of building toys for rich playboys when Ferrari and Porsche, and Maserati before them built illustrious careers in the racing world.^{[citation needed]} Since the beginning the cars had continuous and expensive reliability problems, in the 70’s things became even worse, as cars now had to meet US emission requirements.^{[citation needed]} All these factors contributed to the company's demise. Like many other exotic Italian automobiles, the quality of construction and of the components used were often of poor quality. In 1978, Lamborghini declared bankruptcy. An Italian court was appointed to find a buyer, and the Swiss-based Mimran brothers took over the company. The 1980s saw things turn around for Lamborghini under its new ownership

In a surprise move, the company was then sold to the Chrysler Corporation. Lamborghini at the time was working on the Countach's successor, the Diablo. Chrysler brought its vast resources to the playing field, along with design input, pollution controls, and new manufacturing techniques. The end result was another success for the company. The Lamborghini Diablo received fame much like that of its predecessor, and once again put the manufacturer on top of its game.^{[citation needed]}

In 1994, Chrysler was forced to sell Lamborghini to an Indonesian investment group headed by Tommy Suharto. The sale was due to poor economic circumstances for Chrysler, much like those which would later force the Indonesians to sell the company in the late 1990s. By then however, the German car company Audi AG had gained interest in the ailing Italian company, and in 1998, in a complex series of transactions, became the sole owner of Automobili Lamborghini.

Lamborghini's latest owner once again greatly influenced the design of its latest supercar, today's Murcielago. Audi's vast technical resources helped produce one of Lamborghini's most sophisticated two-seaters to date.

Lamborghini's cars are among the most powerful, expensive and exclusive serial-manufactured cars on the road today. Lamborghini's various models have different exclusive features, such as carbon fiber construction, high-tech V10 engines, and styling penciled by such names as Franco Scaglione, Touring of Milan, Zagato, Mario Marazzi, Bertone, ItalDesign and Marcello Gandini.

[edit] Models

Vehicle	Year	Engine	Displacement	Top Speed
350GTV	1963	Lamborghini V12	3464 cc	280 km/h
350GT	1964-1968	Lamborghini V12	3464 cc	240 km/h
400GT 2+2	1966-1968	Lamborghini V12	3929 cc	250 km/h
Miura	1966-1973	Lamborghini V12	3929 cc	288 km/h
Espada	1968-1978	Lamborghini V12	3929 cc	245 km/h
Islero	1968-1970	Lamborghini V12	3929 cc	248 km/h
Jarama	1970-1978	Lamborghini V12	3929 cc	240 km/h
Urraco	1970-1979	Lamborghini V8	2463/2996/1994 cc	230 km/h
Countach	1974-1989	Lamborghini V12	3929/4754/5167 cc	295 km/h
Silhouette	1976-1977	Lamborghini V8	2996 cc	260 km/h
Jalpa	1982-1989	Lamborghini V8	3485 cc	240 km/h
LM002	1986-1992	Lamborghini V12	5167 cc	210 km/h
Diablo	1990-2001	Lamborghini V12	5707/5992 cc	330 km/h
Murciélago	2001-2006	Lamborghini V12	6192 cc	330 km/h
Murciélago R-GT	2001-	Lamborghini V12	Unknown	360km/h+
Gallardo	2003-	Lamborghini V10	4961 cc	309 km/h
Gallardo Spyder	2004-	Lamborghini V10	4961 cc	307 km/h
Murciélago Roadster	2005-2007	Lamborghini V12	6192 cc	330 km/h
Gallardo SE	2006-	Lamborghini V10	4961 cc	315 km/h
Murciélago LP640	2006-	Lamborghini V12	6496 cc	340 km/h
Murciélago LP640 Roadster	2006-	Lamborghini V12	6496 cc	330 km/h

Lamborghini's outrageous supercar models have brought Lamborghini much fame. The Miura, the Countach, the Diablo, and the Murciélago, continue to be some of the most desired super cars of all time. The current (2007) range consists of the Murciélago LP640, the Murciélago LP640 Roadster and the smaller, less expensive Gallardo and Gallardo Spyder. All are extremely fast, mid-engined 2-seaters with Lamborghini's standard all-wheel drive systems. Their styling is largely the work of Belgian designer Luc Donckerwolke. Future models may include a rear-wheel-drive version of the Gallardo and possibly an SUV in the spirit of the LM002 might also appear. The next generation of Lamborghini models will be penned by Walter de'Silva, who designed the 2006 Miura concept car and who replaced Luc Donckerwolke as head of Centro Stile Lamborghini, Lamborghini's in-house design department.

The Gallardo Special Edition was similar to the Gallardo in many areas such as the engine and suspension, but broke free of the Gallardo in the exterior look: The entire roof was made of glass.

[edit] Racing Models

Ferruccio Lamborghini had set a rule that Lamborghini would not be involved in motor racing. He saw such a program as too expensive and too demanding in company resources.^{[citation needed]} Consequently, no Lamborghini racing car was fabricated under his management.

Under the management of Rosetti, Lamborghini entered into an agreement with BMW to build a production racing car in sufficient quantity for homologation. However, Lamborghini found itself unable to fulfill their part of the agreement. The car was eventually developed in-house by the BMW Motorsport Division, and was manufactured and sold as the BMW M1. ^[4][5]

Lamborghini developed the QVX for the 1986 Group C championship season. One car was built, but lack of sponsorship caused it to miss the season. The QVX competed in only one race, the non-championship 1986 Southern Suns 500 km race at Kyalami in South Africa, driven by Tiff Needell. Despite the car finishing better than it started, sponsorship could not be found and the programme was cancelled. ^[6]

Lamborghini was an engine supplier in Formula One between the 1989 and 1993 Formula One seasons. It supplied engines to Larousse, Ligier, Lotus, Minardi and to a 'Lamborghini' team, although this last was not viewed as a works team by the car company. Late in 1991, a Lamborghini Formula One motor would be used in the Konrad KM-011 Group C sports car, but the car would only last a few races before the project was cancelled. The same engine, badged as a Chrysler by Lamborghini's then parent company, was tested by McLaren towards the end of the 1993 season, with a view to its use during the 1994 season. Although driver Ayrton Senna was reportedly impressed with the engine's performance, McLaren pulled out of negotiations, choosing a Peugeot engine instead, and Chrysler ended the project.

Two racing versions of the Diablo were built for the Diablo Supertrophy, a single-model racing series held annually from 1996 to 1999. In the first year, the model used in the series was the Diablo SVR, while the Diablo 6.0 GTR was used for the remaining three years. ^{[7] [8]}

Lamborghini developed the Murciélago R-GT as a production racing car to compete in the FIA GT Championship, the Super GT Championship and the American Le Mans Series in 2004. Their highest placing in any race that year was the opening round of the FIA GT Championship at Valencia, where the car entered by Reiter Engineering finished third from a fifth-place start. ^{[9] [10]} In 2006 during the opening round of the Super GT championship at Suzuka, a car run by the Japan Lamborghini Owners Club garnered the first victory (in class) by an R-GT.

A GT3 version of the Gallardo has been developed by Reiter Engineering. ^[11]

A Murciélago R-GT entered by All-Inkl.com racing, driven by Christophe Bouchut and Stefan Mucke, won the opening round of the FIA GT Championship held at Zhuhai International Circuit, achieving the first major international race victory for Lamborghini.^[12]

[edit] Ownership

Lamborghini has had a number of owners:

• Ferruccio Lamborghini 1963–1972
• Georges-Henri Rossetti and René Leimer 1972–1977
• bankrupt 1977–1984
  • managed by Patrick Mimram 1980–1984
• Patrick Mimram 1984–1987
• Chrysler 1987–1994
• Megatech 1994–1995 (Permission granted for the Creation of Lamborghini Latinoamerica S.A.)
• V'Power, Mycom 1995–1998
• Audi AG 1998-present

[edit] References

1. ^ Audi.com
2. ^ http://www.vwgroupsupply.com/b2b/vwb2b_folder/supplypublic/en/brands/lamborghini.frameset_inner.html VW Group Supply.com
3. ^ FAMOUS PEOPLE FROM RENAZZO: Ferruccio Lamborghini
4. ^ Auto Lemon - Used Car History Check: BMW M1
5. ^ BMW M1 Car Guide
6. ^ Lamborghini QVX Car Guide
7. ^ Lamborghini Diablo SVR Car Guide
8. ^ Lamborghini Diablo 6.0 GTR Car Guide
9. ^ Lamborghini Murciélago R-GT Car Guide
10. ^ Lamborghini Murciélago R-GT 2004 Season
11. ^ Lamborghini Gallardo GT3 Car Guide
12. ^ FIA GT Championship Results: 2007 Round 1 - Zhuhai

[edit] External links

• Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A.

v • d • e Volkswagen Group
Volkswagen | Audi | SEAT | Škoda | Bentley | Bugatti | Lamborghini
Current models: Murciélago | Gallardo | Gallardo Spyder
Historic models: Miura | Countach | Diablo | Espada | Silhouette | Jalpa | 350GT | 400GT | Islero | Jarama | LM002 | Urraco
Concept models: Athon | Bravo | Cala | Cheetah | Concept S | Flying Star II | Genesis | LM001 | LM003 | LM004 | LMA002 | Marco Polo | Marzal | Miura Concept | Portofino | Raptor

		Lamborghini road car timeline, 1960s-1980s  v • d • e																												Next ->
Type		1960s										1970s										1980s
		0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
Owner					Ferruccio Lamborghini										Rossetti/Leimer					receivership						Mimram				Chrysler
FR	GT					350GT
	2+2							400GT		Islero		Jarama
	Coupé									Espada
RMR	V8/V10																	Silhouette						Jalpa
	2+2											Urraco
	V12							Miura								Countach
SUV																												LM002

<- Previous		Lamborghini road car timeline, 1980s-2000s  v • d • e
Type		1980s										1990s										2000s
		0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
Owner		receivership				Mimram				Chrysler							M'tec/V'Power				Audi
RMR	V8/V10			Jalpa																						Gallardo
	V12	Countach										Diablo												Murciélago
SUV								LM002