Countach, the ultimate supercar

if they could have completed 3x more details : periscopa cap on top of roof, rear lights and lateral window mechanism... it could have been closer to LP500

do you know its VIN ?

 

It is probably 1120044.

 

I have seen the original pictures, they are great! I was just keen to see more of that exact Countach. Oh well

 

The design element no 1 on the original cars, are the rear wheel arches, brilliant design stroke. Appears to be ready to launch any second. Also the part stuck in my mind from the early 70s when this car appeared in magazines worldwide, a better job could have been done in the Flared 80s transition to keep this great detail more focused and exposed. Not complaining, but if the Countach is ever recreated, one will know where to start.for shure. I do like the fact they added th shoe box scoops on the production Periscopo,gave the fluid design just the touch of Bad Boy/image it needed to blow
your mind.

 

Aren't the wheel arches a Marcello Gandini signature? This was the first car to have it, right? Personally, I love them on the Countach but they're pure perfection on the Shamal.

 

Yes that rear arch that throws the car forward even when at rest is the most distinctive feature (arresting?) but to me who has had a Countach next to my office desk for many years its that one single flowing line that starts low at the front and curves up over the rear wheel highlighted above which is the masterstroke on what seems a flat wedge yet has delicate compound curves, on closer inspection. Somehow it all works so well when it shouldnt as integrating curves and flat planes can end up a mess.

All motor manufactures should have one at their head office to remind them how endless design/strategy/marketing/brand/consumer focus group meetings produce the horrors that hurt my eyes and spoil a drive out in the country ( along with fluorescent Lycra cyclists but that's another issue) when one man and a pencil created one of the wonders of the century . And don't get me started on fake tail pipes, fake synthesised engine sound and the black plastic fake rear diffuser. Against this nonsense along with modern cars slashes and creases and ginormouse ugly lights and multi splitters and ducts and unnessarsary styling add-ons, the Countach just looks pure ,well early ones anyway

 

Yes that is a Gandini signature. When I was designing for Subaru we had Gandini do 2 proposals for us and both quarter scale models had those wheel arches

 

Countach 25th Anniversary & 1999 Diablo VT
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Yes, they are one of his most prominent signatures, imo. I believe they were back on the Diablo in a more prominent way than in the the flared Countachs, though it is still there on the flared variants in a more curved way. imo, Diablo brought it back in a stronger way

 

I remember flicking through magazines in the 1980's thinking how underdone and slight the "narrow" bodied LP400 looked in comparison to the newer models.
I guess tastes change, both personally and otherwise.

 

Don't forget that fantastic Gandini design, the Stratos HF Zero, which so strongly developed the design language that in so many ways found its way to the Countach. Bold, crisp and oh-so-low (Nuccio drove it right under the lift gate at Lancia), it is now on display at the Indianapolis Museum of Art as part of an impressive exhibit: "Dream Cars", through August 23. I just couldn't stop looking at the Zero and could have done so for hours. It appears to be nearly the size of a go-kart; much much smaller than I envisioned it being from having seen it in pictures.
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....and the version Michael Jackson had built when Bertone told his people NO, they could not use the original for the video Moonwalker.
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Jim Carrey Jim Carrey: We Love Breathing What You're Burning, Baby - Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee by Jerry Seinfeld

Full clip now online. Damn that car is just gorgeous!
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Stunning picture

 

The Seinfeld / Carrey car (1120172) is the first Countach I ever saw in real life. I think I was about 10 at the time when it passed southbound on Leslie Avenue at Lawrence in Toronto.

I still love that shade of blue.

 

That was neat. 3 favorites in one show. Beautiful Countach.

Cool story John. That car gets around. I wonder where it will be next? The first Countach I ever saw was a black carbed 5000s belonging to Performance Motors, weaving through the traffic. The guy driving it (then) is now a neighbor of mine. He said he ran it up to 140 and a police car passed him going the other way, that day. He just pulled over and waited. Sure enough the cop turned around and pulled over behind him. No ticket. Just a WOW!

 

makes me wonder why, in the world of classic cars,this is not The most valuable car ever,the Mc laren f1 and the lp 400 should swap places on the value chart, honestly

 

How you do that?
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