Countach, the ultimate supercar

Because persistent attempts to purchase 1120012 (original green) failed.

 

Thank God someone is doing God's work on that

 

Lucky you, This is some cool (and rare) memorabilia!!

No links, sorry. I got those pics from a friend in Italy.

Well... no I'm not impressed... to say the least.
But who am I to judge? Like most (all?) of you here, I considere LP400 as the purest and most precious form of Countach.

However, I do value some "era's fashion" too. Some design evolutions are GREAT and shows trends from those times.
What is a Countach S after all? Back then, for customers it was just a narrow 70s Countach that was made wilder, matching (and also making) the 80s design!
Therefore, "upgrading" them because of the vogue of those days is perfectly acceptable in my opinion.
I also appreciate the idea of a car with some sort of dual-identity, 1-car / 2-lives. This adds a historical value to it.

Out of 150 LP400, I counted at least 25 of them were retrofitted S (including Japanese Wolf/Dallara style, but excluding original VIP's 0148, 0188, 0202, 0222), that makes 1/6 of the production.
Some LP400 were badly customized, but some others were done with an interesting and unique touch.
#1120262 was (almost) unique in its way: a Countach Roadster for its first, and kind of special owner, a Rock Star!
I think it is a big loss in terms of car design history.

Would you wish to see the green #1120001 at the Museo restored back to Red with black interior with two wipers and only one fog lamp... just because it's how it was originally?
Oh, you'd tell me we can't compare those two: One was "evolving" at the factory, the other through a businessman in California...
So what? If the trend nowadays is to bring back cars to their absolute original first day cocoon forms... why not?
Just like #1120010 losing its unique Rosso Cina paint to get back its (pre-delivery) green. (did I just hear original greens sell higher than unique reds? oups!)

So, will #1120262 be restored back to RHD as it was originally? No.
The point is not authenticity, it is return on investment!
I'm a businessman too and understand what's evident. But I do value singularity and originality too... and not every car have both.

To buy a damaged or rusty car and to refresh its original beauty is GREAT.
To destroy a car's uniqueness to make it a completely "brand-new 40 years old" one, flavorless and banal, is WRONG... and within the next decades, also financially!

Epilogue:
When all the remaining ones will be restored to their narrow guise, Moriarty's Countach hanging on his wall will remain the only ghost of the physical and tangible Countach evolution throughout times.
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Interestingly, the brother of the man who hung his Countach on his wall bought this car from me....and hung it on his wall!
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Fun to do something different during the winter.

S1 LP400s above under restoration
S3 LP400s TOP GEAR car as tested by Clarkson
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What a great photo! I'd love to see that hanging in my garage!

 

Agree! That is awesome! Beautiful Countach!

 

AWESOME!! It is WONDERFUL to now see Countach of ALL variations getting SERIOUSLY restored
Before we know it, a rough, worn out, or neglected example will be a real rarity as upposed to the norm. It was great to see this start to happen with the Miura about 15 years ago. As more and more of these cars are put right with so much invested in them (time,passion,$,etc.)
you will seldom see them for sale, as most will be in seriously curated collections. It's funny how the "value threads" show how worried people are about what the cars will be worth in the immediate future (up/down/sideways). I think this discussion will seem silly in the long run as the quality of the the cars will improve MASSIVELY through widespread restoration. Owners who have been through the process won't care if their cars are worth $50,000 less or $250,000 (or more) than they are nowadays. They just won't be for sale..

 

was your benetton ever at a go-kart track in SLC? i recall seeing it there years ago...

 

Why yes it was😊

 

Good group of guys, also Harry did a tremendeous job re fueling the Countach interest,by actually driving jhis car across europe, letting people know it is in fact a very useable car. And cooler than anything ever created,

 

Just a tad

 

hahahahaha

 

very cool pic

 

Even THe Simpsons realize how cool the Countach is!! Hahahhaaa....

This was a screen grab from last nights opening couch gag.

Mike
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That's funny Mike! Doh!

 

I wanted to see what the license plate said too.... It took me a bit to slowly fast forward so I could see behind the credits.

It read: SKINN3R

LOL!!!!

Mike

 

What's with the bianco (perlato?) LP500S' funky front bumper? Actually, the Blu Acapulco airborne in the background had me wondering as well. Maybe a wingless QV? If so - year, DD or FI?

 

looks like a wingless DD anniversario from bonnet and vents imo

 

Pretty cool period photo I saw on Facebook this morning with Valentino and Bruno

Mike
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HI guys! My first post as a UK Aspie (google it!)
I' ve searched many pages of your amazing info on this site. However I can not find the exact details i am looking for. I could never afford a real countach, though i came close in 01. So i am spending all my spare income on the Kyosho/Deagostini 1/8 lp500s and enjoyoing the build. However all the info i can find on the car (chassis148?) states the LP500 engine was a special engine owned by lamborghini. So all 3 countach S models developed by lamblorghini/walter wolf never stayed with the car. So the model I am building is based on the car 148 but is physically identical to the lp400/ 4.8/ litre/4.0litre is the difference.
My guess is the LP500S is now a LP400 (a la LP500R). Any info would be gratefully recieved.

The whole point is; That Walters second countach, the red one, now residing in Japan? Is the car I am building, and Kyosho think that the 1/8 model i am building is the original car. I think that the car i am building is the original car in 1/8th scale with a 4.0 engine which was given up, though all photos I've seen the car has been replaced . So ultimately Kyosho will be correct.