Countach Downdraft 1985 to 1988.5

Sorry, I've been away, so only now catching up on this excellent thread..

Firstly, I've been lucky enough to do big speeds in my Countach several times, always in Europe and always without the wing fitted. Due to lack of opportunities, I've never been over 140mph with the wing fitted but when I did, the car felt no different to when it was wingless.

Almost as soon as I bought the Countach, I had a set of modern Toyos fitted on the front because they were the only ones I could get in a hurry, before driving out to the factory for an Octane story we did with three other Countach and Valentino. One the way back to the UK, I enjoyed one section of autostrada at between 140-170mph for at least twenty minutes and the car felt great at those speeds, with no weave whatsoever. Incidentally, in my experience, it's the revs you watch at these speeds, rather than the speedo.
I then had a new set of P Zero Pirellis fitted all round and that's when some instability at speed first appeared. I tried to record a top speed run in Germany on the way down to the Lamborghini 50th Giro but the lack of stability and a sense of weaving at 100mph+ was all very unsettling and I bailed at just over 150mph.
I recently tried a set of Yokohama tyres on my Countach and the instability disappeared instantly, so I'm sure it's just tyres that are the problem and not the recent addition of the wing (which wasn't fitted on the 50th Giro)

Paul, regarding going for a top speed at the event you're attending, it's a very different thing going for a top speed on an empty German Autobahn to doing so on a runway. On the road you can build up to top speed at your own pace but on a runway you are forced to go for it and then brake hard, which is when you've got to be really careful.
In my experience it's going from very high speed to full braking in older cars where you need to be most alert. My tip is to let the car come off the throttle, pause, then apply the brakes softly to dip the nose before going for full braking. You need to be sure there's no sticking caliper which could cause one wheel to brake harder than the other too. On modern cars, you can just leave it to the ABS to sort it out, for example, my Zonda was particularly impressive at high speed, utterly stable at 200mph thanks also to all that downforce. The Diablo feels really good at high speed too but nothing touches a Veyron for achieving crazy speeds without any stress on the driver. I've none 230mph+ in a Vitesse without the roof fitted and it felt surreally easy but that's another story..

Finally, watch out if the runway you're running on is rarely used, as the surface grip can be very variable, especially at the sides, or the end of the track. Good luck!

 

Well done, nothing like having a deadline to work to!

Just amazing to see it all come together in real time over the past few weeks, easy to forget just how many components go into creating a car. Can't wait to see photos of it on the pristine lawns at Quail..

 

Please do record a video of those first eruptions!

 

The following of period DD production / factory pictures :
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some more :
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Here are the two period official Lamborghini test drivers for the DD QV Countach : our famous - well-known - Valentino Balboni, and his colleague : Cesare Lodi (now also retired) :
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to be continued...

 

Question, the lock assembly found on the DD kevlar composite engine cover, what is the original finish? Mine is painted
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Could not resist taking a snapshot after photographing the engine bay lock. A true work of art ....
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I need to find some old photo albums, I took pany pictures back then. i visited the production about 20 times, from the tail end of the 5000S production to that of the early Diablos. A very different production back then. This is a rare car, there is USA written in marker on the fender and it us clearly a DD!
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Words cannot express the feeling of having a car finished like yours! Collecting is a lifetime commitment, it's the process of learning, sharing and being responsible for art. You have done an unparalleled job with the former Mimran Countach and in the process set the bar for future modern Supercar restorations. Congrats!! Can't wait to see her on the green! A big hug and BIG high five from all of us!!

 

I dont often post, but this thread is epic. I hope that the restoration is included in the Countach book Joe? Ive a little room next to the Miura bible and 288GTO....Be a great chapter following the history of this DD. Im looking forward to hearing it!

 

Yes indeed - it´s a really perfect job, Joe!

 

Joe,

Congratulations! Fantastic job! Extraordinary car!

Great motivation and benchmark for my projects.

Daniel