Countach, the ultimate supercar

It's possible that Symbolic may have actually painted it metallic black, and perhaps Bill simply hasn't made the distinction of metallic paint, either way, of course we all agree it should be correct, but it's always up to the owner.

Using that image to pass judgement on Symbolic's work would be a mistake on your part firstly because the photo used by Symbolic is actually a random illustrative image which happens to be of Bruno D's LP400 in Austria, and secondly because the correct blackout treatment behind the rear 3/4 window is in effect as evidenced by color versions of the same image and others - see images below.

The irony is, the image Symbolic has used was lifted from a galleria on my website where all these images from the car's 1994 shoot were given to me by the archive of the photographer who took them

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This shows the rear 3/4 window blackout treatment better, on darker cars it's hard to see in images

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The clearer color photos are essential in clarifying that there was no paintwork mistake seen in the Ad car, and that in fact the car in the Ad is not 1120182 at all, both important points.

As for the painting process, that's up to each car's owner, but I am not of the camp that believes that it should take years & years to paint these cars like some we know of in the past, working with a skilled & dedicated team, the full painting process can be completed to world-class Pebble Beach standard in less than a year.

 

This is an interesting topic, and the perspective you take depends on if the car is simply being repainted, or if the car is the subject of a full restoration.

In addition to stripping and performing necessary repairs by a shop that is skilled in aluminum & galvanic corrosion (obviously), the pre-paint preparation stages of multi-layering and sanding are essential to the success and durability of the new paint's finish.

It's worth noting that some of the later cars have zero or little corrosion and require little body repairs prior to pre-paint and painting, it all depends on the life the car has had, for example, if it has existed in 3 different liveries before, the delicate aluminum bodywork will have suffered some trauma. Conversely, my experience is the earlier cars require a more body repair work than the later cars, the further back you go the more this notion holds true, for example, when we restored our Miura SVs, the bodies required a lot of repairs even though the cars appeared to not have been involved in any accidents.

In the last few years I have observed a number of shops paint Countachs where major components were actually left in the car to be damaged by the irreversible effects of sanding & painting, I've seen engine, suspension, wiring, lines, steering column etc that were left in place when in fact they could benefit from being removed, leaving just an unobstructed chassis & panels to be worked on.

Additionally, many people repaint their Countachs without bothering to fully refinish the chassis or especially the cockpit of the car.

Another thing I have observed is where the coach-builder doesn't bother to mask the doors fully and as a result they are painted on both sides including the intricate window pulleys on the inside door-panels, thus compromising the effective function of the manual windows upon re-assembly.

I've also seen repaints or restorations that literally take years & years, to the point where by the time the body is finished, its time to reseal the engine and redo other components that are no longer fresh, it's better to have a planned concerted effort and finish a restoration in a year or two so everything is fresh and to the same standard.

At the end of the day it is up to the owner to do whatever they like, but clearly there are many different ways to paint a Countach, some of them less ideal than others, but so far as the owner is happy and the car runs well, I say all is good.

 

Agreed.

 

A giant full-scale Countach jigsaw puzzle for Christmas!

Countach ZA9C00500ELA12696 with 17,000 miles (@ 28,000 kilometers).

This is a 1984 Lamborghini Countach LP500S, significant because the LP500S is the very first production 5-liter engine put into the Countach, remember that the original prototype LP500 was so designated because the Countach was supposed to be a 5-liter concept, it took the factory 10 years to get there, and the LP500S is the car that scored that goal.

I have a good copy of the free-and-clear Texas/USA Title in hand in the seller’s actual private-party name, and I’m authorized to sell.

All the car’s components are present and in excellent condition, ready to be restored, some items have already been refurbished.

The car was originally white (Bianco Polo Park) with a black (Nero) leather interior, and it comes with a wing.

This is a great Countach opportunity for @ half the price of a nice running LP500S

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I don't think anyone is generalizing about paint shops per se, but rather, making observations of the practices of some shops, images of which which have been posted here on FC.

As far as timing, I agree, thats why I posted above "I am not of the camp that believes that it should take years & years to paint these cars like some we know of in the past, working with a skilled & dedicated team, the full painting process can be completed to world-class Pebble Beach standard in less than a year"

 

There are a number of experts who could help you.