Correct !!! all money sent by BMW was spent by Lamborghini for the R&D. Lamborghini did well but unfortunately, a bench of engineers left the factory promising to BMW to make it better and cheaper... no money was left at Sant'Agata, so BMW changed its plan and produced itself !
The Silhouette is related to the BMW M1 in a number of ways: - Dallara was designing the chassis of both cars at the same time - For both he designed the suspension around the new Pirelli P7 tyre - He used 285/40/VR 15 rear tyres on the Silhouette, but was more conservative on the M1 commission, giving it 225/50/VR 16 - The Silhouette is named after the racing series the BMW M1 was designed to win Although they don't share parts (as far as I am aware) they are related; half-cousins maybe. As the Jalpa evolved out of the Silhouette it has a link to the M1 but its more tenuous than the Silhouettes. So your friend was on the right track but exaggerating the similarities somewhat.
Marchesi made the chassis for all the Lamborghini V8s and the BMW M1 but they were completely different!
Interestingly the Jalpa and the M1 have the exact same sizes P7 Pirelli tires (205/55 VR16 Front and 225/50 VR16 Rear). There is plenty space for wider tires in the back for the Jalpa and I have often wondered why they didn't use wider wheels in the back. Maybe that had to do with release dates for the various P7 sizes? A couple more Jalpa/M1 "similarities": Engine displacement (3.5L) and numbers produced (low 400) Laust
Sorry, but those are not my results. Please bring this to the attention of Car and Driver. Just be sure to tell them you are about 29 years late with your complaint.
When those results came out, I was in high school and I didn't have a drivers license yet. I've never driven a Jalpa (only sat in a few years ago), so I couldn't comment on their true capabilities. The next best result I've seen/heard for a Jalpa was 6.0 seconds in this episode of Motorweek at the 14.17 minute mark. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DB6Qwb-RO8M
It's all about the very first meters in such heavy cars, either you arrive to get wheelspin else the clutch is gone... On the Countach even worse with the massive rear tires, never try this on your own or it will cost you a fortune.
It's never worth burning a clutch to try to get a great 0-60 time. Still nice to see Jalpas finally getting some recognition from car fans, even if they are not quite as quick as some suggested it was.
its not the only magazine that got a sub 6 sec time... i recall Motor (uk) did as well with an early version (82 perhaps?). not so impossible i reckon... yes you are correct...your friend is completely wrong some people consider a clutch as a consumable item much like brake pads and tires. testers are often brutal because it isnt there car
Road & Track 11/82 achieved 7.3 seconds 0-60 limiting revs to 6500 and Autoweek 09/82 took 6.5 seconds. This was using CLA12012, one of a very few cars built in 1982, shipped to Rarewala in European spec without any of the later modifications needed for the US.
My copy of Autoweek 27th Sept 1982 has an advertisement for P7s, described as "the legendary super high-performance tire from Pirelli", with the following 16" tyres offered: 205/55 VR16 $209 225/50 VR16 $219 265/50 VR16 $263
The Road and Track article said: "Lamborghini claims a 0-60 time in the mid-6-second range, but our test procedure doesn't call for excessive clutch slippage or speed shifts and because the Jalpa's engine was still fresh, we used 6500 rpm as the limit rather than the tach's 7500 redline".
i recall the early urraco's redlined at 7500 with 8000rpm ignition cut out then thats not a proper test! lol cheers
Thanks for the info. I am almost running out of explanations, although: I have had my rear OE rims widened to 9.5" (with room for more, but limited tire selection at 16") and briefly drove with a 255/50-16 tire, but it looked like I was on the way to the drag strip with that aspect ratio (compared to the 205/55 16 front). Now I have Kumho Ecsta V710 265/45-16 installed, which looks (and handles) much better. So maybe the Pirelli 265/50 VR16 was just too tall compared to the front. The cost savings for keeping the rims at identical widths (7.5") could not have been much though, since the rims f/r have different offset, requiring different tooling anyhow. Laust PS I once asked Valentino why the rear wheels were not wider, but he had no explanation for it either.
According to Marchet's V8 book..."The wheels were developed from the Athon design, and had a 16 in. rim diameter at front and rear. Marc Deschamps of Bertone stressed that these were too large from a strictly aesthetic point of view; but Alfieri had asked for them". Maybe the limited selection of tyre sizes had not been envisaged. Anyhow for good measure here is the list of the 15" P7 sizes available in 1982... 195/50 VR15 $147 [Silhouette] 205/50 VR15 $179 225/50 VR15 $209 255/60 VR15 $229 Rally type 275/55 VR15 $249 Rally type 285/40 VR15 $249 [Silhouette] 285/50 VR15 $265 345/35 VR15 $290
There should be a few more 15 inch p7 tires avalible in 82... For instance 265-50-15 or 265-60-15 which was used on the panthers Gts wide 10".
Lamborghini Jalpa Buyer?s Guide: Values, Problem Areas, and More ? Feature ? Car and Driver | Car and Driver Blog
