diablo purchase

Hey Pete, I've posted a lot of the same questions. You may want to do a search, all of the questions regarding reliability of different models to the price ranges for different models (by year) have been answered already.

Good luck and post pics the moment you get the beast!

Nick

 

I'm relatively new as a Lambo owner after many Ferraris, and even though I have admired a number of the older cars for a long time, I was reluctant to take the step for a number of reasons. I honestly thought the original Countach LP400 was the purest looking of the wedge designs that Lambo has been perfecting through various models, through the Diablo, and even now, with the Murcie.
I found the later Countaches to be less appealing aesthetically, although the holy grail is, i think, the carb'd QV, which is pretty scarce stateside. I was not very enamoured of the Diablo when it first came out- it's exterior was hard to resolve in my mind's eye and the interiors on the early cars left alot to be desired. From a performance standpoint, I couldn't tell you what the strengths and pitfalls of these early Diablos were; somehow, after finding so many modern sportscars in the "less than supercar" range looking, well, dull,
the exoticness of Diablo began to appeal more; by the time the 6.0 came out, i actually liked the look of the car and the interior was vastly improved. The Lambo Registry site has a pretty good basic description of each model, and within each, the various versions; the catalog raisonne, which is fairly pricey, also goes into some depth, but frankly, there seems to be far less written about the cars than Ferrari.
By the time the 6.0 came out, i think it's fair to say that this particular model reached its pinnacle. There are earlier SE and SV models that are prized- some of which are owned by members here who can fill you in.
As you may have seen from my recent post about driving the 6.0, it reminds me in many ways of a "modern" BBi; it's low, a bit of a beast at taxi-ing speeds and looks, sounds and feels very special in a way that only a 12 mid-engined car could. The Lambo Web site is also pretty informative on Diablo "fixes." The site's author is a hands-on owner who has resolved a number of problems with various models and posts informative step by step explanations of the fixes, with illustrative photos and commentary.

 

2001: 10/10.
2000: Didnt exist, well, sorta, but doesnt apply.
1999: 9.5/10
1998: 9.0/10
1995-1997: 8.5/10
1993-1994: 8.0/10
1991-1992: 7.5/10

In otherwords, the newer you can buy the better.

The older you get, and the fewer miles on the Diablo, the worse of a purchase it is. For example, take a 1993 Diablo. Which car has rotted less from being 12 years old:

A.) New York Car with 1300 miles
B.) New York Car with 13,000 miles
C.) Florida Car with 5000 miles

Ding! Answer A is correct.

The HIGHER the miles for an older car -- the BETTER it is! Those seals that rot out are EXPENSIVE to fix.

Customers ask me for discounts on warranties when they buy an old car with low miles. I respond with a surcharge, and give them this exact reason since it DOES cost me more to fix cars with low miles vs high miles.

Beyond that, before you pull the trigger post a picture and the VIN # here for board approval first.

-Ben

 

Ben: When you said "Which car has rotted less " and then pointed to the low miles car, didn't you mean to say which one has rotted more?

 

buy the latest one you can afford.....

 

Woops! Correct. The low mileage and older car has rotted out more -- not less. Sorry.

ferraripete:

There are always dealers to avoid. Most have been talked about in other threads here.

A full service history does not mean squat unless it is a real full service history. I should explain this in more detail, so stick with me on this one. All vehicles have services requested by the manufacturer to be done at certain intervals, which is either in time or mileage, whichever comes *first*. Lambo's 15,000 mile service, which includes replacing of all engine seals, should be done once every 12-15 months. Most people never do this, they wait for mileage. If they put 1000 miles on the car over 12 months, this maintenance may be considered unnecessary at a cost of around $7500. So how long has that car not had its major service for? 12 months? 24 months? More months than you can multiply by 12 to figure out the year?

Quite often we see 'full service history' that includes repairs and oil changes, but no major service. This is a huge factor to consider when you look at the repair cost of most oil leaks.

I also want to put a word of caution -- Lots of people overanalyze the purchase of an exotic. They have this magical idea that if it missed an oil change, or if it doesnt have the factory owners manual, or if it hasnt had a new clutch put in, that the car is to be passed over on. Like anything, do your own homework, dont try to overanalyze things, and if the car checks out by a private inspection you're probably good to go. Still be analytical and look at everything and ask this boards opinion on which car, as some stories stick with cars. (Read: Dead Rapper Casket Murcielago, and dozens and dozens more). Often too the previous owner will be on this board and give info on the car you want to buy. That's way cool when it happens.

Cheers,

-Ben

 

Far superior in reliability to either of the cars you asked about. The main problems you'll have on a Diablo are sensors (which are super cheap and easy to replace), and your clutch if you like to slip it. The Diablos dont drive like a regular manual, you need to be told how to use it first. It's still super easy. Just dont park the car in 1st, dont hold the clutch at lights, dont downshift without rev matching, and dont slip the clutch. You also dont need to give it gas to get the Diablo moving, just letting off the clutch at idle will catch if done properly. If your Diablo is 4WD, do NOT launch the clutch. Doing that can cause extreme pressure on the clutch pad since the wheels are very difficult to spin, so all of that horsepower goes to the clutch pad. If you follow those rules you'll never need to replace your clutch for the first 30,000 miles. I put 9800 miles on my Yellow 6.0 with no problems following these guidelines -- AND I learned stick ON that Diablo. New owner put on a few thousand miles and he slips the cluth every time and amazingly is still OK.

-Ben

 

The 91/92/93 cars have chain tensioner issues. Some cars have had the issue taken care of.


As I understand it, these 91/92/93 cars, also had an issue with the catalytic (perhaps I did not spell that correctly ?) convertors heating up. It could also cook some wires.




Some people are also put off, by the lack of power steering in the early cars.

The early cars have the less attractive dashboard.

The early cars do not have four wheel drive. Some prefer 4-wheel drive.

 

Early cars also have brakes that are considered weak relative to the rest of the performance package. I can't remember what year they upgraded (I think 93 or 94, then again in 98).

My mechanic competed in Car & Driver's One Lap with a 94 VT and said the brakes were just not up to the task.

 

Replacing all of the seals is not required every year, but recommended every 1yr/12k miles or thereabouts. That's called preventative maintenance.

Do you really want that seal to be leaking, not know it, and have it blow the engine up on the highway? That's what preventative maintenance and servicing is for.

I'll never get my seals replaced every year. It's pointless with the miles I put on the car. You can be guaranteed I'll do it every 2 years or if I buy a used one that they cant prove it was done on.

-Ben

 

Ben-

Does the owners' manual or the shop manual recommend this? I was not aware of this before now.