Politics aside, Donald Trump has always had great taste in fine cars. The ex-U.S. President has owned numerous high-end machines over the years, including the pictured Lamborghini Diablo, which is rarer than you probably think.
This 1997 Lamborghini Diablo VT Roadster is one of just 132 made for the United States from 1997 to 1999. This alone would be enough to refer to it as an automotive unicorn, but the next part makes it a one-off vehicle.
You see, the Blu Le Mans paint finish was unavailable for this model back in 1997. However, due to "a special relationship with Lamborghini," Trump was "allowed to custom-order this Diablo," and he chose the aforementioned exterior color. Another unique item is the special plaque installed on the door, which reads "Donald Trump 1997 Diablo."
As a result, this was already a very special car, even without the Trump connection. Moreover, it looks just as good today as it did nearly three decades ago. Everything is shiny, from that bespoke exterior hue and wheels to the bi-tone leather interior that mixes beige and black. The odometer reads 24,836 miles (39,970 km), yet the vendor states some "mileage inconsistency," as evidenced on CarFax.
Photo: Barrett-Jackson
The engine is a naturally aspirated V12 mounted behind the seats. The 5.7-liter unit was good for 492 horsepower (499 ps/367 kW) and 430 pound-feet (583 Nm) of torque back in the day, and given the proper maintenance the supercar has received over the years, most of those horses should still be alive.
And that's not all, as this machine comes from an era when gear-shifting was still done by pressing the clutch pedal, so it boasts a gated manual transmission with five forward gears. The transmission channeled the output and thrust to both axles, and this setup enabled the 0-60 mph (0-97 kph) in a little over four seconds. The top speed is still something to write home about, as it is 202 mph or 325 kph.
We mentioned the exterior, cockpit, oily bits, mileage, and the Donald J. Trump connection, but we still haven't told you about other owners. The online ad, which we will get to in a moment, states that besides the former U.S. President, this Lamborghini Diablo has had two other owners.
The modern-classic supercar is advertised for Barrett-Jackson's Scottsdale auction in Arizona, which will be hosted towards the end of the month. The event is scheduled to run between January 20 and 28, 2024, so you only have a little time to decide whether this Lambo is worthy of your collection. The vehicle will be offered at no reserve, accompanied by the usual documents and tools, and it should fetch a lot of money, considering that it is a one-off build.
After a series of unfortunate events put an end to Cristian's dream of entering a custom built & tuned old-school Dacia into a rally competition, he moved on to drive press cars and write for a living. He's worked for several automotive online journals and now he's back at autoevolution after his first tour in the mid-2000s. Full profile
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