Lamborghini's Countach LP 500 Prototype Turns 50, This Is Its Captivating Story

On March 11, 1971, at ten o’clock in the morning, Lamborghini revealed the yellow Countach LP 500 prototype in the exhibition space of Carrozzeria Bertone at the famed Geneva Motor Show.

The unveiling was incredibly successful, with both the press and the visitors flocking to get a glimpse of the innovative car.

It overshadowed all other vehicles showcased at the event, including the Maserati Bora, Alpine A310, or its sibling, the Miura P400 SV. The latter occupied Lamborghini’s official stand at the event, as the company expected it to draw more attention than the new prototype. That was the main reason why the LP 500 made its public debut on Carrozzeria Bertone’s stand.

In the coming months, the Countach LP 500 was the main talking point for car fanatics worldwide, especially because it was featured in virtually all the international automotive magazines.

The development of the car begun in 1970 as Ferruccio Lamborghini wanted to create a worthy successor for the acclaimed Miura introduced four years earlier, which was facing strong competition from the newer Ferrari 365 GTB/4 ‘Daytona’.

Codenamed LP112, the project was handed down to chief engineer Paolo Stanzani, one of the men responsible for developing the Miura.

Although Ferruccio Lamborghini initially wanted the car to be a comfortable grand tourer, Stanzani argued that the Miura’s successor should be an uncompromising sports car that pushes the boundaries of performance, aerodynamics, and aesthetics.

The boss eventually recognized the market potential of such a car and gave Stanzani the green light. The chief engineer assembled a team that included test driver Bob Wallace, assistant engineer Massimo Parenti and Marcello Gandini, Carrozzeria Bertone’s design director at the time.

Gandini was responsible for the Countach's futuristic exterior design, including its famous scissor doors. That feature was kept on the final production version and has characterized Lamborghini’s twelve-cylinder models ever since.

However, the LP 500 was significantly different than the Countach that would go into production in 1974. Instead of a tubular frame, the prototype had a platform chassis and was powered by a one-of-a-kind 440-hp 5.0-liter (4,971-cc) V12. Additionally, the side air intakes had a different design and sophisticated electronic instrumentation dominated the dashboard.

Unlike previous Lamborghinis that were given names associated with bullfighting, this car's name originates from the Piedmont regional dialect. Legend has it that in the final stages of development, the prototype was hidden in a shed on a farm near the Grugliasco province of Turin and was discovered by a local farmer who exclaimed: “cuntacc!” (pronounced Countach), an interjection in the local dialect which corresponds to the English 'Damn!'

When Piedmont-born Marcello Gandini heard the story, he thought that it would make a great name for the new car and convinced Ferruccio Lamborghini to make it official.

After its successful unveiling in 1971, the LP 500 was equipped with a more reliable 4.0-liter V12 and was driven by chief test driver Bob Wallace for every conceivable road test.

The prototype’s story doesn’t have a happy ending, though. It was used in crash tests required for the homologation of the final production version and was eventually scrapped.

The series Countach was built from 1974 to 1990, when it was replaced by the Diablo. During this period, it became one of the most popular sports cars of all time and helped the company survive its most difficult period.