Ferruccio Lamborghini was born in Italy in 1916.
He was always interested in engines from a young age and got a fortunate break during the second world war when he was stationed in Rhodes. The island was essentially isolated from the rest of the world. Pretty much any cars, trucks or motorcycles which required reparing had to be fixed using parts from other vehicles. He became an expert and was soon in demand for maintaining anything mechanical.
Then at the end of the war, he returned to northern Italy. He setup a small car and motorbike repair shop in Modena. The surrounding area was very much agricultural so he saw an opportunity to provide tractors. He found he could build about one tractor a month from derelict military vehicles. As Italy's economy grew demand for his high quality tractors started to grow.
He started to build his own tractor engines and at one point in 1960, Lamborghini was producing over 400 a month. It was at this point that he looked at expanding the business venturing into heaters and air conditioning units for buildings. This too became very successful.
During this period Lamborghini started to show an interest in developing a high performance car. He was no novice. He had already owned Oscas, Maseratis and Ferraris but was never impressed. It was at this point that he decided to build his own car, specifically with a V12 engine. Not wanting to reinvent the wheel, he managed to employ the talented ex Ferrari engineer Giampaolo Dallara.
The new engine had 4 cams, a short stroke and 4 big bore valves per cylinder. Surprisingly it produced 350 HP. It was all aluminum too, with seven main bearings supporting the crankshaft. These crankshafts were machined from SAE 9840 steel. The 12 connecting rods were of SAE 4340 steel. The pistons were of forged aluminum. Each pair of camshafts were driven by their own half engine speed sprocket and silent chain. The engine was very much the prototype for all Lamborghini engines and to complete the masterpiece, Lamborghini commissioned the body to be designed by Scaglione-Touring.
The public got a glimpse of the "350 GTV" model at the Turin Auto Show of 1963.. Sales started the following year. The launch car was renamed the 350 GT and became a complete success. With over 130 sold, the future for Automobili Lamborghini looked very bright.
Following the 350 GT came the 400 GT and then the 400 GT 2+2. These cars established Lamborghini as a serious motor manufacturer. With his successful tractor business and profits from the sales of his 350 & 400 cars, he asked his engineers to design and build a new car - the legendary Lamborghini Miura. The Miura finally put Lamborghini on the map and established the company as a serious supercar manufacturer. The car was truly ahead of its time, both in design and engineering. It shocked even companies like Ferrari and Maserati.
The Miura was unveiled on November 1965 at the Turin Auto Show by Ferruccio Lamborghini himself. The public only saw the chassis, but the real inspiration was the engine was transversely mid-mounted, something up to then only seen in real F1 race cars.
Marcello Gandini designed the body in less than a year ready for display at the 1966 Geneva Show. It was stunning, surpassing its launch in Turin. It looked agressive and an appropriate name was chosen for it, the Miura, a name given to the ferocious Spanish fighting bulls. Again the car was a complete success.
How do you top that? Then in 1973 at the Geneva Auto Show, Lamborghini shocked the world yet again with his revolutionary LP400 Countach. The public would only get to see a prototype.
Today it is difficult to appreciate what an impact the car had. Even now the car is a show stopper! To ensure it had maximum impact, the car was painted in bright red with a black suede interior. And to add another first, the car was showed for the first time, the by now, famous, Lamborghini signature swing up doors. It also displayed unique vertically mounted rear air intakes to go with its powerful 4 Litre engine.
During the seventies the company maintained profitability due to the sale of Miura's, but the oil crisis started to made sales of high performance cars difficult. Production at the factory was hampered by parts supply and general financial issues. Customers gave up waiting for cars with two year back orders. Lamborghini did however have the support of a wealthy Canadian, Walter Wolf. He played a major role in supporting Lamborghini and developing the Countach during these difficult times.
However, in 1978 the company declared bankruptcy. A Swiss based group called the Mimran brother's were appointed to save the factory. By 1980 Patrick Mimran, started to turn the company around. Under Patrick, the Countach was developed further, creating the LP500 S right up to the impressive QuattroValvole. .
Then, just as things were moving forward, the Mimran brothers sold the company to Chrysler Corporation. The big Chrysler corporation support was just what Lamborghni. needed. With their support, Lamborghini started working on a Countach successor -- the Diablo. Chrysler kept the winning team together in Italy.
With the cultures from the two companies being very different, things started to get stressful between the management groups.