Investments
The First Countach Ever Restored by Lamborghini Is Now Up for Grabs
The red supercar is outfitted with several 1988 parts and design elements.
BY Bryan Hood  |  November 22, 2024
2 Minute Read
facebook-iconlinkedin-iconemail-iconprinter-icon
testing

Image courtesy of Zach Brehl/Petrolicious

It’s hard to beat a Lamborghini Countach with all its original components, but one fixed up by the manufacturer itself is the next best thing.

The first Countach restored by Lamborghini, a red 1988 LP5000 Quattrovalvole, is currently up for sale in Canada via Petrolicious. This example of the supercar may have been rebuilt from the ground up, but it looks just as good today as it did brand-new.

The Italian marque established its own in-house heritage and restoration team, Polo Storico, in 2015, but before that, Raging Bull owners were on their own if their ride needed to be restored. That helps explain why this car’s original owner sold it off in 1988 after it caught fire and was written off by his insurance company. The car was acquired by a Lamborghini collector who set about tracking down all the parts needed to return it to working order, a task made exponentially harder by Lamborghini shifting its attention to the Countach’s successor, the Diablo, according to the sales listing. Luckily for them, the automaker had gotten word of the search and reached out to them through a Toronto-based lawyer.

The factory-restored 1986 Lamborghini Countach LP5000 Quattrovalvole.
Image courtesy of Zach Brehl/Petrolicious

After some back and forth, the company agreed to take on the restoration itself back in Italy, something it had never before done. It wasn’t cheap, though. The final cost for the rebuild job came in at US$240,000 (HK$1.86 million), which was US$30,000 (HK$233,470) more than a brand-new example of the Diablo cost at the time.

It does look like the collector got their money’s worth. Their fixed-up Countach is a beauty finished in an unmarred coat of Rosso red. Although it left the factory in 1986, it was outfitted with several 1988 model-year parts and design cues, like its side skirts, engine lid, and rear wing. The interior is covered in Champagne leather and looks identical to how it did when the car was brand-new.

Image courtesy of Zach Brehl/Petrolicious

Like other LP5000 Quattrovalvole models, it comes equipped with 5.2-litre V-12 with four valves per cylinder and Weber carburetors. The mill is mated to a five-speed manual and can make up to 420 hp and 340 ft lbs of torque. It should still be capable of reaching those numbers too. The listing says the car has just 15,742 miles on it and has been meticulously maintained since returning from Italy. It even comes with Polo Storico certification.

Intrigued? No price is listed on the Petrolicious website, but you can reach out for more information. We’d be willing to wager that the asking price will be well north of what it costs to restore the car to such good condition.

Click here for more photos of the first factory-restored Lamborghini Countach.