Lamborghini Countach

The Lamborghini mid-engined sports car Countach produced by Italian automaker Lamborghini from 1974 to 1990. The cars design pioneered and popularized the popular wedge-shaped, sharply angled look popular in many high performance sports cars. The design which is “cabin-forward” pushes the passenger compartment forward in order to accommodate the larger engine, was also popularized by the Countach.
American car magazine Sports Car International In 2004 named this car number three on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1970s, and it was listed as number ten on their list of Top Sports Cars of the 1980s. Top Gear placed it at number 1 on their list of “100 Sexiest Supercars of All Time”.The word countach is an exclamation of astonishment in the local Piedmontese language – generally used by men on seeing an extremely beautiful woman.
The prototype was introduced to the world at the 1971 Geneva Motor Show, the countach name stuck when Nuccio Bertone first saw “Project 112? in his studio.. Most previous and subsequent Lamborghini car names were associated with bulls and bullfighting..
The Countach, styled by Marcello Gandini of the Bertone design studio, the same designer and studio that designed the Miura. Gandini a young inexperienced designer did know the practical, ergonomic aspects of automobile design, but at the same time unhindered by them. He produced a quite striking design. The Countach shape was wide and low, but not very long Its angular and wedge-shaped body was made almost entirely of flat, trapezoidal panels.
The doors, a Countach trademark, as well as one of the greatest signs of a Lamborghini car, were scissor doors, which were hinged at the front with horizontal hinges, so that the doors lifted up and tilted forwards. The main reason is the car’s tubular space frame chassis results in very high and wide door sills. In the back of the designers mind he had to be thinking about style when he created this car. Care needed to be taken, though, in opening the doors with a low roof overhead. The car’s poor rear visibility and wide sills led to drivers adopting a method of reversing the car for parking by opening the door, sitting on the sill, and reversing while looking over the back of the car from outside.
The pure style of the prototype was progressively enhanced or not enhanced depending by the evolution of the car to improve its performance, handling, tractability, and ability to meet mandated requirements. This began with the first production model, which included several vents which were found to be necessary to cool the engine adequately. These included the iconic NACA duct on the door and rear fender of each side of the car. The car design changes ended with a large engine vent directly behind the driver, reducing the rear view. Later additions, including fender flares, spoilers, carburetor covers, and bumpers, progressively changed the aesthetic values of the car.
The styling and visual impression of Countach caused it to become an icon of great design to almost everyone except car engineers. The superior performance characteristics of later Lamborghini models (such as the Diablo, or the Murci?lago) appealed to performance car drivers and engineers, but they never had the original looks that gave the Countach its distinction. The different impressions left by the various Lamborghini models have generated numerous debate but one thing has never been depated is the fact the Countach is the super model of Car Design. 250 GT

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