You know that thing where, if you hang around long enough, your old clothes become fashionable again? That seems to be how it is for the Lamborghini Countach - forget the uglified, be-winged and spoilered (spoiled?) editions launch in the eighties; we're talking here about the striking, slimline, sexy Marcello Gandini original Countach of 1974. That's the car the new Countach - technically the Countach LPI 800-4 - takes its inspiration from.
V12 mild-hybrid engine from the Sian
It's that incredible original shape (the name Countach comes from a word expressing surprise and excitement - a sort of Italian 'phwoar!' uttered by Ferruccio Lamborghini when he first saw the clay model of the original car) that Lamborghini has brought back for the 21st century. This time around it's a V12 mild-hybrid, featuring the engine and the super-capacitor battery system from the limited-run Sian.
Like the Sian, the new Countach will be built in extremely limited numbers (Lamborghini calls it a 'few-off' rather than a one-off). Just 112 are due to be made, and it was unveiled to the public at 'The Quail: A Motorsports Gathering' as part of the Monterey Car Week in California.
Let's just take a breather here, before we get into the technical details, to take a good, long, look at that bodywork. Wow. OK, so maybe retro design is ultimately a dead-end - there's only so much back catalogue to raid - but we reckon this is the best-looking Lamborghini since the 2001 Gallardo.
Gandini's original wedge shape has been carefully, thoughtfully modernised (no pop-up headlights, alas, this time around) with delicious seventies details such as the huge air vent that cuts into the doors, the line-up of individual brake lights set into the rear valance and the gorgeous quilted red seats. Love the eighties-style lettering on the subtle Countach badge set into the nose, too.
'Provocative and polarising'
"The Countach is one of the most significant and exciting cars in automotive history as well as in Lamborghini's heritage," says Mitja Borkert, Lamborghini Head of Design.
"The Countach LPI 800-4 project is an incomparable design opportunity: to take a car so important and continue its evolution into a new era is a unique privilege. The Countach was provocative and polarising, it made people smile and stare, but its infamous recognisability demonstrates the purity of its design legacy: the Countach LPI 800-4 elevates that clarity to a new level, celebrated in an exclusive limited edition to take its place in motoring history."
Right, onto the technical details. Underneath is the mechanical package from the outgoing Aventador. The LPI name comes from a combination of Longitudinale Posteriore (LP - which means the big V12 engine is mounted front-to-rear in the back) combined with the hybrid (I) technology developed for the Sian.
Maximum power is 814hp - 780hp from the V12, and the rest from the hybrid system, which uses ultra-fast charging super-capacitors. They don't hold as much charge, nor for as long, as a conventional battery, but they charge and discharge much faster, and they're much lighter than a lithium-ion pack.
The '4' in the name means this Countach has four-wheel drive, and Lamborghini claims 0-100km/h in 2.8 seconds, 0-200km/h in 8.6 seconds and a top speed of 335km/h.
"The engineering team that developed the original Countach advanced Lamborghini's pioneering technical approach, delivering unexpected innovations and the best performance available in a production car," says Lamborghini Chief Technology Officer Maurizio Reggiani.
"That spirit inherently drives Lamborghini R&D, resulting in the pioneering hybrid technology in the LPI 800-4, and the emotive driving experience and top-line performance expected from a flagship V12 Lamborghini."
Carbon-fibre body and chassis
This will likely be the last use for the current V12 and the super-capacitor system. Lamborghini boss Stephan Winklemann has previously said that the next-generation top-spec Lamborghini will use a plug-in hybrid based around a new V12 engine.
Underneath, there's a carbon monocoque chassis and all of the body panels are made from carbon fibre. That helps the Countach to keep its dry weight down to a surprisingly reasonable 1,595kg. There are also some neat touches such as moveable air intakes made using 3D printing tech, and a photochromatic roof that changes from solid to transparent at the push of a button.
The 21-inch alloy wheels have been done in the classic 'telephone dial' style of 1980s Countachs and behind them there are carbon brakes. The wheels themselves are wrapped in Pirelli P Zero Corsa tyres.
Buyers can choose from a vast range of colours for their new Countach, including some 'heritage colours' that are worth the price of admission alone. Verde Scandal, anyone? Or how about Viola 30th (that's a bright purple - perfect for JK from Jamiroquai)?
"The Countach LPI 800-4 is a visionary car of the moment, just as its forerunner was," says Automobili Lamborghini President and CEO Stephan Winkelmann.
"One of the most important automotive icons, the Countach not only embodies the design and engineering tenet of Lamborghini but represents our philosophy of reinventing boundaries, achieving the unexpected and extraordinary and, most importantly, being the 'stuff of dreams'. The Countach LPI 800-4 pays homage to this Lamborghini legacy, but it is not retrospective: it imagines how the iconic Countach of the '70s and '80s might have evolved into an elite super sports model of this decade. It upholds the Lamborghini tradition of looking forward, of exploring new design and technology avenues while celebrating the DNA of our brand. It is a Lamborghini that innately expresses the marque's enduring and emotive power: always inspirational and thrilling to see, hear and most of all drive."