The Lambo Countach Poster Is Back, Baby

A Lamborghini by any other name would still be insanely expensive, but the revival of the Countach comes with a storied history along with that hefty price point. 

Selling at an alleged $3.5 million with a limited series run, this recreation vehicle is more likely to be a poster on the wall than a ride for the average American. It’s rather fitting considering the original Countach, released in the 1970s and priced at around $360,000 in current currency, was a staple of 1980s rumpus room decor. The promise of power in an engine designed around the flagship Lamborghini V12, the exotic cut back towards the year dubbed the Italian “wedge”, and sweet headlights that flipped up (like a spy car) made Generation X say “damn” and slap that visage on their wood-paneled wall. It was a dream wrapped in a fantasy.  

And it still is - for most people. The Countach remained in production for 16 years, way longer than most models, only seeing a handful of upgrades. Lamborghini’s Countach nameplate revival can only be revived so much as the original styling of that low flat roofline can be considered safe by modern safety requirements. (The answer is iffy at best.) But the Countach was never concerned with such matters of practicality and safety. It has always been a labor of beauty and it is hard to argue with the results:

But beauty, as with everything else, tends to evolve with the times. In May, Lamborghini threatened that the next gen vehicle would have a naturally aspirated V-12 paired with an advanced hybrid system. It was the inevitable direction for the company to take, but the Countach was iconic for the sheer absurdity in its aggressive engineering. Designed to look fast, but aerodynamic as a brick, the Countach was known for being a ridiculously dramatic vehicle, a wedge with a big engine in the middle, purely because that’s freaking cool. There’s a reason no one is putting Toyota Camry posters up on their walls.

Is it a revival in mostly name only? Or is it Lamborghini’s first step in a revolution of their engine design, an attempt to mold the old into the new, to take the drama and excitement of Lamborghini in its prime into the future?