Lamborghini’s Countach LPI 800-4:
The Stuff of Dreams
Turn back the calendar to 1971 and imagine you are a young driver looking over the hottest new car options. What would you have chosen to park in your garage? It could have been a Maserati Bora, a Lotus Elan Sprint, or a Ferrari 365 GTC. Perhaps you might have wanted a muscled Plymouth Hemi Cuda or a Dodge Hemi Charger. If you were really dreaming big, however, the 1971 concept Lamborghini Countach, presented at the Geneva Auto Show that year, might have convinced you to wait a few years until that insanely beautiful, truly groundbreaking design transformed from lines on a page to a full-fledged supercar.
Fifty years ago, Lamborghini unveiled that new automobile design. One so unique it demanded a name apart from the established herd of Iberian Touro de Lide predecessors. The story goes, according to Marcello Gandini, the man credited with the original design, that a profiler working with Lamborghini frequently used the Piedmontese dialect exclamation “contacc” to express awe or admiration of something. Pronounced “koon-tosh,” the name stuck, and the car went from “wow” to legend almost overnight.
Envisioning the Past, Embracing the Future
The video introducing this epic LPI 800-4 automobile on the Lamborghini website stirs the senses with close-up footage of a forearm, hair standing on end, accompanied by a stylized audio heartbeat rhythm, making the car jump to life as it excites the viewer. The website has an audio gauge that cues up the Countach signature rumble, winding up for a wild acceleration rolling through the gears, then back down to an idle. That identifiable sound comes from the Longitudinale Posteriore mounted powerplant, reflecting the LPI in the car’s name. The “I” identifies the car as being a hybrid, ”ibrida” in Italian. It is today’s version of that explosive model, the one that found posters adorning the walls of the early Countach cult, that continues to imprint the brand on every young driver, along with a good many older ones as well.
The first Countach, designed by Marcello Gandini, was presented as a concept at the 1971 Geneva Auto Show. It was an instant celebrity among its four-wheeled peers. Lamborghini would go on to produce 2000 units over 16 years between 1974 and 1990. Fast-forward to 2021, and find the Countach LPI 800-4, unveiled in August at Monterey Car Week’s motorsports gathering, The Quail.
The audience was equally as receptive to this new Countach. Quite quickly, all 112 units found ready owners, again becoming legend among supercar fans. Delivery is expected early in 2022.
Not a Retrospective, But An Evolution
“The Countach LPI 800-4 is a visionary car of the moment, just as its forerunner was.” Automobili Lamborghini President and CEO Stephan Winkelmann announced, continuing, “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.’”
Not intended as a retrospective, Lamborghini sees the LPI 800-4 as the evolution of the original 70s design into an exceptional model of this century’s roaring 20s, complete with thrilling acceleration growl and contented but active driving purr.
Vive la différence
Similarities unmistakably classify the 800-4 as a modern, elevated Countach, but the differences ensure this is a car with its vision fixed on the future. The wedge is clearly on display, but with a subtly updated profile. The breathtaking scissor doors, the NACA-style air vents, the telescoping top, the vintage telephone style wheels, and even the Countach branding on the front bumper confirm the LPI 800-4’s legacy. And then, there’s the sound. The startup and revving of this engine is unmistakably Countach.
The LPI 800-4 is a bigger car: 736mm/29 inches longer, 356mm/14 inches wider, 71mm/2.8 inches higher, and 295 kg/650 pounds heavier. The headlights, while flush, do not pop up like the original model due to safety regulations, and the fixed-wing has been replaced by hidden design elements above the taillights. The hybrid powertrain with electric assist, the digital gauges, and the absence of the fixed-wing bring the design forward.
The original Countach counted 150 cars produced. The 800-4 will only reach a count of 112 total cars, a number inspired by its in-design code name, LP112. If you haven’t already captured one of these wild beasts for your very own, it is unlikely you will find the opportunity to do so. All are spoken for, sold almost immediately upon the announcement.
