Somewhere on a Midwest farm, this Lamborghini Countach slumbered in an old barn for 15 years. To think a rare European spec Quattrovalvole was just parked in this barn and forgotten! Not only is this car a carbureted 5000 QV, it has some interesting history. The seller claims it participated in the 1985 Monaco Grand Prix. They don’t state to what degree it participated in the Grand Prix and the only evidence they have to backup the claim are the car’s old Monaco license plates. Whether it ran at Monaco or not, this is still an incredible find! While the US spec fuel injected V12 is impressive, the European version was even more powerful! When new, the chest pounding 5.0 liter V12 put out 455 horsepower and could fling this wedge to 60 mph in under 5 seconds! Sadly, being parked for the past 15 years likely means the engine will need to be rebuilt and it’s hard to say what else might be wrong with it. Of course if you can afford the current $225k bid, an engine rebuild probably won’t be much of an issue! You can find this Lambo here on eBay. So would you fully restore this Countach or just get it running and safe to drive?
How much do you guys think it will be to restore this one back to former glory?
This is madness I can buy a Countach and a 25th Anniversary one at that that is showroom fresh in beautiful condition in the UK for under £200,000 I know the exchange rate is around 1.6 $ to the £ so this one would of had to actually won the Grand Prix to be of any value . It’ll cost more to repair than its worth .
Italian exotic makes routinely inflated power outputs back in the day. This one was probably shoved into the barn just to spare the owner embarrassment over its looks – those flares and that massive wing only serve to make it look like a kit car while adding drag and ruining the clean, original shape. Speed-enhancing drag-inducing wing! Kinda like ‘road-hugging weight’. Still, an unusual find, especially in the middle of nowhere.
Makes it “look like a kit car” now that is funny, not enlightened , but really funny! Others are correct, the price is outrageous, not even worth considering.
Wow, 225k for an 80’s Lambo? Pass. Loved these as a kid, but I’d be embarrassed to drive one now.
Who’s going to pay that money on that car – Christ it’s hideous
Monaco was/is a tax haven, possibly someone didn’t want to pay a VAT on it. So very rough, but I seem to recall one like this was in one of the kid’s movies. The stories that this car could tell. Does coke corrode rocker panels?
ugly car, not worth the bid amount, another seller flipping to make a huge profit over what they paid for it.
only F1/2/3 raced at Monaco GP in ’85
mayb a celebrity run, probably parked in town during the event, Be awesome
fun time to get it out and blow the dust off!
These were all the rage in the mid 80’s, I worked for Prestige Cars of Tx in the mid 80’s and we imported at least one of these euro spec cars. They are impossible to back, you have to open the door and look behind you out of the door. I’d have one.
Wow, according to the description it’s got six triple choke Webers. Thats…uhhh…18 venturis. No wonder they were so fast for the era.
Eh, I still love these things. If for no other reason than to fulfill adolescent fantasies. Amazing to find one of these in barn-fresh condition, regardless.
Here’s an actual photo of the Monaco pace cars showing the plates that were used
http://www.countach.ch/History/PaceCar/
i did not see a match, did you? looks like a support race using R5/LeCars. sellers claim to prove, i think
Picture 6 & 8 in the background.
I’ve been at the Monaco GP several times and yes, for several years of the first half of the eighties they were used as pace car in Monaco.
Also, Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamborghini_Countach#F1_Safety_Car , models are still for sale.
R5/LeCars races and also Golf Mk I GTI’s and other classes were part of the supporting program and especially the R5 and VW GTI races used to be great fun to watch! I’ve also seen them in Zandvoort Holland. A guarantee for sensation before the actual start of the GP.
Before I forget, later between 1989 and 1993 Lamborghini supplied F1 engines to the teams Minardi, Lotus and Larousse, only one win at the Japanese circuit in 1990. They never had a factory F1 team.
Great find.
The countach was a great design in the ’80’s. Yea it’s out dated now but it was a work of art back then. However it’s not even close to being worth the asking price!
I think dougm is right. The Monaco GP routinely had exotic cars touring around the circuit as a pre-show…..and to stroke the egos of the rich & famous. The only modern ‘street’ cars to actually compete at Monaco in an organized race were the purpose-built BMW M1s, which then became street cars that were sold to the public because production was so delayed—-by Lamborghini.
Once again we have an unusual, somewhat desirable/valuable car that’s being offered by someone who knows almost nothing about it. Thayer’s catch of six triple choke Webers shows that. And there are some real odd photos in this listing for an exotic car with a reserve above the current $225K bid. I would market this car very differently, but hey, Ebay is FREEEE…….
I think the world has left this adolescent approach to exotic car building way behind, and it would take someone who had giant posters of flared/winged Lambos plastered all over his room when he was 17 to really want one and pay the price. But lots of us want now what we wanted when we were 17, so that’s OK. This one will be bought and saved by someone, no matter how much it ends up costing them.
For selling cars, Ebay is NOT free (ask me how I found out!)…if you use Paypal for a down payment, there is a percentage taken, and after the sale, the Ebay fees are accessed. :-)
No doubt many of you on Barn Finds know how Ebay really works. No, ebay is not free. You’re thinking of Craigslist. For those who don’t, Ebay Motors does not operate as with other ebay auctions. When selling cars you pay ebay a set fee of $125. for the listing, plus additional fees for other listing features such as extra photos, placement, BIN, Reserve, etc. There is a long list of selling options. Included in the set listing fee are 3 chances to sell your car. Ebay Motors does not, however, charge the usual 10% sales commission on the sale price of cars. If payment is made through Paypal, there is a separate fee. This can be another 2.9%. But unlike regular, non-vehicle ebay auctions, you don’t have to use Paypal as a form of payment. Also, ebay allows buyers and sellers to actually connect with one another. Meaning, with ebay motors you can list your telephone number or email address, which you cannot do with other ebay auctions. This is allowed because you have already paid ebay considerable fees up front for the listing.
seller also has a Ferrari BBi for $346100. not a clue on either car. if i had that kind of money to spend i would own a barn full of vehicles plus parts/junk.
April Fool’s!
I can hear the Miami Vice theme song playing in my head.
MAKE IT STOP!!!!
WOW! This car seems way over priced, I must be off even thought it is a quatrovalve.
I think I’d rather down a draft….beer, and just look at the pictures.
Someone retracted a bid for 1.8 million….that’s a lot of cold ones.
Ahhh,,, this is highly entertaining! I guess the real point here is what fun it is to see what others have found. Is it worth anything close to the asking price on ebay? Not in my opinion, would have to research what these would sell for in prime condition and that could be an eye opener. But would i want one of these? YOU BET! Some feel its ugly, but its cool in my opinion of what an over the top exotic car should be. I hate the color, As Sammy Hagar says,, Red, Red give me Red! But i would happily give this a home, and what fun to drive. Good thing i have neither the time or money
Oh by the way. I was stationed in europe and Turkey in the 1980s, spent a lot of time in the mediterranean countries. What a crazy time that was. The photos in the link above and some others of Monaco during that time period really took me back. I could only imagine driving a car like this back then. Go back research Monacos famous celebrities and especially their royalty. I had a serious infatuation with Princess Stepfanie or: Princess Stéphanie of Monaco, Countess of Polignac (Stéphanie Marie Elisabeth Grimaldi; born 1 February 1965) is the youngest child of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco and actress Grace Kelly, and the sister of Albert II, Prince of Monaco, and Caroline, Princess of Hanover. Currently the tenth in the line of succession to the Monegasque throne. At that time, she and her sister were in all the newspapers and tabloids every week.
If you wanted to have the attention of such a beautiful and wealthy girl, you would need a car like this. Perhaps there is the real truth behind this cars original purpose? Lets be honest, half the fun is owning and driving these kinds of cars, the other half is the reaction from those who dont own one.
Never liked these… TACKY!
This is not a race car. Ever. Never.
Gross.
I do not see any other resemblance to Monaco GP pace cars than color. None of the pace cars had the gawd ugly body kit this one carries.
I am sure that there has been plenty of Countachs registered in Monaco in eighties, so bring forward the proof or this very car having been pace car?
Sorry for not buying the story…
None of the Monaco GP Lambos are 5000qvs, which is where the body kit was applied I believe.
Wasn’t this the model they had on COUNTING CARS a couple of years ago? They are darn near impossible to back up.
Started at $100k and now it’s up around $225k? Hm I guess the saying about one every minute is true! I’m far from a Lambo expert but I’ve never heard of the special Countach Down Draft model the seller expounds about. That means he must be correct about it being REALLY RARE, right? (rolls eyes)
Ugly, by today’s standards or not, you won’t forget seeing one, especially here in NH where they are a rare sighting.
A few years back, I worked next to a Day Care. Dad always showed up in an exotic, and the one I remembered best was his white on white Countach, watching him do the doors-open-over-the-shoulder backup maneuver.
That car gathered a bigger crowd than anything else he owned, even his BMW M1.
I would keep this car forever
I have a 1966 Vett all original 31k miles that I’ve owned 20 yrs I would trade for it but no money to boot!!!
I had the Alpine stereo Lamborghini wall length poster back in the 80’s in college. Compared to any other car I’d seen this body style with the spoilers were sexy. Spent many evenings staring and thinking how cool it would be to own one. Great motivation to study hard for good grades and better job. Yeah I’d still take one today and thumb to the nose of anyone who thinks it’s ugly. Those people are clearly not upper crust, country club, social party types. Haha.
Where’s the coke stashed? LOL