With 50 years of Lamborghini upon us, it’s only natural that something special would accompany the golden anniversary. In recent years, Lambo has released several limited edition models that have pushed the envelope of performance and design. Exquisite examples to name a few are the Reventon and my personal favorite, the Sesto Elemento.
So what did Lamborghini give us for the big 5-0? Behold, the Lamborghini Egoista. Clearly the Reventon and Sesto Elemento were not models of inspiration here. Actually, the Apache attack helicopter was. We’ve seen plenty of cars modeled after jet fighters, the Reventon is one that executes that impeccably.
Fighter jets and attack helicopters are menacing feats of mechanical engineering. The Reventon, Aventador, Sesto Elemento, even the Countach of yore. All menacing in their own right and each equally Lamborghini to the very core. The Egoista however, is certainly menacing, but not in the same way as past raging bulls. The Egoista looks more like something you’d find under a microscope from blood work taken in the Amazon… yeah, it’s a parasite.
Details on the Egoista are limited at this point but from what we can see, it’s powered by a 5.2L V-10 and seats only one. A quick look at the interior of the Apache inspired Egoista and it’s easy to see the similarities between the two. The lone seat is clearly nothing more than a cockpit that looks more suited for shooting things out of the air than attacking apexes but who’s to say it couldn’t excel at both? The Egoista, like the Veneno, is definitely a more aggressive departure in the Lamborghini design code but Lamborghini is known for out-of-this-world styling and edgy design. It’s pretty hard to truly depart from something like that unless you go the opposite direction. Is the Egoista too much? Let us know what you think of the latest Sant’Agata creation.
Source: Autoblog
“Bullitt” by Grzegorz Domaradzki
It’s not much of a secret that some of the guys in the Daily Derbi bullpen are as passionate about movies as they are cars, and why the heck not when you consider how frequently the two intersect on the Silver Screen? The motion picture and the automobile both hit American culture around the same time and have grown up together, two siblings from the same Industrial Age family.
If you also share this dual passion for the cinematic and the automotive, and you happen to be in the Los Angeles area this week, you might want to pop into the Hero Complex Gallery and check out a new art exhibition called “Righteous Rides… And the Dudes Who Drive Them!”
Described as “…focusing on prominent characters of fiction and their often creative ways of getting around,” the exhibition features stunning paintings from a variety of artists and in many different styles — everything from whimsical to abstract to just plain cool — that bring to life some of the most memorable vehicles ever seen on film and television. And not all of them are cars, either, or even, strictly speaking, real. The Millennium Falcon and Carl Sagan’s “Spaceship of the Imagination” from the old PBS series Cosmos are here right alongside Steve McQueen’s Mustang from Bullitt, James Bond’s Aston Martin, and The Dukes of Hazzard‘s General Lee. As the gallery’s description puts it, “…anything that rolls, races, flies, or crashes can be counted in this high-throttled, tour de force that celebrates your favorite modes of transportation and the characters who drive them!”
“Le Mans Gulf-Porsche 917K” by Kako
The show is running now through May 19, but if you can’t make it out to the coast in that time, you can sample the flavor of it in this post at the /Film blog. Even better, you can buy prints of all this fantastic stuff for your home or garage at the gallery’s online store! (Sorry, guys, that sweet Bullitt image posted at the top is already sold out!)
Jason Bennion is seriously considering the Rocketeer print from the “Righteous Rides” exhibition. He also blogs at www.jasonbennion.com.
Should you ever become a world-famous celebrity, it’s likely that along with your stardom will come the means to afford a car that the rest of the world could only dream about owning.
But if the pricetag that usually comes along with sought-after exotics is a problem, the price of insurance will help put ownership even further out of reach. In fact, for most people, the monthly cost of insuring the current flagship model exotic is more than an average monthly car payment.
The infographic below gives a quick breakdown of a handful of celebrities rides and what they have to pay in insurance to keep driving them legal.
Take Kobe Bryant’s Ferrari 458, for example. With a starting sticker of around $230,000, Kobe has to pay an astronomical $461 a month in insurance. If we take that rate and apply it to the length of the typical 5-year car loan, Kobe will have paid $27,660 in insurance premiums. That’s enough to buy a new FR-S, 500 Abarth, Impreza WRX, and many, many more desirable “poor, non-celebrity people” cars. Or two and a half Nissan Versas, but really, who wants those.
Check out some of the other outrageous costs to insure some of the most desirable cars in the world below:
Presented by CheapCarInsurance.Net
This week Lamborghini decided to kickoff its anniversary festivities a few months early. The famed exotic car company celebrates 50 years this November but decided Italy is much nicer in the spring! In short, they gathered together a group of 350+ Lamborghinis of all models from all over the world for their 50th Anniversary Grand Grio Tour. You can see some footage from the event at the bottom of the page but first let’s give you the Reader’s Digest version history lesson of Lamborghini.
Ferruccio Lamborghini was doing pretty well for himself building tractors and in the mid-fifties was one of the largest tractor companies in Italy. He was also fortunate enough to have bought a Ferrari 250GT. He owned a few of them actually. He grew tired of having to replace the clutch so often which, as you can imagine, was not cheap. Then he found out that the 250GT used the exact same clutch assembly as his tractors and he knew they didn’t cost nearly what Enzo was charging. So what did he do? He decided to build a better car.
The first attempt was the 350GT (original name right?) which was powered by a 3.5L V12 producing 360 hp. The car wasn’t exactly a looker but it wasn’t ugly either. It is a forgotten car too. The reason? The Lamborghini Miura.
In 1967 Lamborghini changed the world of fast cars with the Miura. The industry had never seen a car like it. It was compact for a mid-engined car. This was due to its transversely mounted V12 pumping out 370 hp. An idea inspired by the Mini of all things. The design was stunning too. It was this car that set the trend not only for Lamborghini, but for Ferrari and others as well of being flamboyant mid-engined cars. Some people consider it to be one of the most beautiful cars ever.
They were at it again in 1974 with the arrival of the Countach. With its scissor doors it was so crazy to look at some people loved it while others thought it was too much. The Countach was the poster car of the seventies and eighties. In those days you either had the Countach or the bb512 on your wall. When the Countach hit the market it produced a “mild” 375 hp and the final iterations produced 455 hp. The Countach was also a fairly large car. It was fast in a straight line but not so much around corners. It was also incredibly hot in the cabin and impossible to see out of and park. The Countach is also the only one of their super cars to not be named after a bull.
In 1987, Lamborghini was bought by Chrysler under the direction of Lee Iococca, the man responsible for the Ford Mustang. The purchase price? $25.2 million. That is cheaper than a Ferrari 250 GTO. The nineties ushered in the Diablo. Longer and more sleek than the Countach, the Diablo was hardly a dull car. The 492 horse V12 was the most powerful yet. Just like the Countach though, the car was all about straight line speed. It was the first Lamborghini to pass the 200 mph barrier having a top speed of 202 mph. An all-wheel drive version came in 1993 which used a modified drive train from the LM002. The Diablo was Chrysler’s only notable contribution to the company. Chrysler sold Lamborghini to Audi in 1998. A year later came an updated version of the car which eventually was powered by a 550 hp 6.0 V12 before being replaced.
In the 2000s Lamborghini turned its first profit as well as bringing German engineering to the brand. The Murcielago was let loose on the world in 2001. The car was simply huge but my gosh was it fast! The 572 hp 6.2L V12 would propel this rocket to 60 mph in 3.8 sec and on to a top speed of 205 mph. The car’s handling was improved but it was still a bit of a pig when compared to other super cars like the Pagani Zonda and the Ferrari Enzo. With Audi having its hand in the engineering things like the air conditioning actually worked. It was even more refined to drive on the street while still being a brute when pushed. The car was later updated with a 6.5L 640 hp version and then the almighty SV producing 670 hp! This car would also do 60 mph in 2.8 seconds and had improved handling due to weight savings.
Along with the Murcielago, Lamborghini launched a “baby Lambo” in the form of the Gallardo in 2005. The car had a 500 hp V10 which provided an impressive soundtrack (one of the best exhaust notes in the world in my mind). It was considerably cheaper than the Murcielago and became very popular. It is the best selling Lamborghini to date. The car was updated to produce 560 hp and then the stripped down version produces 570 hp and will do 0-60 mph in 3 seconds flat! The Gallardo remains available for sale today but it’s replacement is on the horizon.
Lamborghini’s current flagship is the Aventador. Styled after a fighter jet, the car is very angular and arguably the most aggressive looking since the Countach. For the first time since the Miura, Lamborghini redesigned their V12. This time producing 691 hp is lighter and faster than ever before. It is currently one of the fastest accelerating cars on the market hitting 60 mph in a mere 2.7 seconds and a top speed of 220 mph. The cornering is vastly improved over the Murcielago largely due to its F1 style pushrod suspension.
Lamborghini’s 50 year history is far too long for us to go into deep detail. We hope this gives you a little more insight into their history. Looking back you can clearly see where their roots came from. The 350GT may be the oddball of the bunch but from then on, Lamborghini was in the business of making wild automobiles. The brand is recognizable worldwide and when you see one, you know you are looking at something special.
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Photo credits are unknown with the exception of the Gallardos which were taken by the author.
#12 Rebellion Racing Lola B12/60 Toyota
The 2013 American Le Mans Series makes it’s 3rd stop at the BEAUTIFUL central California race track commonly known as Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. In fact, it’s about 10 miles off the coast.
In P1 qualifying, with his first time at Laguna, was Rebellion Racing’s Neel Jani in their Lola B12/60 Toyota. Edging out Dyson Racing’s Guy Smith by 0.377 seconds. Muscle Milk qualified 3rd, despite pushing hard throughout the qualifying session.
In P2, Level 5 Motorsports qualified 1-2 in class. In fact, 0.360 seconds separates the two Level 5 cars. ESM brings in 3rd with their beautiful #01 Tequila Patrón HPD ARX-03b-Honda.
GT. Oh, how we love GT here. Risi Competizione secured pole with Matteo Malucelli at the wheel. Following 0.091 seconds behind him was American Porsche factory driver, Patrick Long, in the CORE autosport Porsche 911 RSR. Which also makes for CORE autosport first foray into GT. And yes, those wondering, CORE’s 911 RSR was Fly Lizards old 911 RSR. Coming in third was the Bryan Sellers piloted #17 Team Falken Tire Porsche 911 RSR. And to give you an idea of how competitive GT is – the top nine cars were within 0.883 seconds of Risi!!
PC. Colin Braun driving the #05 CORE autosport came out swinging for pole. Followed closely by DragonSpeed Mishumotor’s #81 – 0.546 secs to be exact. Bruno Junquiera qualified 3rd with the #9 RSR Racing ORECA.
GTC. Umm, can anyone beat Jeroen Bleekemolen? NGT Motorsport’s Nick Tandy came in 0.111 seconds behind Jeroen. Andy Lally in the #27 Tully’s Coffee Dempsey Del Piero Racing rounds out the top 3 qualifying positions.
So, fire up the XBox + espn3 app on Saturday (5/11) for the live stream starting at 6:15pm ET.
For international fans, ALMS.com will carry the feed.
ALMS.com will also carry live streams of an assortment of in car cameras and car to pit radio transmission for all viewers.
Or wait for the “time condensed” version to air, Sunday (5/12), on ESPN2 at 4pm ET.
As always – the handy-dandy spotters guide.
[Photo | Mike Gillilan]
