Description
For sale in our forthcoming auction 'Retromobile the Official Sale', on 2 February 2024 :
The GT Lamborghini Collection
German title
Chassis No 0154
Engine 0132
- 25th production Lamborghini car manufactured
- Original engine and gearbox
- Fantastic model mechanically and design-wise
- Aluminium body
- No reserve
The Lamborghini 350 GT is particularly important in the history of the brand, as it was the first ever production car marketed by the young manufacturer. Launched at the Geneva Motor Show in 1964, it had the most attentive care from Ferruccio Lamborghini (whose fortune was based on his business of producing agricultural tractors) mainly because he wanted this car to become a serious competitor to the Ferrari ones. He therefore hired the best specialists: Touring for the "Superleggera" bodywork from the initial design by Franco Scaglione, Gianpaolo Dallara for the chassis and Giotto Bizzarrini for the engine. As a former Ferrari engineer who notably worked on the 250 GTO, the latter had developed a stunning 3. 5-litre V12 engine with four ACT, which produced 270 hp and enabled the 350 GT to reach 250 km/ h. Enough to stand up to the Jaguar E-Type, Aston Martin DB5 and of course Ferrari 250 and 330 GT without blushing.
According to the Lamborghini record, this particular 350 GT was delivered new on the 22nd March 1965 to Lambocar Milano in "Grigio St Vincent" colour with red interior. This is the 25th 350 GT produced and therefore the 25th car to leave the Sant'Agata factory, since the 350 GT was the manufacturer's first ever model and constituted one of the very first milestones in its fabulous history. The car presents some special features and original details as shown in pre-production models. These are, for example, the perforated and brushed Helleboure steering wheel, the sun visors made of dark glass, the round tank cap flaps with the chrome-plated borders, the fans above the fenders for interior ventilation, the interior ventilation outlets in the footwell and the chrome surrounds of the headlights.
The current owner acquired it in 2013, after noticing it in the collection of a British enthusiast named Alexander Oet. He bought it in 2009 for his collection of around a hundred cars which he stored in a four-story underground garage located in Antwerp, Belgium. This Lamborghini returned to Europe in September 2007 to an enthusiast from Bournemouth (England) called Leslie Terence, after a trip to the United States in 1978, where it was part of a Frenchman's collection named Jacques Harguindeguy, an enthusiast originally from Basque. It was this same enthusiast whose 1937 Delahaye 135 M Figoni won the "Best of Show" at the Pebble Beach Concours of Elegance in 2000.
This stunning 350 GT is today autographed by Valentino Balboni, former head of testing at Lamborghini for 40 years. A history file is included with the car. Presented in metallic bronze colour (bronzo scuro) with burgundy interior, this car was the subject of a high-level restoration around twenty years ago which enabled it to be in very good condition today, with very well preserved paint and chrome. The car has hardly been driven since but was regularly serviced by in-house mechanics of the seller, who is a great Lamborghini enthusiast. The interior is immaculate and is equipped with its original engine and gearbox ("matching numbers"). It also has Borrani spokes rims with new tires.
Being one of the first Lamborghini cars manufactured, it represents the source of many more descendants that have been built until now. A characteristic which makes it stand out from other models of the brand and a model that cannot be ignored by specialists.
