Beskrivning
This lot will be auctioned via Iconic Auctioneers, The Iconic Sale at Silverstone Festival 2025 - Collectors' Cars on Saturday the 23rd of August, The Wing, Silverstone Circuit, NN12 8TN. In effect, a refined and more luxurious version of the Giotto Bizzarrini-engineered 350 GTV prototype of 1963, the development of Lamborghini’s new for 1964 350 GT and its transition to production, was overseen by brilliant former Ferrari designer, Gian Paolo Dallara, then aged just 26. Ably assisted by Paolo Stanzi and highly-rated test driver Bob Wallace, Dallara retained Bizzarrini’s fundamental design, albeit with a suitably strengthened chassis and a de-tuned, wet-sump version of the 350 GTV’s glorious 3. 5-litre quad-cam V12 engine. The styling of the 350 GTV had originally been attributed to Franco Scaglione, whose iconic 'BAT' series Alfa Romeos had evidently influenced the former’s rakish lines to a significant degree. A broadly similar appearance was retained for the Touring-bodied 350 GT, albeit featuring a noticeably lower bonnet line due to side-draught Weber carburettors being employed in place of the down-draught items used on the prototype. Drawing praise for the smoothness of its engine, ride quality, and for its superior level of finish, the 350 GT represented a hugely positive first foray into car production for Lamborghini, with some 120 examples produced over the following two years. In 1966, the updated 400 GT was introduced, which retained the same wheelbase as the earlier car but featured an enlarged 3. 9-litre version of the V12 engine, thereby increasing power from 270 to 320bhp. Although a handful of early 350 GTs had featured a novel '2+1' seating pattern, the majority were configured in regular two-seater form. However, ever mindful of the benefits of broadening the appeal of its cars, Lamborghini, after producing just 24 examples of the two-seat 400 GT, opted to further modify its derivative into the 400 GT 2+2, the latter being publicly unveiled at the Geneva International Motor Show in March 1966. In direct contrast to certain manufacturers, many of whom merely raised or extended the roof lines of existing two-seat designs to hastily fashion 2+2 versions of the same car, Lamborghini opted to both effect this modification and lower the 400 GT’s floorplan simultaneously. Ingeniously, this afforded much greater cabin accommodation at a far lower aesthetic cost than would otherwise have been the case. Furthermore, the 400 GT 2+2 benefited from other cosmetic and ergonomic changes; a larger rear luggage compartment, increased fuel capacity, quadruple headlamps and revised lower front valance being notable examples. However, it was arguably in its transmission that the greatest technical improvement was made, the somewhat recalcitrant ZF gearbox of the 350 and 400 GTs being replaced in the 2+2 by a much smoother and quieter, 5-speed, all-synchromesh unit of Lamborghini’s own manufacture. Critically, as well as offering enhanced practicality, the 400 GT 2+2 retained the impressive performance of its antecedents, with 60mph being achieved in 6. 8 seconds, en-route to a maximum top speed of some 168mph. Indeed, so impressed were Autocar journalists that they were moved to laud it as 'better than all the equivalent exotic and home-bred machinery in this glamorous corner of the fast-car market'. Extremely close to the Ferrari 275 GTB/ 4 in terms of price terms (£6, 444 vs £6, 516), the 400 GT 2+2 remained in production until 1968, by which time some 224 are thought to have been made. However, just 14 of these were reputedly to right-hand drive specification. The car presented here is a 1967 Lamborghini 400 GT 2+2 and intriguingly, pre-dates the first factory-built, right-hand drive Lamborghini (which was also a 400 GT 2+2), it being chassis #01225 and is one of four examples that the marque's UK concessionaire, Mitchell & Britten, entrusted to Hooper & Co. for conversion from left to right-hand drive configuration. Indeed, some cite Hooper’s success as an important factor in Lamborghini deciding to follow suit. #01225 was originally registered as SUC 683F and was reputedly supplied new to the renowned engineer, Brian Morgan, the Grandson of the man responsible for constructing the Blackpool Tower and father of F1 and IndyCar powertrain supplier, Paul Morgan (the ‘Mor’ of Ilmor Engineering). Brian was serving as the Managing Director of Benton & Stone at the time. Interestingly, Brian was interviewed by Motor Sport magazine, alongside Earl Howe and Peter Hampton, regarding the pros and cons of owning an Italian thoroughbred for their March 1968 issue, with the publication stating: 'He had been drawn to the Lamborghini because of its sophisticated four-cam V12 engine, which appealed to him as an engineer. He had also heard that Sig. Lamborghini was personally interested in the car manufacturing project and he knew from experience that...
