Lamborghini 400 GT 2+2 (1968)

Following a bitter dispute with Enzo Ferrari, Ferruccio Lamborghini’s tractor empire had left him with enough capital to challenge the established Italian marque. His first foray into sportscars would see him hiring Giotti Bizzarrini, formerly of Alfa Romeo and latterly as a test driver and then chief engineer at Ferrari. His work at Ferrari included the development of the 250 TR and 250 GT Berlinetta SWB before his grand-finale, the 250 GTO. His direction saw a reduction in front lift and the movement of the engine further back into chassis for better handling; with a formidable result.

After his departure from Ferrari, Bizzarrini would work on various sports racers before founding Società Autostar (SA), an engineering firm that would bid for freelance contracts. Ferruccio Lamborghini commissioned SA to build him a bespoke V12 powerplant to go up against Ferrari. It first appeared in the 350 GT as a 3,464cc in 1962 and its fundamental design would continue to see use until the Murcielago as a 6,496cc in 2010.

The Lamborghini 350 GT was debuted at the 1964 Geneva Motor Show, with production starting in May of that year. Utilising independent suspension all round, Bizzarrini’s 3.5 litre V12 and a body by Carrozzeria Touring, the 350 was an instant hit. Lamborghini had asked that his Gran Turismo’s powerplant was ‘good for 40,000 hard miles between services’, which saw the engine detuned from its 400hp racing prototype, to a still generous 270hp in production specification.

Lamborghini produced 120 examples of the 350 GT before the upgraded 400 GT 2+2 was introduced in 1966. There were a handful of interim cars with the larger engine but the original form. Benefitting from an enlarged 4.0 litre V12, the 400 GT saw power increase to 320hp and a revised, Lamborghini-designed gearbox with a synchromesh on all gears.