Formed in 1963, Ferruccio Lamborghini’s company has become one of the most recognisable and desired automotive brands in the world.
The car company was Ferruccio’s third successful business venture. Having trained as a mechanic, his first was repurposing combat vehicles into serviceable tractors, and his were some of the finest vehicles in the sector. He then turned his hand to heating and cooling systems in the 1950s before his eye settled on the automotive industry, no doubt fuelled by the number of sports cars he had sitting in his garage at the time.
First of the models was a concept car, the 350 GTV, followed a few short months later by the 350 GT. Featuring a V12 engine that had been originally designed for racing, the 350 GT was a spectacular entry to the automotive world. It was beautifully designed as a 2+1 car, with a single centrally mounted seat behind the two front seats. The car was already ahead of its time, offering engine technology that bore strong relation to then modern grand prix engines, a five speed gearbox and independent suspension all round.
Following that came the 400 GT, which matched Ferruccio’s ambition to produce a car for the family man. A 2+2 layout, a higher roofline at the rear for the comfort of the rear seat passengers and a boot that would fit luggage was all integrated into a beautiful, sleek design.
Various successive models met this same brief, establishing Lamborghini with a unique position in the market place, but then came the first of the supercars, the Miura in 1966. The mid-engine layout may have offered some engineering challenges, but the car was beautifully balanced, spectacular to look at.
Lamborghini became known for the V12 engine, but Ferruccio Lamborghini started a second production line featuring a stunning V8. Through the 1970 model Urraco, and then by the Silhouette and Jalpa models he launched a production of smaller, lighter designs that were still a joy to drive.
The V12 remained the engine of choice, however, until the Diablo was launched in 1990. The muscular two-seater featured an all-new V10 engine, and it was later refined under the new ownership of Audi, including the introduction of a four-wheel-drive system. Far from interfering with the original design, the German car maker improved what was already there, and the Diablo quickly found its own success on the road and track.
That was followed by the Gallardo and then the Huracan, both powered by V10 engines. The Huracan was the car that saw Lamborghini officially enter the world of racing through its Lamborghini Squadra Corse, for customer racing in 2015. Success on the track matched that on the road and the racing department continues to thrive to this day with the car racing at Le Mans in the top class for the first time in 2024.
The launch of the Urus model continues to increase the sales volume for the brand as one of the highest performing SUVs produced to date. This was not the first SUV for the company; that was the LM002 that used the latest engine of the Countach at the time and was, typically for Lamborghini, years ahead of the competition. The Revuelto was Lamborghini’s first ever hybrid production car and was launched to great acclaim in 2023. Despite the new powertrain the Revuelto still retained a strong link to the company roots and featured an all-new V12 engine. It was followed in 2024 by the first hybrid SUV, the Urus SE that was launched in 2024, and the Temerario sportscar. Each of these latest cars have retained the vision of the company founder to produce fast, beautiful and aspirational cars.
