[kms]

Does anyone have any opinions or knowledge of this Countach over a Heritage Classics in West Hollywood? Thanks.

http://heritageclassics.com/lamborghini/74redlp400/Page.html

 

[sk90077]

Dont they have a lot of Eiro spec cars?

 

[john]

I had a PPI done on this car by Gary Bobileff on Sept. 10th. The car needs a full cosmetic restoration, inside and out. The pictures look better than the car really is. Spider webbing all through out the paint. Small dents, etc. The fiberglass pan is broken in several areas. Left diagonal tube bent on the control arm. Dash shape was modified, hard to operate light and wiper switch. The car could not be fully road tested because of a extreme lean condition in the right cylinder bank. He could not bring the car above 4500 rpm's. Under the heading-Abnormal noises he writes, "creaks, squeaks, thumps, clunks, front, back, center".

Gary writes in summary, "Poor cold drivability, terrible hot driveability-Rt. bank excessivly lean, constant fuel rejection. Max boost 2 psi at 4500 rpm-did not want to continue to drive-might damage motor because of excessive lean out condition. Car will not start when warmed up".

I could go on and on but there is 5 pages of info.

 

[john]

Sorry...there is 6 pages.

 

[isleroman]

This car is featured in this month's Sports Car Market, with a nice cover shot as well. The car was sold at the Christies Monterey auction for $39k, including buyer's premium. The auction catalog write-up itself trashed the car. I don't know how much work Heritage put into the car, but it needed a lot. The discussions about this car always boil down to whether it should be restored to LP400 originality, or fix it up with its current host of add-ons. Personally, I think there is some value to leaving it in its modified form since the mods were done by Bob Wallace himself. To each their own. The $88k Heritage is asking is asking is pure fantasy, however. Now the LM002 they have for $59k is worth having a look. They've dropped it $10k in the last couple months.

Udo

 

[kms]

Thanks guys. I would love to find an original LP400 but the pictures made this one look really good. Personally I'm not too hot on inheriting someone elses modified car.

 

[superx]

modified yes, but by the hand of Wallace himself. A revered name in Lamborgini history and a key developer of many cars including the Countach. It would be a crime to restore this car back to "spec". 88k asking though...boy are they dreaming. Based on the current state they are lucky to get what they have in it.

 

[john]

Does anybody know who purchased this car at Christies? When I spoke to Heritage Classics they said they bought the car from a broker after the auction. They seemed unaware that the car sold for $34,000 + fees for a total of $39,950. Is this B.S. or did they really buy this from a broker?

The Christies auction literature stated that the auction estimate of $30,000 to $50,000 was very optimistic. The same literature stated that "this may be the only Countach that could not pull the skin off of pudding", while writing about how badly the car ran.

 

[bmwracer]

I don't think it matters that Wallace modified the car.The value of the LP400 is in the original car.I had one and it was one of the nicest cars to look at with its pure lines.I am sort of sorry i sold it but it was really unpractical.
I would not touch that car with a 10 foot pole.It will cost and absolute fortune to put back to original.
You can get an unmolested car for about 105 to 110k if that is what you want.

 

[ltadmin]

"this may be the only Countach that could not pull the skin off of pudding",

OUCH...that's brutal!

 

[peter_k]

Very sad. This ole boy may wind up on the Island of Misfit Toys (for those of you that remember that place). A tear in my eye.

 

[xs10shl]

I may be the only one with this opinion, but I think this car was a steal at $40K. Parts value is way, WAYYY higher. Figure 20K for the engine block, 5K+ for the wheels, 3K for the tires, 5K for the carbs, and that's the easy stuff to sell.

Just my humble opinion.

 

[Guest]

I may be the only one with this opinion, but I think this car was a steal at $40K...
Just my humble opinion.

My humble opinion too...

http://www.400gt.com/articles/misc/scm/scm.htm

Interesting that John talked to Wallace and he doesn't remember the car. Frankly, that makes me think that the whole "Wallace mod" thing is in question. How could you not remember something so wild?

Yes, I know, I know... I've worked on a lot of cars too, but this was a major project.

Fred

 

[Guest]

One more point. I keep hearing "well, it would take a lot of money to put that car back the way it was..."

I mean, DOESN'T ANYBODY WORK ON THEIR OWN CARS ANYMORE? :wave:

You could take this car apart and put it back together and have a great machine. A couple of trips to OSH and HD and there you go.

Really, it's just a car. And a very cool one at that. I'd love to have it.

Fred

 

[phantom309]

hey John,

I would dearly LOVE to see that complete PPI. Anyway of doing that? I'd happily pay the postage or FedEx.

As for it's value, I can't think of a car that is more appealing than a Countach that Bob Wallace has spent so much time on. Bob defined the evolution of the Miura, decided that it's potential had run it's course and got down to the business of building the Countach based on the Miura lessons. That model is more about his design aesthetic than anyone else on that team, with the possible exception of Gandini...Bizzarini built the original motor prototype, and then walked away from it. Stanzani and Dallara built the chassis, but it was Wallace that made it all work together and the design went forward based on his guidance until the 5000 was planned.

He left the company, largely, because he didn't like the way the Countach "upgrades" were going. Give Bob THAT car to evolve in a way that he saw fit? You betcha. There are a goodly number of LP400's running around out there, but only a handful of Countach's that were refined a la Wallace. Yeah, this car is in poor condition, it will need plenty of well educated work done at a premium OR by an owner/Lambo mechanic that has a passion for it...but, in the end, it will be a unique, FAST, beautiful car. Sorry I missed that auction.

 

[john]

David,

You've got mail.

 

[peter_k]

IMO, that car should be put back to stock. Period. The offset on the rear wheels is so awful. Wallace conversion does not impress me at all. If I restored, I'd junk all the modified stuff, and put back the way it was intended to be. Not everything Wallace touches turns to gold. It did when imployed by Lamborghini. This work was done by the owner of the car, which I do not think was Wallace. Wallace just carried out the work. Wallace was not employed by Lamborghini, so the converstion was worthless. Just like the handful of 400's that owner paid to look like the 400S.

 

[phantom309]

"Not everything Wallace touches turns to gold. It did when imployed by Lamborghini""


DOH.....I forgot ALL about that frontal lobotomy that Bob had when he left the company. My mistake.

 

[peter_k]

Well, shame on you then, phantom...lol

 

[emilio]

hey John,



As for it's value, I can't think of a car that is more appealing than a Countach that Bob Wallace has spent so much time on.


well said
if this is a real wallace car it is better than a standard lp400, just as a wolf car is