Countach 5 months on - A little update

Countach 5 months on - A little update

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lambo_xx

Original Poster:

2,199 posts

196 months

Monday 7th April 2014
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So I thought I’d give everyone a littler update of I’m getting on with my elderly bull. It’s just past 5 months now since I look delivery and I hate to admit this but I have only really used it a handful of times. In my defence the car arrived at a bad time with winter moving in and I won’t use the car unless the weather is reasonably decent, which sadly it has not been!
The car really is an absolute dream come true, it really was one of those cars I had a poster of on my bedroom wall and having watched the open sequence to the cannonball run far too many times I had promised myself I would one day have one. It took me quite a while to find one, as I didn’t want an Anniversary as I feel the styling went too over the top and spoiled the lines, but nor did I want of the early cars. It had to be either a “5000 S” or ideally a “QV”. Luckily I got the latter. The car has been a real surprise and quite enlightening for me as what I find with these older supercars is not that they’re particularly hard to drive, more that it highlights how easy the newer cars are to drive.

I took the car away with a few friends this weekend for a little road trip and after a couple days of driving only now do I start to feel like I’m really getting to know the car as previously I had probably only done a few hundred miles in the car. And oh my, I LOVE IT!

First off I’d like to start by saying that most things I’ve been told about the Countach are incorrect or at least grossly over exaggerated. The most obvious criticism is the poor rear visibility and yes I’ll get that out of the way, it is hopeless! You pretty much can’t see a thing of the back but what people don’t tell you is that because of the window design you can’t really see very much out of the side windows either. Meaning you have a blind spot big enough to hide 23 Range Rovers in! I would argue this self imposed visual cocoon adds to the drama. The steering is heavy but only really at low speeds. If you want to do a 3 point turn then yes it is advisable to get a muscled friend to help you, however once you’re up to speed it’s perfectly manageable and gives you decent feedback. The clutch is heavy but again not unbearable, all I need to do is engage my admittedly pitiful muscles that little bit harder. The hardest thing I would say is the gearbox which is pretty heavy if I can be so honest. I got in a fiesta to move it just after I got home and nearly ripped the gearstick off! It was scarily light compared to the old bull!

Now all that being said I honestly feel this is what supercars from that era are all about. It just feels so raw. Properly old school if I can use that little cliché. The exhaust noise is just obscene, it cracks, bangs & spits at every opportunity and makes anything more modern feel almost fake and tame in comparison. It managed to drown out my companions two TVRs! It also gets a really lovely reaction from people from that generation who always mention the Cannonball opening!

I’m looking forward to the next few months when I’m going to try and use it as much as possible. For me I don’t get the idea of buying these cars and locking them away, they must be used! So that shall be my mission over the next few months, to get the old girl out and about and contributing to the global warming so I can hopefully have a prolonged summer! I shall upload some pictures as soon as I can and I hope that wasn’t too boring! smile

knight

5,205 posts

278 months

Monday 7th April 2014
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Many thanks for the updatesmile please try and get some video footage with decent sound wink

ro55a

705 posts

153 months

Monday 7th April 2014
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Great report, I own a testarossa and it seems, like the countach, everything you read about them from "back in the day" is mildly exaggerated. It's as if the journo's at the time were happy to simply regurgitate verbatim the rhetoric forced upon them from a leading or higher authority. It's my mission to drive a countach, have had a couple of rides but not actually driven one yet. Anyone in the Southeast own a Countach but always wanted to drive the testarossa??

Davo456gt

695 posts

148 months

Monday 7th April 2014
quotequote all
lambo_xx said:
First off I’d like to start by saying that most things I’ve been told about the Countach are incorrect or at least grossly over exaggerated. The most obvious criticism is the poor rear visibility and yes I’ll get that out of the way, it is hopeless! You pretty much can’t see a thing of the back but what people don’t tell you is that because of the window design you can’t really see very much out of the side windows either. Meaning you have a blind spot big enough to hide 23 Range Rovers in! I would argue this self imposed visual cocoon adds to the drama. The steering is heavy but only really at low speeds. If you want to do a 3 point turn then yes it is advisable to get a muscled friend to help you, however once you’re up to speed it’s perfectly manageable and gives you decent feedback. The clutch is heavy but again not unbearable, all I need to do is engage my admittedly pitiful muscles that little bit harder. The hardest thing I would say is the gearbox which is pretty heavy if I can be so honest. I got in a fiesta to move it just after I got home and nearly ripped the gearstick off! It was scarily light compared to the old bull!

Now all that being said I honestly feel this is what supercars from that era are all about. It just feels so raw. Properly old school if I can use that little cliché. The exhaust noise is just obscene, it cracks, bangs & spits at every opportunity and makes anything more modern feel almost fake and tame in comparison. It managed to drown out my companions two TVRs! It also gets a really lovely reaction from people from that generation who always mention the Cannonball opening!

I’m looking forward to the next few months when I’m going to try and use it as much as possible. For me I don’t get the idea of buying these cars and locking them away, they must be used! So that shall be my mission over the next few months, to get the old girl out and about and contributing to the global warming so I can hopefully have a prolonged summer! I shall upload some pictures as soon as I can and I hope that wasn’t too boring! smile
SPOT ON ! exactly my take on it.
reversing is a lot easier sitting on the sill, and just lifting the clutch slowly too.

Have fun ! and get it out more often!

Berlinetta

562 posts

174 months

Monday 7th April 2014
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Great post. The Countach is such an under rated beast, such a great feeling car, gets crazy amounts of attention, seems to have the perfect amount of power for the chassis, and is such a balanced drive, few cars of this era really have the go kart feel.


Shnozz

27,422 posts

270 months

Tuesday 8th April 2014
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You realise that like the average reader of a red top, we are all waiting for pictures to tell the story smile Sounds as though you're enjoying the (albeit limited) driving experience. Many congratulations on the ultimate poster car, I love reading stories of folk who've been able to realise their dream and this is certainly one of my own!

ro55a - lovely Testarossa also. A friend of mine took his on our pootle down to Le Mans a few years ago and the sound of chasing it down some country lanes was spectacular. The owner even has his own impression of it going through tunnels.

tomtom

4,223 posts

229 months

Tuesday 8th April 2014
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lambo_xx said:
The hardest thing I would say is the gearbox which is pretty heavy if I can be so honest. I got in a fiesta to move it just after I got home and nearly ripped the gearstick off!
Ha! My clutch is considerably lighter than a Countach but I recently jumped straight out of the 355 to move a Corsa and nearly put my foot through the firewall when I dipped the clutch to start the engine.

lambo_xx

Original Poster:

2,199 posts

196 months

Tuesday 8th April 2014
quotequote all
Thanks everyone for the kind words! Heres a couple pictures my photographer friend took and then I'll add my pictures on after. it should be reasonably clear which ones are which wink









bunter007

31 posts

167 months

Tuesday 8th April 2014
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Looks absolutely spectacular, one of my dream cars, reminds me of a poster I used to have on my wall when I was younger along with an F40 and 959. I couldnt help it, but looking at the last pic I was singing the Cannonball Run theme tune in my head!

AKA PABS

316 posts

121 months

Tuesday 8th April 2014
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Enjoy her somehow I don't think I will ever own my poster car of that era a vector w2, that eventually became the w8! Or the car that replaced it on the wall an f40.


Edited by AKA PABS on Tuesday 8th April 21:42

lamboman100

1,445 posts

120 months

Tuesday 8th April 2014
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Good photos and threads.

Arguably the best classic car of any era from the 19th or 20th century.

Shnozz

27,422 posts

270 months

Wednesday 9th April 2014
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Fantastic! If I make it North of the border on a road trip this year I would like to badger you for a passenger seat and fulfill a childhood ambition! Fabulous car.

iandc

3,708 posts

205 months

Wednesday 9th April 2014
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lambo_xx said:
Thanks everyone for the kind words! Heres a couple pictures my photographer friend took and then I'll add my pictures on after. it should be reasonably clear which ones are which wink








Great pictures. Thanks for posting. I loved the box of doughnuts on the engine cover. Beats custard every time. Glad you ate them all before setting off again!

belleair302

6,835 posts

206 months

Wednesday 9th April 2014
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A top purchase but like Harry M from EVO fame have you considered a power steering kit? It only works at lower speeds but makes a vast difference to the whole usability concept and can be turned on and off too. Discreet and ideal.

pork911

7,087 posts

182 months

Thursday 10th April 2014
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OP presumably yours is the one with the reg you didn't obscure wink

Anyhow, both lovely.

AndrewD

7,527 posts

283 months

Thursday 10th April 2014
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Great thread!

I think I'm buying a 2,800 mile LP5000S

Who is best to inspect, Colin Clarke?

lambo_xx

Original Poster:

2,199 posts

196 months

Friday 11th April 2014
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Just realised I never put my own pictures up. As I said I apologise for my poor photography skills.




JonathanE

51 posts

129 months

Friday 11th April 2014
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AndrewD said:
Great thread!

I think I'm buying a 2,800 mile LP5000S

Who is best to inspect, Colin Clarke?
I can highly recommend Colin - he used to look after my LP400S2 and knows these cars inside out. My only caveat is that he isn't keen on the 'newer' cars (anything after 1980...)

As I'm sure you expect, anything with such low mileage is likely to need a fair bit of attention (contrary to what some people think) as these cars don't enjoy lack of use. I hope you are buying it with the idea of doubling that mileage in the first month smile

Good luck!

Jonathan

lambo_xx

Original Poster:

2,199 posts

196 months

Friday 11th April 2014
quotequote all
iandc said:
Great pictures. Thanks for posting. I loved the box of doughnuts on the engine cover. Beats custard every time. Glad you ate them all before setting off again!
Haha I only had one wink the rest were for friends

pork911 said:
OP presumably yours is the one with the reg you didn't obscure wink

Anyhow, both lovely.
Thanks smile Pete the photographer blanked the reg

lambo_xx

Original Poster:

2,199 posts

196 months

Friday 11th April 2014
quotequote all
AndrewD said:
Great thread!

I think I'm buying a 2,800 mile LP5000S

Who is best to inspect, Colin Clarke?
I have always been recommended Carrera Sport as they seem to look after a lot of older Lambos including Countachs. Carlo at Top Gear Cars outside Edinburgh would also be a good choice if the cars in up in Scotland as he looks after quite a few up here.

Hope that helps smile