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Outrageous Eccentrica V12 Roadster revealed

A reimagined Diablo was already cool - now it's going topless

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Even in what the cynical might call a saturated restomod market - certainly at the high end - the Eccentrica stood out. Because of its name, for one thing, but also as it reimagined that most quintessentially ‘90s of supercars: the Lamborghini Diablo. While never the fastest, most exclusive or best supercar to drive, it typified the era like little else. And that period in time is now definitely of interest once more for those who lusted after a Lamborghini 30 years ago. Hence the interest in the incredible Eccentrica; expect that to only intensify further with this Roadster variant. Because what could be more Monterey Car Week than a drop-top V12 Lambo restomod? 

Plenty is familiar from before: the 5.7-litre engine, rated at 550hp, the six-speed manual, the 200mph-plus potential. While instantly familiar as something Diablo-derived, there are 3,500 bespoke bits in every Eccentrica build. Including plenty of carbon content, with the chassis reinforced and the entire body made of the magic black stuff. 

Accordingly, the Roadster is said to weigh a reasonable 1,540kg, with that distributed 41:59; torsional rigidity should be improved over the original, too. The usual upgrades can be found elsewhere, the Eccentrica benefitting from bigger Brembo brakes, semi-active dampers and Pirelli Trofeo RS tyres. So you’re only going to get the full McGuinness if something goes spectacularly wrong. 

Eccentrica suggests that the Roadster is another step further ‘to transform the car into its most elemental and purposeful form yet’; wider of track and broader of haunch than the already outrageous standard car, it means a presence like little else. It doesn’t take long to clock that this is rather more than ‘just’ a Diablo, from gloriously reworked interior to slightly gawky headlights. 

As before, Maurizio Reggiani has led up the Eccentrica team of experts; as the former Chief Technical Officer at Sant’Agata, responsible for recent hits like the Huracan and Aventador, he’s ideally placed to combine the best of modern Lamborghini with the classic charm. This time development work included an aerodynamic study (it wouldn’t be a surprise if this never happened 35 years ago), with the aim to ‘amplify the experience rather than compromise it’. So expect all hair exposed to the elements, real or otherwise, to go relatively undisturbed. If you’re wondering about what the roof system is, how long it might take to put on and get off, there’s a simple answer to that: there isn’t one. Keep this one for your sunniest summer home.

Eccentrica founder Emanuel Colombini - he wasn’t going to be called Bob Smith, was he - added: “The Eccentrica V12 was our opening statement. The Roadster is the next chapter; more exposed, more immediate, more demanding. No roof. No filter. Nothing between you and the machine." Which does sound pretty promising. Quite how many Roadsters will leave San Marino or what they’ll cost hasn’t been disclosed; like a lot on show in California over the next few days, expect one number to be very small and one to be very large indeed. 

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• ‘Back to raise hell’ - the new Diablo Eccentrica
• Lamborghini Countach LPI 800-4 | PH Review

[Noe]

The novelty look of that dash would quickly wear out to frustration and a hatred for knight rider

[pSyCoSiS]

Stunning. V12. Gated manual.

Outlandish like a Lambo of old.

[mjspencer348]

Were any Diablos harmed in the making of the Eccentrica? It doesn't sound like it, but there can't be a pile of '90s-era Lamborghini V12s waiting for a second life, surely?

[BrettMRC]

Pistonheads said:

So you’re only going to get the full McGuinness if something goes spectacularly wrong.

That's a bit crass.

[Frimley111R]

mjspencer348 said:

Were any Diablos harmed in the making of the Eccentrica? It doesn't sound like it, but there can't be a pile of '90s-era Lamborghini V12s waiting for a second life, surely?

I can't see hundreds of people lining up for this so its prob not much of an issue - nice though it is.

[Jinba Ittai]

That just looks like a Lego kit Lamborghini.

[Red6]

That is hideous.

[housemouse]

mjspencer348 said:

Were any Diablos harmed in the making of the Eccentrica? It doesn't sound like it, but there can't be a pile of '90s-era Lamborghini V12s waiting for a second life, surely?

Certainly not for these renders. But in the event they actually do build cars, then pretty obviously yes they'll be cutting up Diablos.

[CountyLines]

That silly little rear spoiler needs to go.

[Edmundo2]

Jinba Ittai said:

That just looks like a Lego kit Lamborghini.

This. Just needs dimples on the grey bits. Yellow glasses or visor for the driver would finish it off nicely..

[BigChiefmuffinAgain]

If I was spending all that money on one of these ( and I guess we can assume it is an awful lot of money ) then I would want a proper dashboard, not something from an 80s Aston Martin Lagonda.... Very strange and hard to see what the thinking was. The one on the final 6.0 version was more than nice enough...

[fantheman80]

stunning, but a couple of notes - The area around the gear lever is great, the dash is woeful, really don't get that decision, and the exhaust pipes remind me of fish coming up for bits of food when feed them in an aquarium

Edited by fantheman80 on Tuesday 11th August 13:00

[hu8742]

Jinba Ittai said:

That just looks like a Lego kit Lamborghini.

That’s what I thought. Perhaps it’s the camera angle or perhaps it’s the wheels but it’s definitely made of Lego !

[b14]

BrettMRC said:

Pistonheads said:

So you re only going to get the full McGuinness if something goes spectacularly wrong.

That's a bit crass.

I think this is a reference to when Paddy McG had a pretty soft crash into a ditch in a Diablo on TG, rather than Freddie Flintoff's accident.

[smilo996]

Very odd. if Lego made a Lambo?
That interior is terrible. Will it matter when it is in its car Hotel all year, nope.

[Jon_S_Rally]

I want to like this, but some of the details really let it down for me. As others have said, the dash grates, and the detail around the exhaust is fussy. I imagine they'll sell a handful, because there is clearly a market for these ultra-expensive restomods, but I feel like the Diablo is one of those cars that would work better with more subtle tweaks, a bit like like what Eagle offer for the E-Type, where you keep the standard looks, but they sort the brakes and some of its other foibles. A Diablo with modern brakes, better tyres, a lightly breathed on engine etc, but standard interior and exterior would be quite a thing.

[NGK210]

A shame that whoever designed the front-end didn t contribute to the rest of the car.
And the dash is egregiously naff.

[Rusty Old-Banger]

BrettMRC said:

Pistonheads said:

So you re only going to get the full McGuinness if something goes spectacularly wrong.

That's a bit crass.

Don't have a Paddy.

[WPA]

Red6 said:

That is hideous.

+1

[myhandle]

BrettMRC said:

That's a bit crass.

I know the owner of the one crashed by McGuiness. The car is alive and well and he’s quite relaxed about the situtation. He also used to commute in an unsilemced yellow Metro 6R4, all rather cool. There is also a massive misconception about Diablos being particularly hard to drive, they are not assuming the suspension and tyres are as they should be and you remember that there is a heavy engine behind you, and what that means for weight transfer.

Also, the article says “never the fastest”, which is literally wrong, as the Diablo took the official road
car record from the F40 by 1mph and so was offocially the fastest car in the world. Some later versions had even higher top speeds (not most SVs as they are geared for acceleration not top speed, but coiod be specified with the longer gearing).