Countach

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Discussion

AMDBSVNick

6,990 posts

161 months

Monday 16th January 2017
quotequote all
rich888 said:
He wasn't afraid to put his foot down on the track and I do remember he spun the Countach on one or two occasions at the notorious double apex at the Goodwood race circuit. The pink paint scheme on the Countach exterior was certainly very vivid indeed, though it was well matched to the blue interior, his mods on spaying the two air ducts silver was mighty impressive, and if you hadn't mentioned it then I doubt anyone would have known.

Truth be known is that I would have put in a reasonable offer to buy the pink Countach had I known it was up for sale before he sold it to Wheelhouse in Nottingham, I did actually write to him several years before but he never bothered to reply which was a great shame.

Rumour has it that Geoff was a dentist from Halifax, which just goes to show why visiting a dentist costs so much money either then or now!






I test drove this car when Wheelhouse had it. I put the wiper on by mistake and it fell off!!!

Ended up with a QV which is pictured on this thread and sold it in 2000, ouch

snapper seven

713 posts

213 months

Monday 16th January 2017
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Wow, yes I never knew that about the silver either. I always thought the silver 'saved'/made the car and looked better than had it is been all pink with the black ducts.
Was the first Countach I ever sat in.

rich888

2,610 posts

198 months

Tuesday 17th January 2017
quotequote all
AMDBSVNick said:
I test drove this car when Wheelhouse had it. I put the wiper on by mistake and it fell off!!!

Ended up with a QV which is pictured on this thread and sold it in 2000, ouch
I hope you don't mind me asking, but how much did Wheelhouse have the Countach up for sale for, and can you remember the year they were selling it?

Can only assume you are pretty gutted with selling your Countach in 2000, but as always hindsight is a wonderful thing. I would have bought the low body Countach 400S for £35,000 had I known how the values would fly in later years.

Talking of wiper blades, wipers do seem to have a nasty habit of detaching themselves. I purchased a nearly new Range Rover 4.6 HSE in the 1990s from a main Range Rover dealership. On it's first trip down south to France the weather was atrocious so I switched the wipers on and the drivers side wiper promptly rotated right round then dangled off the edge of the bonnet only a few miles away from my house which wasn't a good start to a dirty weekend away with my girlfriend, on closer inspection the nut holding the wiper assembly had come off so the wiper had rode up and off the spline, luckily for me the nut had been caught in the rubber shroud so I was able to refit it and continue on down south to France!

AMDBSVNick

6,990 posts

161 months

Tuesday 17th January 2017
quotequote all
rich888 said:
I hope you don't mind me asking, but how much did Wheelhouse have the Countach up for sale for, and can you remember the year they were selling it?

Can only assume you are pretty gutted with selling your Countach in 2000, but as always hindsight is a wonderful thing. I would have bought the low body Countach 400S for £35,000 had I known how the values would fly in later years.

Talking of wiper blades, wipers do seem to have a nasty habit of detaching themselves. I purchased a nearly new Range Rover 4.6 HSE in the 1990s from a main Range Rover dealership. On it's first trip down south to France the weather was atrocious so I switched the wipers on and the drivers side wiper promptly rotated right round then dangled off the edge of the bonnet only a few miles away from my house which wasn't a good start to a dirty weekend away with my girlfriend, on closer inspection the nut holding the wiper assembly had come off so the wiper had rode up and off the spline, luckily for me the nut had been caught in the rubber shroud so I was able to refit it and continue on down south to France!
Hi Rich,

I reckon I had my QV for about 7 years so it would have been about 1993. The car at Wheelhouse was £49,995 IIRC. I turned up with a mate in a 911 Turbo SE Flatnose and they just threw me the keys and off we went. A pretty daunting experience as you can imagine. Anyway it was not for me so the hunt continued for my QV.

As you can see not only did I get rid of the QV but also p/exed the SE which today are fetching serious money. That said the £37k I got for the QV in 2000 was used as a deposit on a commercial property that sits in my SIPP and hasn't done too badly wink

As for the bloody wiper. One year when leaving the Silverstone Classic it was pissing down and yes you've guessed it the wiper flew off. Imagine the shame as every punter at the show is watching you.

Today I have a manual DBS Volante which is one of only eight RHD examples in the world and it's going nowhere nono

Nick

rich888

2,610 posts

198 months

Wednesday 18th January 2017
quotequote all
AMDBSVNick said:
rich888 said:
I hope you don't mind me asking, but how much did Wheelhouse have the Countach up for sale for, and can you remember the year they were selling it?

Can only assume you are pretty gutted with selling your Countach in 2000, but as always hindsight is a wonderful thing. I would have bought the low body Countach 400S for £35,000 had I known how the values would fly in later years.

Talking of wiper blades, wipers do seem to have a nasty habit of detaching themselves. I purchased a nearly new Range Rover 4.6 HSE in the 1990s from a main Range Rover dealership. On it's first trip down south to France the weather was atrocious so I switched the wipers on and the drivers side wiper promptly rotated right round then dangled off the edge of the bonnet only a few miles away from my house which wasn't a good start to a dirty weekend away with my girlfriend, on closer inspection the nut holding the wiper assembly had come off so the wiper had rode up and off the spline, luckily for me the nut had been caught in the rubber shroud so I was able to refit it and continue on down south to France!
Hi Rich,

I reckon I had my QV for about 7 years so it would have been about 1993. The car at Wheelhouse was £49,995 IIRC. I turned up with a mate in a 911 Turbo SE Flatnose and they just threw me the keys and off we went. A pretty daunting experience as you can imagine. Anyway it was not for me so the hunt continued for my QV.

As you can see not only did I get rid of the QV but also p/exed the SE which today are fetching serious money. That said the £37k I got for the QV in 2000 was used as a deposit on a commercial property that sits in my SIPP and hasn't done too badly wink

As for the bloody wiper. One year when leaving the Silverstone Classic it was pissing down and yes you've guessed it the wiper flew off. Imagine the shame as every punter at the show is watching you.

Today I have a manual DBS Volante which is one of only eight RHD examples in the world and it's going nowhere nono

Nick
Hi Nick,

Thank you for the info, I'm glad that it's not just me that missed out on buying the future investments back in the 1990s. I've always regarded the Countach as being quite unique and relatively small numbers were manufactured so I guess values will continue to rise in-between the occasional crash. I seem to recollect that a LP400 Countach was struggling to sell in 2003 for £35,000 which when you think about it is an absolute bargain compared to the £1M it is now valued at.

Modern day supercar stuff is mass produced on a scale unheard of back in the 80s, 90's or indeed the early 2000 period. It's no wonder that values of proper handmade supercar values are rising so rapidly.

I nearly bought a low-body Countach 4000S and now wish I had done so, but the asking price was £35,000 which I thought was too much so walked away, ironically the car reappeared a few weeks later for sale by a dealer priced up at at £30,000, unfortunately by then I had bought the Range Rover!

The pink Countach was in my opinion somewhat overpriced by Wheelhouse at £49,995 in 1993, and I guess that is why it didn't sell until they resprayed it and probably repriced it to something a bit more realistic.

As for buying and selling your Countach and Diablo, hindsight is always a valuable asset, though like you say, you invested your money in property which has worked out really well, whilst I invested mine in the stock market just ahead of the tech bubble bursting and 9/11 which pretty well stuffed my short and long term finances. With hindsight I should have bought the Countach and watched it appreciate in value, in reality I would probably have driven it into a tree at high speed and killed myself.

As for the Aston DBS Volante, am pretty sure one of the classic car members local to me owns one and it is drop dead gorgeous. An excellent choice if you don't mind me saying so smile

Ferruccio

1,832 posts

118 months

Wednesday 18th January 2017
quotequote all
Bought my 5000s in 1993 for £40k.
I didn't buy an LP 400 that Barry Martina (?) i Parsons Green had up for less because I liked the wheel arches.
That was a £500k mistake.

rich888

2,610 posts

198 months

Thursday 19th January 2017
quotequote all
Ferruccio said:
Bought my 5000s in 1993 for £40k.
I didn't buy an LP 400 that Barry Martina (?) i Parsons Green had up for less because I liked the wheel arches.
That was a £500k mistake.
Better to drive it than hide it, yes as a long term investment the LP400 might have been a better financial investment but I assume the 5000S has put many a smile on your face when driving it.

I really do wish I had bit the bullet and purchased the LP400S which was up for sale at £35,000 and put in a low offer instead of walking away from it - as always hindsight is a valuable asset, but surely I should have appreciated even in those days that low volume production cars regarded as the best of the best would appreciate in value as the years go by!

Unlike most Ferrari and Porsche models of the same era which were almost mass produced, Countach were very limited in their production numbers per week, and nowadays there are many more millionaires and billionaires in this world than there are Countach models driving around on the road or in private collections, so surely if they want one they will have to pay a premium price to own one?

It's only money and you can't take it with you...

Edited by rich888 on Thursday 19th January 00:44

Ferruccio

1,832 posts

118 months

Thursday 19th January 2017
quotequote all
rich888 said:
Ferruccio said:
Bought my 5000s in 1993 for £40k.
I didn't buy an LP 400 that Barry Martina (?) i Parsons Green had up for less because I liked the wheel arches.
That was a £500k mistake.
Better to drive it than hide it, yes as a long term investment the LP400 might have been a better financial investment but I assume the 5000S has put many a smile on your face when driving it.

I really do wish I had bit the bullet and purchased the LP400S which was up for sale at £35,000 and put in a low offer instead of walking away from it - as always hindsight is a valuable asset, but surely I should have appreciated even in those days that low volume production cars regarded as the best of the best would appreciate in value as the years go by!

Unlike most Ferrari and Porsche models of the same era which were almost mass produced, Countach were very limited in their production numbers per week, and nowadays there are many more millionaires and billionaires in this world than there are Countach models driving around on the road or in private collections, so surely if they want one they will have to pay a premium price to own one?

It's only money and you can't take it with you...

Edited by rich888 on Thursday 19th January 00:44
The Countach is my favourite car. It's alive. I won't sell it.
But then I've never sold a Lamborghini.

Robert W

544 posts

161 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
How on earth did a RHD Anniversary end up in New York and so battered? Note the hanging off wing mirror and bits of the interior in the passenger footwell. Have asked and hope to hear back....

Shnozz

27,422 posts

270 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Robert W said:
How on earth did a RHD Anniversary end up in New York and so battered? Note the hanging off wing mirror and bits of the interior in the passenger footwell. Have asked and hope to hear back....

Robert W

544 posts

161 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
so.....It'S TRUE???

100 IAN

1,091 posts

161 months

Wednesday 15th February 2017
quotequote all
Robert W said:
How on earth did a RHD Anniversary end up in New York and so battered? Note the hanging off wing mirror and bits of the interior in the passenger footwell. Have asked and hope to hear back....
Left outside in the wet and humid (damp) Brunei for 25 years....





Jacking it beneath the wishbones hasn't done it any favours....but that'll be the least of the buyers worries



Full set of 57 pictures are here https://www.flickr.com/photos/gullwingmotorcar/set...

2k miles...1 owner....LOL!

NEVER trust a used car salesman, Ad says "Needs Minor Cosmetic and a Service", That's a relief imagine if it needed Major Cosmetics, or heaven forbid 'Complete Restoration'.....?

Edited by 100 IAN on Wednesday 15th February 17:32

Robert W

544 posts

161 months

Wednesday 15th February 2017
quotequote all
They were honest to take a LOT of photos to show the real condition of the car. Like the rust holes in the edge of the passenger door! Still a RHD Anniversary Countach is one of 100 in the world, so it is a rare car.

100 IAN

1,091 posts

161 months

Tuesday 21st February 2017
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Famous LP500S being auctioned this weekend.

https://www.silverstoneauctions.com/1983-lamborghi...


snapper seven

713 posts

213 months

Wednesday 27th September 2017
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So I was rummaging around in the loft and found some old videos. Having looked through the videos I found an old Top Gear feature with VBH driving a 5000S Countach and Tiff in a Testarossa.

Long story short, I've uploaded it to Youtube.

Try not to cry at the prices mentioned!

https://youtu.be/tZqxSKEp9UU

Cheers
SS

Shnozz

27,422 posts

270 months

Wednesday 27th September 2017
quotequote all
OMG. For the price of a high-specced Mazda cry

Sovereign42

11 posts

175 months

Monday 2nd October 2017
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Has anyone got a copy or seen an upload of the Countach vs Testarossa from early Top Gear ? I think it was a Chris Goffey story. It starts with a beautiful house in the country and then for the same price you could buy these two.

I have hunted you tube but no luck.

Shnozz

27,422 posts

270 months

Monday 2nd October 2017
quotequote all
Sovereign42 said:
Has anyone got a copy or seen an upload of the Countach vs Testarossa from early Top Gear ? I think it was a Chris Goffey story. It starts with a beautiful house in the country and then for the same price you could buy these two.

I have hunted you tube but no luck.
The one posted 2 posts ago?!

Sovereign42

11 posts

175 months

Monday 2nd October 2017
quotequote all
Shnozz said:
Sovereign42 said:
Has anyone got a copy or seen an upload of the Countach vs Testarossa from early Top Gear ? I think it was a Chris Goffey story. It starts with a beautiful house in the country and then for the same price you could buy these two.

I have hunted you tube but no luck.
The one posted 2 posts ago?!
Nope!

snapper seven

713 posts

213 months

Tuesday 3rd October 2017
quotequote all
I remember that old top gear feature. I think it was 1985 from memory.

Alas I haven't been able to find it yet either. I would love to watch it again.