Huge thanks to ianqv (and BYX of course!)
Discussion
I simply can't express my thanks enough to Ian for taking me out for a spin in his stunning Countach QV today. It meant a great deal to me in more ways than one, mainly because BYX is the car that featured in the first car mag I think I ever bought and bought for the sole reason for the Countach article, which is the one where Tiff Needell took it to the fast open roads of North Wales. It was the 'High Performance' supplement that came with WHAT CAR magazine back in 1986 - yes we are talking 21 years - and I still own that magazine today, preserved in a plastic wallet, so you can see it really was quite special.
It was a fantastic ride (all caught on video) where Ian showed me the true character of the car without being silly or scary. The car, as I am sure many will appreciate is phenomenal. The intoxicating noise which gives you the impression that the car really is alive, the outrageous performance, the visual drama - there really is nothing like a Countach, especially when given big ones through an underpass, and the ride today will live with me forever...
...but it doesn't stop there. Ian had a little treat for me. He pulled the car up to a halt on a quiet stretch, looked across at me and said I could have a go!!
I have to say I was totally shocked but he didn't need to ask me a second time! Being asked if I wanted to drive what is one of the most famous and arguably best sorted Countaches in the country is not to be declined!
Once I had adjusted the seat for my smaller frame I listened to Ian's instructions and was amazed to see how easily the car pulled away just on the torque alone. A big surprise was how light and easy the clutch was, it certainly wasn't the "bloody hell" I was expecting but a bigger surprise still was the throttle, incredibly stiff through the initial travel due to the cable route for RHD models I understand, almost like it was wedged by a brick, but once past that point it seemed to give plenty of feel and smooth enough adjustment. As Clarkson once said "Eet geev zee car character"
Ha - I think I drove the car in the middle of road having a distinct fear of the left hand kerb, wow this car feels really wide to unfamiliar pilots which is in complete contrast to the way Ian threaded this beast round the country lanes past oncoming vehicles.
Ok so I didn't crack 160mph or have it on the limits of adhesion but I didn't have to to know that I experienced one of the most dramatic cars ever driven. Even after all these years the car still does it for me and for others too if the expression on the face of that young guy driving the Fiesta at the junction is anything to go by.
I'm sorry if I have prattled on or come across all 'gushy' but I really can't quite believe what I did today realising a 21 year dream which didn't disappoint - James May, you got it all wrong.
Ian - you are a lucky guy (and Lynn), I'm sad to hear you are looking to sell her to join the Murcie ranks but I am forever grateful to you for giving me the chance to experience and savour the Countach today.
Yours
A 34 year old schoolboy!
...what the hell - have a pic of the beauty
It was a fantastic ride (all caught on video) where Ian showed me the true character of the car without being silly or scary. The car, as I am sure many will appreciate is phenomenal. The intoxicating noise which gives you the impression that the car really is alive, the outrageous performance, the visual drama - there really is nothing like a Countach, especially when given big ones through an underpass, and the ride today will live with me forever...
...but it doesn't stop there. Ian had a little treat for me. He pulled the car up to a halt on a quiet stretch, looked across at me and said I could have a go!!
I have to say I was totally shocked but he didn't need to ask me a second time! Being asked if I wanted to drive what is one of the most famous and arguably best sorted Countaches in the country is not to be declined!
Once I had adjusted the seat for my smaller frame I listened to Ian's instructions and was amazed to see how easily the car pulled away just on the torque alone. A big surprise was how light and easy the clutch was, it certainly wasn't the "bloody hell" I was expecting but a bigger surprise still was the throttle, incredibly stiff through the initial travel due to the cable route for RHD models I understand, almost like it was wedged by a brick, but once past that point it seemed to give plenty of feel and smooth enough adjustment. As Clarkson once said "Eet geev zee car character"
Ha - I think I drove the car in the middle of road having a distinct fear of the left hand kerb, wow this car feels really wide to unfamiliar pilots which is in complete contrast to the way Ian threaded this beast round the country lanes past oncoming vehicles.
Ok so I didn't crack 160mph or have it on the limits of adhesion but I didn't have to to know that I experienced one of the most dramatic cars ever driven. Even after all these years the car still does it for me and for others too if the expression on the face of that young guy driving the Fiesta at the junction is anything to go by.
I'm sorry if I have prattled on or come across all 'gushy' but I really can't quite believe what I did today realising a 21 year dream which didn't disappoint - James May, you got it all wrong.
Ian - you are a lucky guy (and Lynn), I'm sad to hear you are looking to sell her to join the Murcie ranks but I am forever grateful to you for giving me the chance to experience and savour the Countach today.
Yours
A 34 year old schoolboy!
...what the hell - have a pic of the beauty
Hi David,
I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Some people say that you shouldn't realise your dreams as you could come away disappointed - But I'm glad to say that this does NOT apply with Countach!!
I would love to see some of the video when it's done, in particular the underpass!!!!
Best Regards
Ian (the 40 year old school boy!!!!)
I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Some people say that you shouldn't realise your dreams as you could come away disappointed - But I'm glad to say that this does NOT apply with Countach!!
I would love to see some of the video when it's done, in particular the underpass!!!!
Best Regards
Ian (the 40 year old school boy!!!!)
An important thing to remember about anybody who works on The Clarkson Show(s): They are all, to a finer than fine point, determined to talk now't but b*ll*x about Lamborghinis - especially any Countach.
I 'found' TG the car that James May drove on a 'two days notice' blag which they then asked to film on two different days over two weeks. A pity really because that cars a good 'un in reality and yes - it probably smells of petrol inside if you have the nostrils of James May and two very large tanks full of it very near you and an engine which is fed by half a dozen probably quite leaky Webers... and yes - any Countach has a full set of 'challenging' pedals if you have limbs as weedy and poorly controlled as the Jemimah crew.
(btw, that blue 400S car now lives in Norway and belongs to a collector who also owns the orange Miura that used to belong to Frank Sinatra...)
BUT the thing is this - I've driven 5 different Countachs now - a 5000S, two QV's and two Anniversary's - and they all were wonderful because they ARE all dagnammit darned freaking blithering blippity blip blip bleeeep wonderful!
The first Countach I drove, a QV, was in an emergency, so not the best of introductions - It was dark and I was bloody scared but the driver had to get to his tablets that he'd forgotten to bring to a Club event and so couldn't actually see or hear anything because he hadn't taken a tablet and...
The second was a 5000S - a black and black car and a complete bitch like the magazines always say. I lost 6lbs in sweat over a long-ish weekend but wouldn't swap that experience for the world. Mrs XXVIII managed a bit of a video (big chunky old box of a camera even in 1999!!) and at one point I was quite serious when I said I could drop off to sleep if I could just get out of the car! Vicky B-H drove it a few weeks later - CLANG - sorry, dropped a name again!
The first Anniversary I drove was also an emergency thing - again, not much fun, at least not for the owner who was Captain Panic 'n' Paranoia throughout - partly because he was / is a naff driver, (not that I would ever have said so) and he probably thought I'd be the same!
The second Anniversary is now the (in)famous HOT 23X and that car was a complete charmer - as voted for by most of the under 10's in two schools in the Midlands one day, just brilliant - again for Top Gear but in the days when Jason Dawe was involved with the show.
The other QV was driven for the owner who was fed up with doing drives for kids and restaurant staff and just wanted his lunch. As this was an event I'd arranged for LCUK in Lancashire in 2004, I drove the restaurant manager about for a while and also a girl I used to know in school but who I hadn't seen since 1978. She was visiting family in Lancashire and had travelled from her home in Barcelona for a few days. We had got in touch via Friends Reunited a short time before this Club meeting.
As we drove away from the restaurant, she said, "I thought I'd never get a ride in one of these when we were at school!"
When we were at school, she was one of the school princesses and I was just one of the Rugby jocks. It was all I could do to NOT say, "and I never thought that I'd be the one driving the car when you did!"
The best thing when driving a Countach is knowing that you are doing something that feels like you're driving one of your dreams except you aren't dreaming, you really are driving a Countach!
This 45 year old school boy says big thumbs up all round you guys!
Ian - I hope you never forget your QV (pretty sure you wont!) and SnapperSeven - I hope you get lots more Countach driving under your belt soon... have you joined LCUK yet?
I 'found' TG the car that James May drove on a 'two days notice' blag which they then asked to film on two different days over two weeks. A pity really because that cars a good 'un in reality and yes - it probably smells of petrol inside if you have the nostrils of James May and two very large tanks full of it very near you and an engine which is fed by half a dozen probably quite leaky Webers... and yes - any Countach has a full set of 'challenging' pedals if you have limbs as weedy and poorly controlled as the Jemimah crew.
(btw, that blue 400S car now lives in Norway and belongs to a collector who also owns the orange Miura that used to belong to Frank Sinatra...)
BUT the thing is this - I've driven 5 different Countachs now - a 5000S, two QV's and two Anniversary's - and they all were wonderful because they ARE all dagnammit darned freaking blithering blippity blip blip bleeeep wonderful!
The first Countach I drove, a QV, was in an emergency, so not the best of introductions - It was dark and I was bloody scared but the driver had to get to his tablets that he'd forgotten to bring to a Club event and so couldn't actually see or hear anything because he hadn't taken a tablet and...
The second was a 5000S - a black and black car and a complete bitch like the magazines always say. I lost 6lbs in sweat over a long-ish weekend but wouldn't swap that experience for the world. Mrs XXVIII managed a bit of a video (big chunky old box of a camera even in 1999!!) and at one point I was quite serious when I said I could drop off to sleep if I could just get out of the car! Vicky B-H drove it a few weeks later - CLANG - sorry, dropped a name again!
The first Anniversary I drove was also an emergency thing - again, not much fun, at least not for the owner who was Captain Panic 'n' Paranoia throughout - partly because he was / is a naff driver, (not that I would ever have said so) and he probably thought I'd be the same!
The second Anniversary is now the (in)famous HOT 23X and that car was a complete charmer - as voted for by most of the under 10's in two schools in the Midlands one day, just brilliant - again for Top Gear but in the days when Jason Dawe was involved with the show.
The other QV was driven for the owner who was fed up with doing drives for kids and restaurant staff and just wanted his lunch. As this was an event I'd arranged for LCUK in Lancashire in 2004, I drove the restaurant manager about for a while and also a girl I used to know in school but who I hadn't seen since 1978. She was visiting family in Lancashire and had travelled from her home in Barcelona for a few days. We had got in touch via Friends Reunited a short time before this Club meeting.
As we drove away from the restaurant, she said, "I thought I'd never get a ride in one of these when we were at school!"
When we were at school, she was one of the school princesses and I was just one of the Rugby jocks. It was all I could do to NOT say, "and I never thought that I'd be the one driving the car when you did!"
The best thing when driving a Countach is knowing that you are doing something that feels like you're driving one of your dreams except you aren't dreaming, you really are driving a Countach!
This 45 year old school boy says big thumbs up all round you guys!
Ian - I hope you never forget your QV (pretty sure you wont!) and SnapperSeven - I hope you get lots more Countach driving under your belt soon... have you joined LCUK yet?
Here Here!!!!
One thing is for sure - I defo won't EVER EVER EVER forget her!!
Being her "custodian" for the last 2 years has been a total pleasure.
There are so so many rumors cast about Countach - NONE of them are true!!
YES - if Dariyl Hanna was posing naked on my boot lid, of course I could see her!!!
and NO - I've never needed Jeff Capes to come and help me depress my clutch pedal!!!
and NO - I've never had to work out at the gym just to be able to turn the steering wheel!!!
And so on......
I'm not saying they are perfect, but WOW what a machine!
Regards
Ian
XXVIII (or should that be XLV!!) - you've had some interesting experiences there, after reading some of those I am very pleased to say that mine was under more controlled, pleasant conditions!
Of course I would never say no to a drive of a Countach and would love to think I would get another chance like you (though I suspect you are in a more privileged position) but I respect owners and the fact that these are their valuable pride and joys. I'm still stunned by Ian's generosity!
I'm not a member of the club yet but Ian is working on it!
Cheers
SS
Of course I would never say no to a drive of a Countach and would love to think I would get another chance like you (though I suspect you are in a more privileged position) but I respect owners and the fact that these are their valuable pride and joys. I'm still stunned by Ian's generosity!
I'm not a member of the club yet but Ian is working on it!
Cheers
SS
Ha, having said the above, my first Lamborghini driving experience was an S3 Espada...and I was only 18 years old! Now that was nerve wracking, almost too nerve wracking in that it had been recently been fully restored back then, I was too young so didn't have enough general driving experience under my belt to fully appreciate it and my car driving experience to date had been the school's Fiesta 1.1 and my mini!
This was the Espada and me(!) a couple of years before it was restored - check out the nice tracksuit!!!
SS
This was the Espada and me(!) a couple of years before it was restored - check out the nice tracksuit!!!
SS
Edited by snapper seven on Wednesday 24th October 19:26
snapper seven said:
XXVIII (or should that be XLV!!) - you've had some interesting experiences there, after reading some of those I am very pleased to say that mine was under more controlled, pleasant conditions!
Of course I would never say no to a drive of a Countach and would love to think I would get another chance like you (though I suspect you are in a more privileged position) but I respect owners and the fact that these are their valuable pride and joys. I'm still stunned by Ian's generosity!
I'm not a member of the club yet but Ian is working on it!
Cheers
SS
yep - XLV for another 3 months and then XLVI - don't y' just love Latin numbers?Of course I would never say no to a drive of a Countach and would love to think I would get another chance like you (though I suspect you are in a more privileged position) but I respect owners and the fact that these are their valuable pride and joys. I'm still stunned by Ian's generosity!
I'm not a member of the club yet but Ian is working on it!
Cheers
SS
If there is one thing that being as involved with LCUK as I have been over the last 11 years has brought (apart from my own Lamborghini... wildly variant body weight... stomach churning moments of Club related distress and life-affirming moments of utter joy...) it's been those times when I've caught myself and said, "people actually ask me to drive their Lambos for them"... I've actually TURNED DOWN two drives in a Miura and HAD to turn down a drive in a Diablo SV once because I think my alcohol level couldn't have recovered from the night before...
SO: enough with the gentle-gentle approach SS - are you joining LCUK or wot? Please note the lack of the word 'owner' in the name of our Club... we just presume that Members who haven't bought a Lambo will buy a Lamborghini one day soon (where 'soon' can mean any decade soon, if needs be!)
atb
snapper seven said:
XXVIII (or should that be XLV!!) - you've had some interesting experiences there, after reading some of those I am very pleased to say that mine was under more controlled, pleasant conditions!
Of course I would never say no to a drive of a Countach and would love to think I would get another chance like you (though I suspect you are in a more privileged position) but I respect owners and the fact that these are their valuable pride and joys. I'm still stunned by Ian's generosity!
I'm not a member of the club yet but Ian is working on it!
Cheers
SS
yep - XLV for another 3 months and then XLVI - don't y' just love Latin numbers?Of course I would never say no to a drive of a Countach and would love to think I would get another chance like you (though I suspect you are in a more privileged position) but I respect owners and the fact that these are their valuable pride and joys. I'm still stunned by Ian's generosity!
I'm not a member of the club yet but Ian is working on it!
Cheers
SS
If there is one thing that being as involved with LCUK as I have been over the last 11 years has brought (apart from my own Lamborghini... wildly variant body weight... stomach churning moments of Club related distress and life-affirming moments of utter joy...) it's been those times when I've caught myself and said, "people actually ask me to drive their Lambos for them"... I've actually TURNED DOWN two drives in a Miura and HAD to turn down a drive in a Diablo SV once because I think my alcohol level couldn't have recovered from the night before...
SO: enough with the gentle-gentle approach SS - are you joining LCUK or wot? Please note the lack of the word 'owner' in the name of our Club... we just presume that Members who haven't bought a Lambo will buy a Lamborghini one day soon (where 'soon' can mean any decade soon, if needs be!)
atb
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