Lamborghini Miura

The Lambo Miura is often described as the very first supercr of the world. It was the most beautiful, fastest, exotic car inthe world in 1966 when it was released.

Even today, many people consider Marcello Gandini's design to be the best piece of automotive art. Just look at those beautiful lines. Knowing this, Lamborghini is thinking of remaking the Miura with it's beautiful lines but with a few changes. I dont like the new concept shown though. I prefer the older car's looks.

Just to get an idea of attention to detail, try looking for door handles on the Miura.


Evolution


The first production Lamborghini is the 350GT (shown below)
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Like the Miura, it featured a V12 engine, but the styling is probably better appreciated today than at its inception in 1964. 120 350GTs were produced, with a retail price of $13,900 USD. The engine was a 3.5 liter, and was later produced in 4.0 liter form as the 400GT. A 2+2 version (the 400GT 2+2) was made from 1966 to 1968. Although not spectacular, the 350GT did serve to introduce the world to the V12 engine designed by Giotto Bizzarini. While the 350GT/400GTs were produced in a corner of Mr. Lamborghini's tractor factory, the small engineering and design staff tossed around amongst themselves the idea of producing a mid-engine GT car.

Disucussions of a mid-engine GT car went on and the idea, rather than just fading away, took on a life if its own. They presented the concept to Lamborghini himself, and he went for it.

The Miura came into the world as a chassis, and was first presented at the 1965 Trino Salone dell'Automobile (Turin Automobile Show) in November. That the reception was immediate and overwelming is not hard to understand. At that time the mid-engine layout was new; it had taken hold as the chassis of choice in various European racing classes, and had recently been introduced to fans of the Indy 500. As a road car, while not unheard of, it was rare; as a high powered road car it was nothing short of revolutionary.

With a hit on their hands, Lamborghini now needed to clothe their new chassis. They chose Bertone, a firm with the ability to design and manufacture car bodies. Nuccio Bertone gave the plum assignment of designing the body to 25 year old Marcello Gandini.

The body was designed while Giampaolo Dallara worked on chassis development, and both came together in early 1966. The complete package was presented to the world in March 1966 at the Geneva Auto show. Also revealed was the "Miura" model designation, named after a breed of Spanish fighting bulls. It was the hit of the show. There was also a promise of production and, despite skepticism, the orders came in, (10, according to one account) more in fact than were expected. Demand would never be a problem for the Miura; in fact supply was always limited by the factory's ability to produce.

Ferrucio Lamborghini was a showman with a flair for promotion and he saw the Miura as a way to generate publicity for the other cars he produced. The angle worked, as sales of all Lamborghini cars improved with the introduction and presence of the Miura. Initially he thought of the Miura as only a flagship car and planned for a production run of only about 30 examples.

This fact is important as it explains a lot about the Miura. Since it was seen only as a temporary and very limited production model, it was initially not well developed. The Miura constantly evolved during it's production life. Even though there are three distinct Miura models, the P400, the S and the SV, the changes were phased in gradually with some of them being applied to cars before or after their upgraded designation. Some of the changes made a good thing better, while others corrected mistakes that perhaps should not have been sold to the public. When production ended in 1972, the car was well sorted out, but it was a gradual process.

It is important to note that the other Lamborghini models of the time, notably the Espada, did not suffer the same fate and were solid, well sorted out cars that varied little in their production lifetime. It also should be pointed out that the development team suffered from a lack of resources and that the situation was common for small Italian car companies of the time.

The Miura went through a number of changes, before the first car to be sold (with a manufacture date of March 1967) was produced. The battery was moved from the central frame tunnel to the front compartment. The model designation was P400, with the "P" short for "Posteriore" a reference to the engine location, which was behind the driver and 400 was short for 4.0 liters, which was the engine displacement. The chassis, which was a deep section steel platform using spot welded construction, was made of .9 mm steel for the first 125 cars and 1.0 mm. for all subsequent cars. The Miura used suspension parts found on the 400GT wherever possible. The rack and pinion steering was Lamborghini built and designed.

The Miura body was not developed in a wind tunnel, which was an unobtainable luxury for small Italian car makers in the 1960s. Most accounts give the Miura good marks in the aerodynamics department, with only minor lifting or "lightness" of the front at the highest speeds. Various techniques helped, although some reports indicate that it was always a Miura problem. Much of the Miura development was in the hands of Bob Wallace, a New Zealander with excellent credentials as a race car engineer and a test driver.

Development of the Miura was constant throughout it's production life, and the first model designation upgrade, "Miura S", appeared in December 1968. Changes to the engine in the form of larger intakes and different combustion chamber were part of the improvements. The factory claimed a horsepower increase to 370 hp (from 350 hp) but knowlegable sources indicate it was really much less. They also got chrome treatment on the windshield and window frames as well as the surround rings on the headlights. The changes were not consistent, and later in the production of the "S" constant velocity joints and ventilated disc brakes were fitted. Upgrades in the rear suspension also appeared.

Althought its resources were stretched to the limit, the small engineering staff accomplished a not so minor task: they were able to keep importing the Miura to the United States. Starting in 1968, significant pollution control and safety standards were required of cars sold in America and many car companies stopped producing cars for that market, saying that it was too difficult. The Miura continued to be available, which makes you wonder about the companies that walked away grumbling. Meeting the requirements had another effect. Because of them, Lamborghini was forced to make the affected portions of the Miura more consistent which made for a better car.

The final Miura model - the SV - made its debut in March 1971 at the Geneva Auto show. The improvements were many and went a long way towards delivering the true potential of the design. Nobody argues that an SV is the ultimate Miura and the marketplace confirms this with a giant jump in the price of currently available Miura SVs over their predecessors. Contributing to the situation is the fact that only (approximately) 142 Miura SVs were built.

The rear suspension was upgraded, with revised wishbones giving it a wider track. The result was less twitchy, more predictable handling. The rear wheels, at nine inches, were wider and shod with new (for the era) 60 series Pirelli tires.

Modified cam timing, carburetor changes and enlarged intakes boosted the engine output to 385 HP @ 7850 rpm. More rigidity was designed into the front and rear portions of the chassis; similar changes are often incorporated when older Miuras are restored.

Some (but not all, as is often thought) of the SVs received the quite valuable "split sump" treatment, seperating the lube system between the transmission and the engine. A few SVs were equipped with a limited slip differential.

Lamborghini ended production of the Miura SV when it built s/n 4822 on October 12, 1973. Just over 750 Miuras were built.

Most car models end their production run when demand ceases, but this was not the case with the Miura. By all accounts they could have kept selling it as buyers were still eager. But Lamborghini had a worthy successor waiting in the Countach and their limited manufacturing facilities could not accomodate two models. The Countach continued the Miura tradition and also became an exotic car banchmark, setting new standards in styling and technology. It further revolutionized drivetrain systems with a mid engine layout (this time in line) with the tranmission in front of the engine. The Countach succeeded wildly, becoming a high end icon in the eighties. But it all started with a small group of ambitious young engineers with a dream called the Miura.


Performance

Top speed: 288 km/h (179 mph)
0-100 km/h: 5.5 seconds


Driving Impressions

For it's time it was a spectacular car. Most people didnt care how well it drove. They just loved how good it looked. In a straight line, the Miura was among the fastest cars of it's time. A 0-100 time of 5.5 seconds and a top speed of about 280 kmph were enough to make most people eager to own one. The handling was also quite good.

Of course, today if you were to drive a Miura, you would hate it . The clutch would be too hard. The steering also would be very hard. But for it's time, the Miura was one of the best handling cars.


Pictures







Miura Concept

A Lamborghini Miura concept car was presented at the Museum of Radio and Television on January 5, 2006 alongside the Los Angeles Auto Show, though it was not present at the show itself. Instead, the Miura officially debuted at the North American International Auto Show two weeks later. It was the first design by new Lamborghini chief, Walter de'Silva, and commemorates the 1966 introduction of the original Miura in Geneva.

A production version would share its chassis with the Audi R8, itself a modification of the Lamborghini Gallardo's platform. The likely 6.5 L V12 engine would be mounted longitudinally rather than transverse as on the original Miura, giving it a name of "LP650". The DSG from the Bugatti Veyron is the likely transmission. Quattro all wheel drive is also a likely component. It has also been rumored to will have the 6 liter W12 shared with the the Audi A8 and Bentley Continental GT and Flying Spur.






Lamborghini Miura

Lamborghini Miura - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia