Not long after starting to produce cars, founder Ferruccio Lamborghini planned to launch an ambitious project.

Understanding this intention of the boss, two of Lamborghini’s best design engineers quietly built a special car. They named their project 400TP, based on the fact that the car is equipped with a 4-liter V12 engine mounted in a horizontal position (transverse position – TP) behind the driver’s cabin. Worried that Ferruccio would not agree, they kept it a secret until the car’s chassis was completed.

After that, the two engineers were both surprised and happy when Ferruccio immediately “gave the green light” to their project. And the end of the story is the birth of the Lamborghini Miura – the world’s first car model called a supercar.

Here are some interesting facts about the Miura reviewed by Hot Cars:

When it debuted at the 1966 Geneva Motor Show, the Miura was not yet a finished product. Until then, both engineers in charge of the project had not checked whether the large V12 engine could fit in the car’s engine compartment. At the exhibition, they had to “fight the fire” by quickly placing a ballast to fill the empty space in the engine compartment. In addition, they also had to find a way to prevent visitors and curious journalists from getting close to the car for the purpose of examining the car’s engine.

The Miura was the first mass-produced, road-legal sports car with an engine mounted in the middle of the rear of the car. This location of the engine is right behind the driver’s seat. For this reason, Miura is credited with opening a new trend of high-performance cars with the driver’s seat placed in the middle of the car. This trend is maintained until now.

Ferruccio Lamborghini is a big fan of bullfighting. When it came time to name the new car, he went to Don Eduardo Miura’s cattle estate in Sevilla and informed the businessman of his intention to name the car after the strongest line of fighting bulls bred. created by Don Eduardo Miura himself. The businessman was extremely happy about this, and Lamborghini’s new car was named Miura.

Since its launch, the Miura has been a trend-setting car. In terms of speed, Miura also surpasses any opponent. This supercar can sprint from 0-100 km/h in 6.3 seconds and reaches a maximum speed of 163 miles (262 km)/h. By 1966, this speed capability was enough to make the Miura the fastest sports car in the world.

The Miura was produced for 8 years, from 1966-1973. During that period, 764 Miuras were produced, a number of different variants, starting with the Miura P400, followed by the P400S, P400SV, P400 SVJ, and P400 Jota. Each variant has improvements to become more powerful.

There were some interesting characters involved in the development of this legendary car. One of them is the late Mr. Giotto Bizzarrini – the person also behind the Ferrari 250 GTO, the car most desired by classic car collectors. Giotto laid the foundations for the V12 engine before he left Lamborghini. Another person to mention is the late Mr. Bob Wallace, famous Lamborghini test driver.

No one can deny the revolutionary nature of the Miura at the time the car appeared. However, the first Miuras were not perfect, but had a tendency to hit their heads when moving at high speeds. This problem has been almost completely overcome in the Miura SV variant.

Ferrucio is a man obsessed with perfection and is always eager to create a masterpiece that can “storm” the global auto industry. That’s why the Lamborghini car company was only established 3 years ago and only produced two other car models, the 350GT and 400 GT, before the Miura appeared.

One of the most powerful variants of the Miura was the Miura SV launched in 1971. However, this model was still not enough for Bob Wallace, who was then holding the position of Lamborghini’s vehicle testing director. Therefore, Wallace decided to build a Miura to his own specifications, and the Miura Jota was born. This variant is much lighter than other Miuras and the V12 engine is tuned to produce more than 400 horsepower. Unfortunately, in 1971, this unique Jota burned down in an accident in Italy.

In addition to the Miura Jota, there is another unique Miura that you probably have never heard of: the Miura SVR. Initially, this was a Miura P400 S purchased by Heinz Steber, a wealthy German businessman. Heinz was not satisfied with the car; He wanted something better, stronger, and he had the financial means to achieve that desire. Eight months later, Lamborghini completed transforming the Miura P400 S into a one-of-a-kind Miura SRV for the businessman.

Ferruccio Lamborghini believed in uniqueness, and his initial plan was to produce only 30 Miuras. He did not expect the car to receive such great attention when it appeared at the Geneva Motor Show in 1966. Under such pressure, he had to abandon his original plan, and instead produced a total of 764 units. Miura throughout the model’s product life cycle.

The Miura is a special machine, and Lamborghini understands that. They reflect the Miura’s specialness in the car’s price. In 1966, each Miura cost $20,000, a large amount of money. But Miura is still selling like hotcakes.

The best variant of the Miura is undoubtedly the SV, launched in 1971. The exterior design of this variant has only a few tweaks, while the inside has many upgrades compared to previous variants. In particular, a new shock absorber system is equipped to overcome the situation where the car’s front is rocking when moving at high speed.

Today, Lamborghini Miuras are always sought after by collectors, and their prices are often over half a million USD each at auctions. In August 2015, an intact Miura was auctioned for $2.5 million. It is a 1971 Miura P400 SV that is “flawlessly beautiful”.

As mentioned above, the Miura’s engine is located right behind the driver, and there are no noise restrictions even when the engine is operating at full capacity. In early Miura models, this V12 engine was combined with a 5-speed gearbox, producing 360 horsepower. In the Miura SV variant, the engine capacity is increased to 385 horsepower, while in the unique Miura Jota, the capacity reaches more than 400 horsepower.

Tags: lamborghini Lamborghini Miura