Lamborghini Diablo
| Lamborghini Diablo | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Lamborghini |
| Also called | Lamborghini Costanga (Mexico) |
| Production | 1990–2001 2,884 produced |
| Assembly | Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy |
| Designer |
Marcello Gandini (initial design) Tom Gale at Chrysler Styling Center (final design) |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Sports car (S) |
| Body style | 2-door coupé 2-door roadster |
| Layout | Longitudinal, Mid-engine, RWD / AWD |
| Doors | 2 |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine |
5.7 L V12 6.0 L V12 |
| Transmission | 5-speed manual |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 2,650 mm (104.3 in) |
| Length | 4,460 mm (175.6 in)–4,470 mm (176.0 in) |
| Width | 2,040 mm (80.3 in) |
| Height | 1,105 mm (43.5 in)–1,115 mm (43.9 in) |
| Chronology | |
| Predecessor | Lamborghini Countach |
| Successor | Lamborghini Murciélago |
The Lamborghini Diablo is a high-performance mid-engined sports car that was built by Italian automaker Lamborghini between 1990 and 2001. It was the first Lamborghini capable of attaining a top speed in excess of 200 miles per hour (320 km/h). After the end of its production run in 2001, the Diablo was replaced by the Lamborghini Murciélago. Diablo means "devil" in Spanish.
At a time when the company was financed by the Swiss-based Mimran brothers, Lamborghini began development of what was codenamed Project 132 in June 1985 as a replacement for the Countach model. The brief stated that its top speed had to be at least 315 km/h (196 mph).
The design of the car was contracted to Marcello Gandini, who had designed its two predecessors. When Chrysler bought the company in 1987, providing money to complete its development, its management was uncomfortable with Gandini’s designs and commissioned its design team in Detroit to execute a third extensive redesign, smoothing out the trademark's sharp edges and corners of Gandini's original design, and leaving him famously unimpressed. In fact, Gandini was so disappointed with the "softened" shape that he would later realize his original design in the Cizeta-Moroder V16T.
The car became known as the Diablo, carrying on Lamborghini's tradition of naming its cars after breeds of fighting bulls. The Diablo was named after a ferocious bull raised by the Duke of Veragua in the 19th century, famous for fighting an epic battle with 'El Chicorro' in Madrid on July 11, 1869. In the words of Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson, the Diablo was designed "solely to be the biggest head-turner in the world."
The development is believed to have cost a total of 6 billion Italian lira.
The Lamborghini Diablo was sold as the Lamborghini Costanga from 1993 through 2000 in Mexico due to controversy against the "Diablo" name, and the fact that Mexico's majority were Bible-reading Catholics. For the Mexican market, the engine was detuned from 492 PS to 440 PS. U.S. magazine Motor Week tested the Costanga and found it capable of accelerating from 0-60 mph in 5.4 seconds and completing the 1/4-mile in 13.2 seconds at 111 mph.
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Wikipedia