The latest update for GT Sport is finally here, bringing with it three awesome Group C cars. However, another gem in the new car list is the Lamborghini Miura P400. That’s why for this week’s Want we are taking a look at one of the coolest cars on the planet.
The legend of the Miura begins in 1965, when three Lamborghini engineers embarked on a secret, after-hours project. Gian Paolo Dallara, Paolo Stanzani, and Bob Wallace made up the team and had one goal in mind: to take on Ferrari.
Once they’d come up with the initial prototype, they showed it to their boss, Ferruccio Lamborghini. At first, Lamborghini wasn’t sold on the car, but he did agree to use the idea as a marketing tool at the 1965 Turin Salon.
People went nuts for it, throwing money at Lamborghini to build the car even without knowing the details. This is when Lamborghini knew he had to build it.
For the design, the Miura was handed over to famous design house Bertone. It finished the prototype just days before the 1966 Geneva Motor Show. However, there was a problem: the engine didn’t fit. Set on debuting it to the world, Lamborghini filled the engine bay with weight and locked it up tight.
Upon its debut, the car found a similar craze to the rolling chassis just a year before.
When the Miura finally hit the sales floor the rich and famous flocked to it, despite the steep price. What was the price you might wonder? Just a mere $20,000. If only cars like this were that inexpensive again.
Once the Miura was out in the wild, the road tests started to roll in. What magazines found was nothing short of impressive. Its 4.0-liter, transverse V12 pumped out 350hp and rocketed the car to 60 in just six seconds.
During this time the automotive press also coined the term near and dear to gearheads hearts — the supercar. While the Miura wasn’t the first mid-engine car nor the first performance car by a long shot, it was the first to combine the two. Up until that point, most performance cars were of the GT variety.
Throughout its lifecycle, the Muira got two revisions. In 1969, the Miura P400S hit the streets and two years later the ultimate P400SV came along.
The example we found offered for sale by Joe Macari Performance Cars in London is a 1969 S variant. This makes it among the rarest of the Miura lineup with only 140 cars produced between 1969-71. It also carries the distinction of being car number 342.
As you’d expect from a car of this caliber, it’s in immaculate condition.
According to the listing, the car is also a matching numbers and low mileage example. With just 9,220 miles on the clock, it’s practically new.
Another claim to fame for this Miura is that it also appeared in the film Road Hard. While it might not be the iconic opening scene from the Italian Job complete with Matt Monro’s On Days Like These, it’s at least still a bit of a star.
If this car piques your interests, you better bring your checkbook too. The current list price for this Miura is a staggering £1,349,950 ($1,800,000). Between the rarity, staggering good looks, and coolness oozing from it, it’s a small price to pay.
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