Countach

Segment
Coupe

It's been coming for a while now. We all know the Lamborghini naturally aspirated V12 is singing its wailing swan song. The new Aston Martin V12 Vantage will probably be the last one, and Lamborghini intends to celebrate the last of its NA V12s as well. That's why Lamborghini returned to the Retromobile Classic Car Show in Paris with 1 1/2 cars.

It sounds odd at first, sure, but the logic here is sound (and sounds like a V12). The first of these cars is a fully restored Lamborghini Countach from 1971. To be more specific it's the first one. Ever. And the second car? A half-restored Muira. Well, really just half a Muira, courtesy of Lambo's restoration program, Polo Storico.

The intent here is for Lamborghini to look at both forwards and backward. The hybridization process for the Italian marque will begin in 2023, and Lamborghini wants to celebrate its V12 before it gets hybridized. On the one hand, the Aventador Ultimae celebrates everything a modern Lambo V12 has to offer, and these two cars celebrate everything a Lamborghini V12 was.

Now, a moment on Polo Storico. This branch of Lambo's brand functions a lot like Porsche and Nissan's heritage programs. They'll restore your Lamborghini barn find to roadworthiness (for a lot of money, of course), as well as produce spare parts. And, as we all know, owners of classic Lambos need all the help they can get when it comes to maintenance.

Thankfully, Polo Storico is very thorough and good at what it does, with the restoration of this Countach taking 25,000 hours.

As for the half-Muira, it's only in the beginning stages of restoration. As you can see below, the Muira is being stripped down to the sheet metal to be rebuilt from the ground up, preserved for the ages. As hybridization seeps further and further into Lamborghini's cars, these two are reminders of just what being a "Lamborghini" means. Let's hope the next V12-powered Lambo remembers that.