An Exotic Style Icon Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary – The Lamborghini Diablo | Flamboyance GT

Today is the official 30th anniversary of the Lamborghini Diablo. This calls for a celebration, Lamborghini style! But what was the Diablo all about?

For starters, it was to become the successor to the Countach and the Miura. When the Miura was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show of 1966, it was revolutionary for introducing the rear mid mounted engine layout (Used to this day as a standard for a lot of high performance cars), for being the fastest production car in the world at that time and for simply being drop dead gorgeous. When the Countach was unveiled in 1971, it was even more revolutionary for simply looking out of the earth with its lifting scissor doors and wedge shape, and again, for being the fastest car in the world for its time.

Now we must keep in mind that these are just damn big shoes to fill for a successor to really make its mark as a successor. Like the Countach, the Diablo is one car that seems to almost be born into a cursed life. The Miura saw itself through a time of high publicity and prosperity for Lamborghini, with the company being sold by Ferruccio Lamborghini after the end of its production and the birth of the Countach, after the oil crisis of 1973. The Diablo’s development was funded by the Swiss Mimran brothers, who purchased the company fully from its state of receivership in 1974.

It was originally designed by Italian designer Marcello Gandini who had also penned the Miura and the Countach. This original design didn’t survive because Lamborghini got sold again in 1987 to Chrysler. This was a time when Lamborghini as a company was jumping from owner to owner, all of whom wanted to revive the iconic brand. Chrysler created an American design team based in Detroit to rework the design. Gandini was unimpressed with the result.

Gandini’s original design for the Diablo eventually manifested in the Cizeta-Moroder V16T. I personally love it even more than the Chrysler redesigned Series I Diablo. And after doing some research, it seems you can still order a brand new one and they would build you one on demand! At a price, of course. But nevertheless, what a buy. Its a 6.0L V16 engine! Quite a novelty. I’ll write a post on it after I do my research.

Anyways, the Diablo was named after a famous bull raised by a certain 19th century Duke of Veragua. It seems to have been renowned for its ferociousness and a victory in an important Spanish Bullfight in 1869. It seems to be Cristóbal Colón y de la Cerda, 14th Duke of Veragua from 1866 to 1910.

The first generation Diablo had a roaring 5.7L V12 engine, churning out 485 horses and 580nm of torque. It could do 325 Km/h, a staggering figure in the early 90s. Now I’ll be honest. I like it, but the Series II facelifted Diablo is the one that really takes my fancy.
This version was launched in 1999, when Lamborghini came under the ownership of Audi, who still owns Lamborghini to this very day. This had a larger and more powerful 6.0L V12 engine, producing 529 horsepower and 620nm of torque. What was wonderful was that every single Diablo ever made came with an Italian style gated manual transmission. More points to fun! This car was redesigned by Belgian designer, Luc Donckerwolke, who would also go on to design the Lamborghini Murcielago. The car had exterior as well as major interior design changes.
The face now had rectangular fixed headlights as opposed to the pop ups in the previous version. In my opinion, the pop ups were wonderful, but this new fixed light units suit it to almost absolute perfection. This headlight design gave it such a unique, exotic look. Stare at it from the front, and it seems like the car is alive, and looking back at you ; but with an air of mystery and real deep emotions beneath. To this very day, it still looks stunning. This is what I would call, ‘Timeless with time’. It reminds us of the 90s and early 2000s, but doesn’t look out of place in today’s times too, parked next to a fleet of current generation supercars.
Now admittedly, Lamborghini did receive some criticism for this, since these were the same lights out of a Nissan 300zx.
I feel, a good piece of design is priceless.
So I don’t care that its from a smaller Japanese sports car. If at all, this simply means that the part will probably be durable, long lasting, easier to find and more affordable to get, in case it ever requires replacing. End of story.
The other major change to the Diablo was the interior. The new design of the dashboard and the steering wheel make it more up to date. The new swooping lines of the dashboard makes the interior look like it really must be a beautiful place to spend time at, churning miles on end.
But what I find so interesting about the Diablo’s design is the fact that you can paint it in almost any colour under the sun and it will still look stunning. Very few cars have this ability. And it says a lot about the design.
Of course, it may not be quite so tasteful in general to be too loud with the colour, but this is a Lamborghini we’re talking about here. Its in its very essence to be rebellious and attention grabbing. Sure, you can get one painted in a subtle colour, but whatever the colour is, its still gonna catch the attention of every single eye that sees it even in the periphery. So you might as well, go all the way with the colour! A Lamborghini is a form of expression, born to capture the heart. And it does so, with such grace, only few can match. The legacy of creating iconic dream cars lives on for sure!
And with that, let me say, “Happy 30th Anniversary, dear Diablo!”
– Abhyjith. K. Ashokan
Check out this wonderful video by Rob Dahm of his beautiful 2001 Lamborghini Diablo. I remember seeing this years and years ago when I was much younger. Memories.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PglHFc26Ij8

Listen to the sound the doors make when he opens them ; Like a fighter jet in itself. And that engine…. Should I say anything more?

“Keep The Passion Strong”

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