Lamborghini Murcielago

With the evenings getting longer, it’s easy choosing between an oil-burning Shogun and a 570bhp Italian thoroughbred. It may be almost time for another wallet-crunching service for the Lambo, but this month I only needed another set of rear boots and a couple of parts, including yet another hinge for the extending scoops on the Murcie’s rear flanks (that’s the fifth one now, worn out by me manually operating the scoops at every opportunity). Happily, though, there are no serious problems to report, which is remarkable considering it’s just completed two back-to-back trackdays at Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground, where it was driven exceptionally hard for nearly eight hours on each day, stopping only for passengers and petrol (two full tanks at around 4 or 5mpg). Even more remarkable is that this is the 17th time it’s achieved this without a single breakdown. Someone once told me that Lambos are like animals – they need regular exercise… Needless to say, the discs are now absolutely shot, so thanks to everyone who responded to my request for braking specialists. I’ve now got some good leads, so I’ll let you know how I get on. I couldn’t resist attending the huge Lamborghini gathering in Brighton in mid-May, where there was a fantastic turnout of well over 150 Lambos despite the appalling weather. It was particularly good to see a large number of Italian-registered classics from the ’60s make the 1500-mile round-trip from home, and, interestingly, I also spotted some equally classic Lamborghini icons in attendance, such as Luigi Marmiroli (the man responsible for getting the Diablo into production), Ubaldo Sgarzi (credited with keeping Lamborghini together in the turbulent ’70s), and charismatic publicity guru and former chief test driver Valentino Balboni. An unforgettable sight was the Grand Hotel’s underground car park that evening, with nothing but V12 Lambos in attendance (well, apart from one stunning orange Zonda F, that is). It still makes me smile the number of people who step back onto the kerb when the carrot-coloured monster rumbles towards them. And talking of kerbs, skilfully parking the Murcie doesn’t get much easier with time, ably demonstrated directly outside Lamborghini London the other day when, in front of an audience, I reversed into a BMW that had quickly pulled in behind. No damage, thank goodness, except to my pride. There is definitely something to be said for those rear-view cameras, especially when your rear bumper costs seven grand…

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