The Lamborghini Countach is a fantastic car, in my opinion. It, literally, is everything that Lamborghini stands for - outlandish design, a bit heavy, maybe even a bit insane. But that's Lamborghini, and this car has influenced the Lambos that we know and love today. While the new cars dote more to the person who wants some comfort, and uses a complex AWD system for when the going gets rough, the basic purpose of a Lamborghini has not changed one iota - to show people around you, "Get out of my way, I'm absolutely crazy and I'll run you off the road!" I mean, look at the car. It's a thing of beauty... depending on who you ask. Others think that it's the ugliest thing since that OctoAuto thing in the mid 1930's.

If you ask me, though, there is no substitute to the Countach. Ever since this bad boy rolled up, supercars have never been the same.

So, how is this iconic piece of machinery to drive according to T10? Unfortunately, stock, this car leaves a lot to be desired. I don't have any gripes with the engine - it's torquey, sounds great and moves this car quickly on the straights. However, on the corners, the Countach deals with all of the drawbacks of getting on a bit in age - body roll, sluggish response, and a bit of skittishness when driven at the limit. To blame, I think, was the springs settings - when I was tuning them, I found the stock setting to be horrendously off. Despite this, low-end grip was really good, and the turning circle was much smaller than what would be expected - the Diablo SV comes to mind with it's turning circle the size of a moon (the advantages of RWD and why, really, it's the best drivetrain. ) In other words, this car would be great as a long track car.

So, to work. We reduced the weight a bit, added the springs and anti-roll bars it so desperately needed, and overhauled the brakes. After some testing, we decided to swap out the Countach engine for the Murcielago engine - for the same amount of PI, the Countach was just too lacking in launch and too heavy. The Murcie engine took away some of the power from my my previously tuned Countach engine, but in my opinion it was worth it. Lastly, racing slicks went on to improve the already good grip of this car. With the car pushing now more than 570 hp, our car was ready.

In the hoppers, it is NOT a short track car. We never really were able to get rid of the sluggish steering in the Countach, so this car will not do exceptionally well on switchbacks or really tight hairpins. However, on tracks like Le Mans Bugatti, or - even better - Road America, this car is a great oddball car. It won't always win, but you can expect 3rd place finishes in a group full of Porsches and Audis. I was pretty pleasantly surprised with this car. Getting the car off the line isn't the easiest thing in the world, mind you - but it doesn't wait up, that's for sure. As I said before, it's a great oddball long track car, and a great car to have in your garage.