Marcello Gandini Says No to the New Lamborghini Countach

• The original Lamborghini Countach, produced from 1974 to 1990, was penned by the great designer Marcello Gandini, who was also responsible for other classic Lambos like the Miura and Diablo.

• A new limited-series Lamborghini was revealed at The Quail this past August, dubbed the Countach LPI 800-4, resurrecting the classic nameplate in 769-hp hybrid supercar form, with power from both a V12 engine and supercapacitors.

• Representatives of the legendary designer want to clarify Gandini played no part in the design, nor did he approve of a production Countach.

There is no greater designer of wild Italian supercars than Marcello Gandini. The maestro penned everything from the Lancia Stratos and Bugatti EB110 to the Renault R5 Turbo and two versions of the Maserati Quattroporte. It was his work for Lamborghini, however, that was the most outrageous—and most enduring. Gandini penned the Lamborghinis Espada, Jarama, Miura, and Diablo, to name just four. The pinnacle of all that, perhaps his most revolutionary and beloved design ever, was the original Lamborghini Countach, the epitome of angular coolness and V12 power that adorned the bedroom walls of teenagers in poster form for generations.

So how does the great Gandini feel about the new Countach unveiled at The Quail last summer?

“Marcello Gandini clarifies that he has not participated in and does not approve the project, that he didn’t give his placet,” read an official statement from the man himself, issued through his daughter, Marzia Gandini Provera, through her firm THINK PR.

“Placet,” by the way, is the Latin root word for “approval.” This is as close as we’re going to get to The Real Housewives of Turin, Lido Shore, or maybe an opera.

Apparently, last spring Lamborghini requested a video interview of the senior Gandini with Mitja Bokert, head of Lamborghini’s design department Centro Stile, about the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Countach. Gandini agreed. During the meeting, Bokert presented a scale model which was described as Bokert’s “personal tribute to Maestro Gandini,” made for him and as a basis for a celebratory model that would be presented that summer at The Quail.