Vehicle exhibits

The Birth of Lamborghini

Ferruccio Lamborghini built his fortune manufacturing tractors from surplus military machinery after the Second World War. Having become a successful industrialist, he turned his attention towards high-performance grand touring cars and founded Automobili Lamborghini in 1963.

The company's first prototype, the 350 GTV, was presented at the 1963 Turin Auto Show. Designed by Franco Scaglione, the sleek two-seat coupe established Lamborghini's ambition to challenge the finest Italian sports car manufacturers.

The Diablo

By the mid-1980s, Lamborghini began developing a successor to the Countach. The project eventually became the Diablo, which was launched in 1990.

Development took place during Lamborghini's ownership by Chrysler, which acquired the company in 1987. Chrysler's involvement influenced the later stages of development, but the finished Diablo retained the dramatic styling and high-performance character associated with Lamborghini.

The original Diablo was powered by a 5.7-litre V12 and had a claimed top speed of around 325 km/h, making it one of the fastest production cars in the world at the time.

The Diablo VT

Lamborghini introduced the Diablo VT in 1993. The "VT" name referred to its Viscous Traction four-wheel-drive system, which used a viscous coupling to transfer torque to the front wheels when additional traction was required.

The VT also introduced several improvements to the Diablo, including revised suspension, larger brakes and improved aerodynamics. The combination of rear-wheel-drive character and additional front-wheel traction made the VT more capable in a wider range of conditions.

The VT Roadster

The Diablo VT Roadster was introduced in 1995, becoming Lamborghini's first production roadster. It retained the basic mechanical package of the VT coupe but featured a removable carbon-fibre roof panel.

The roof panel was designed to be stored beneath the front bonnet, giving the Diablo an open-air driving experience while maintaining the dramatic proportions of the original car.

The Diablo VT Roadster remained in production until 1998 and was produced in very limited numbers, making surviving examples particularly desirable today.

A Lamborghini Icon

The Diablo continued Lamborghini's tradition of combining dramatic styling with extreme performance. The VT Roadster added another level of rarity to the model, bringing together the company's famous V12 engine, four-wheel-drive technology and open-top design.

As one of Lamborghini's most recognisable cars of the 1990s, the Diablo VT Roadster represents an important chapter in the company's history and the transition from the legendary Countach to the next generation of Lamborghini supercars.