LAMBORGHINI MIURA 50th ANNIVERSARY AT 2016 AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS d'ELEGANCE

March 2, 2016 by Amelia Island Concours

The 21st annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the legendary Lamborghini Miura the car that changed the exotic car universe forever.

The landmark Miura was introduced as a rolling chassis at the 1965 Turin Auto Salon. The new, mid-engine Lamborghini was a huge hit and remarkably, even without coachwork, orders were placed during the show.

That vindicated the three men who conspired to create the Miura. Lamborghini engineers Bob Wallace, Gian Paolo Dallara and Paolo Stanzani worked secretly after hours to create the Miura. They had a tough sell to bring their clandestine mid-engine supercar project to life simply because the Miura concept was at odds with founder Ferruccio Lamborghini's original philosophy. But it worked.

Lamborghini gave his engineers a free hand believing that the the Miura was radical and exotic enough that it might become a potent marketing tool even if it didn't sell. He was correct beyond his wildest dreams.

Named for an especially ferocious strain of Spanish fighting bull, the Miura made its debut at the 1966 Geneva motor show. The advanced P400 (its model number: posteriori four-liter with its V12 engine mounted transversely) stole the show. When it was parked in front of the Casino in Monte Carlo during Grand Prix weekend alarm bells sounded from Stuttgart to Coventry and especially in Maranello and Modena.

'The Miura rewrote the rules,' said Bill Warner, founder and Chairman of the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. 'The commendatore had an talent for making enemies. He angered Henry Ford and Ferruccio Lamborghini; Ford took Le Mans from him permanently in 1966 and by the end of that year, the Miura had become the ultimate road and fantasy car.'

The 21st Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance tickets are going fast. Don't miss out. Visit www.ameliaconcours.org to purchase tickets to the various events occurring at and around The 21st Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance.

About The Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance

Now in its third decade, the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is among the top automotive events in the world. Always held the second full weekend in March, 'The Amelia' draws over 250 rare vehicles from collections around the world to The Golf Club of Amelia Island and The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island for a celebration of the automobile like no other. Since 1996, the show's Foundation has donated over $2.75 million to Community Hospice of Northeast Florida, Inc., Spina Bifida of Jacksonville, The Navy Marine Corps Relief Society, Shop with Cops, and other deserving charities. The 21st annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is scheduled for March 11-13, 2016. For more information, visit www.ameliaconcours.org.

Photo credit: Jerry Brubaker / Amelia Island Concours
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