1965 Lamborghini 350 GT

The first Lamborghini sports car was based on a chassis design by Gian Paolo Dallara, who had apprenticed under Carlo Chiti at Ferrari before moving on to Maserati under the direction of Giulio Alfieri. It was given a racecar-like frame of steel tubing with specifications inspired by racing machines, including the independent suspension setup and four-wheel disc brakes. The body was penned by Franco Scaglione and made its debut at the Turin Motor Show in 1965. Two examples of the 350 GTV prototype were produced before Lamborghini made modifications to the design. The engine was slightly detuned, and the top-feeding racing carburetors were relocated in favor of sidedraft Webers, allowing a lower hood profile. The new aluminum coachwork was produced by Touring of Milan, who used the Superleggera construction technique.

The 350 GT made its introduction at the 1964 Geneva Motor Salon. The luxurious supercar had a top speed of 165 mph. A total of 120 examples of the 350 GT were built at the new Lamborghini factory in Sant'Agata over the next three years before the model was phased out in favor of the mildly redesigned 400 GT. A few of the later 350 GT examples were upgraded to 4.0-liter specifications early in their lives.

The Lamborghini 350 GT rested on a 100.4-inch wheelbase and stood 48 inches tall, and was 68.1 inches wide. The Touring-styled two-seater 350 GT received their patented Superleggera method of construction to fix aluminum alloy panels directly to the tubular structure. The frame was fabricated by Neri and Bonacini until production of the 350 GT was underway, when the job was turned over to Marchesi. Touring combined the chassis and bodies, and then sent them to the Lamborghini factory. The Bizzarrini-designed, all-alloy, DOHC V12 engine produced 270 horsepower in production form, with assistance from six Weber Twin-choke carburetors and a 3,464cc displacement. The engine was paired with a five-speed manual transmission and four-wheel vacuum servo-assisted Girling disc brakes provided the stopping power. It had a four-wheel independent suspension system, a Salisbury limited-slip differential and was originally fitted with Pirelli Cinturato HS 205-section tires.

The Lamborghini factory took delivery of the first 350 GT chassis and body on March 9th, 1964. Named No. 101 (Touring No. 17001), it made its debut at the Geneva Show that same month. Number 104 (Touring No. 17004) was the first customer car and delivered on July 31st of 1964. By the close of 1964, less than 25 cars were delivered to customers.

by Dan Vaughan

Coupe by Touring
Chassis number: 0262
Engine number: 0205

This 350GT Alloy bodied car with coachwork by Touring was sold new through dealer Garage Foitek in Geneva, Switzerland, finished in Grigio Argento Metallizzato with a black leather interior. It is believed that the first owner was a Swiss jeweler who kept the car for a number of years before selling it to another Geneva resident. In 1976, the car was purchased by Antony MacLean. The next owner was Aston Martin chairman Victor Gauntlett in 1988, who passed it to Simon Draper in 1993. In 2001, the car was sold to Clive Winstone. The current owner purchased the car in 2008.

It is believed that this car has never been given a full restoration. It was given a mechanical reconditioning at the Lamborghini factory in 1977. The car has been given a bare-metal repaint in the original silver gray metallic color in 1995, at which time the bright trim was also restored.

In 2010, this Lamborghini was offered for sale at the Gooding & Company auction held in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was estimated to sell for $250,000 - $325,000. As bidding came to a close, the lot had been sold for the sum of $269,500, including buyer's premium.

by Dan Vaughan

Coupe by Touring
Chassis number: 0196
Engine number: 0166

The newly formed Automobili Ferruccio Lamborghini, S.p.A. assembled a veritable dream team of talent including Giotto Bizzarrini, Gian Paolo Dallara, and designer Franco Scaglione. The result of their work was the 350 GTV prototype that was introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in 1962.

Lamborghini's sports car offered outstanding performance with four-wheel independent suspension and a four-cam V-12 engine derived from Bizzarrini's extensive racing experience. Styling refinements were courtesy of Carrozzeria Touring. Two years later, the production 350 GT was introduced. in total, about 131 examples were built before the 350 GT was replaced by the 400 GT 2+2.

This example was originally delivered to the Garage du Quai du Mont Blanc, in Geneva, Switzerland, finished in Blu Tiguillo (Gulf Blue) with Senape (Cream) leather upholstery. The car has an unusual Lamborghini shield, finished in red and white, versus the standard black ornamentation. It is believed that just a few 350 GTs had this special marking.

The original owner of this car was Ernest Butler, a prominent lawyer and Ferrari collector in Detroit. Mr. Butler purchased the car in Switzerland and brought it to the United States. In 1974, it was acquired by Michael Collins, of California who kept the car until 1983. It then entered the Tom Mittler collection.

In the early 1990s, the car was acquired by Peter Cohen who treated the car to a complete restoration to its original condition.

The car has been put on display at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance where it won Best in Class.

Powering the car is a 3464cc dual overhead-cam V-12 engine offering 280 horsepower. There is a five-speed manual transmission and four-wheel disc brakes.

by Dan Vaughan

Coupe by Touring
Chassis number: 0244
Engine number: 0187

This Lamborghini 350 GT is the ninth example built in 1965. It was delivered on November 13th of that year to Lamborcar, the official Lamborghini dealer in Milan. It was retained by its original owner until 1975, when the second owner purchased it in Arizona. After three years of occasional use, the car was parked until the present owner acquired it several years ago.

The car was recently given a restoration and refinished in its original colors of Grigio Medio (18008) and a Tobacco (20266) leather interior. The suspension and brakes were completely rebuilt, and the original Borrani chrome wire wheels were refinished and given new Pirelli tires. The car has a correct original spare in the trunk. Currently, the car shows 93,331 kilometers on the odometer.

by Dan Vaughan

Coupe by Touring

Ferruccio Lamborghini had built significant wealth as a tractor builder. He bought a Ferrari that was plagued with mechanical issues. Upon returning the vehicle to Ferrari and complaining about the build quality, Enzo Ferrari told this 'farmer' to take a walk. Ferruccio was so enraged, that he began a new quest - to build proper supercars that had performance and quality. In 1964 Lamborghini debuted the 350GT. It was powered by a Bizzarrini designed 12 cylinder engine, used a steel frame and featured a ZF gearbox, independent suspension and four-wheel disc brakes. It was their first serial-production grand touring car.

This car is presented in its original interior and exterior colors. It was manufactured in September of 1965 and it is one of an estimated 62 350 GT's remaining.

Coupe by Touring
Chassis number: 0223

This Lamborghini 350 GT was built and delivered in 1965 to an Italian buyer. It was the second Series Two 350 GT built with an additional 10 horsepower and two extra cowl vents and finished in the original colors of Blu Scuro with Tobacco interior. It was purchased in Seattle during the early 1970s by a young man in his early 20s who sold the car to the current owner in 2013. It was a complete matching numbers candidate. Restoration was recently completed and is accompanied by a set of pristine original books, tool roll and jack. This 350 GT was Lamborghini's first car endowed with a Bizzarrini designed aluminum V-12 four cam engine with six side draft Webers, a Dallara designed chassis with four wheel independent suspension, four wheel disc brakes and a five-speed transmission. It also has a coach built aluminum Superleggera body by Touring of Milan which features a long and low hood line and an airy teardrop shaped greenhouse with curved glass all around including the radically curved side glass. Less than 100 aluminum bodied 350 GTs were produced.

Coupe by Touring
Chassis number: 0343
Engine number: 0274

Just 120 examples of the Lamborghini 350 GT were produced between 1964 and 1966. This example, the 62nd example built, is an original survivor. It was ordered by a customer in Madrid, who took delivery at the factory and drove it home. It had left the factory finished in Argento Metallizzato (Silver Metallic) with a Tobacco pigskin interior. The car was registered on Spanish license plates M589925, and would remain in Spain for over 4 decades. During this time, it is believed that it was kept by just two owners. It was given its dark green metallic paint scheme near the end of its Spanish residency.

In 2009, the car was sold via a French broker to collector Isao Noritake of Aichi, Japan, for his private museum. During his ownership, the car remained unregistered in Japan.

The current owner had it brought to the United States in 2015. Currently, the car shows 97,195 kilometers. It has its factory tool roll and jack. The interior is believed to be original. The car remains largely unrestored.

by Dan Vaughan

Coupe by Touring
Chassis number: 0232
Engine number: 0229

Lamborghini produced 143 examples of the 350 GT, which includes the 23 interim cars, before the body was revised by Touring into the 400 GT 2+2, in 1966. These grand touring cars were capable of 0-60 mph in 6.8 seconds and had a top speed of 158 mph.

The 350 GT made its production debut at the March 1964 Geneva Auto Show, and the first example was delivered to its buyer on July 31st of 1964.

This particular example is in the care of Adam Carolla. It is an unrestored example that is in well-preserved condition, with less than 60,000 kilometers from new. It has its original cognac leather interior, its original engine, and a black exterior that was recently lightly wet sanded and professionally detailed.

In 2014, this car was used by James Franco for a Gucci commercial, shot at the Chateau Marmont in Hollywood. In the commercial, James Franco is seen at the wheel of the 350 GT, heading down Mulholland Drive with a model at his side.

by Dan Vaughan

Coupe by Touring
Chassis number: 0226
Engine number: 0181

This 1965 Lamborghini 350 GT was completed in July of 1965 and wore Azzurro Fiat (Fiat Blue) exterior with Senape (Mustard) upholstery. It was delivered new in Italy and eventually made its way to the United States. Philippe Lancksweert acquired the Lamborghini in California in the 1990s and brought it back home to Belgium. He sold it in the fall of 1999 to Hubert Fabri.

Between 2013 and 2016, the 350 GT underwent an extensive restoration and upon completion, it wore a dark metallic blue exterior with bright red leather hides. Additionally, the interior contained a single, centrally mounted rear seat, as found on the very earliest 350 GTs.

After nearly two decades of ownership, Mr. Fabri sold the 350 GT to its current American owner.

This 350 GT is equipped with a 3,464cc DOHC V-12 engine breathing through six Weber 40 DCOE 2 carburetors and delivers 270 horsepower at 7,000 RPM. There is a five-speed ZF manual gearbox and four-wheel vacuum-assisted Girling disc brakes.

by Dan Vaughan

Coupe by Touring
Chassis number: 0181
Engine number: 0130

Owned since 1983, this 1965 Lamborghini 350GT has been a treasured member of the owner's family. This vehicle was originally sold by one of the earliest Lamborghini dealers in the United States, in Providence, Rhode Island. It was purchased for $15,000 at a time when no one was interested in owning an exotic car that had no dealer network, and parts availability was questionable. The price was about the same as the car cost new in 1965. This car has been driven and used as cars should be, as well as being shown in Nova Scotia and all New England states along with New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. This first-production Lamborghini is one of 120 and features a hand-built aluminum body, a five-speed transmission, and Girling disc brakes. The 350GT exemplifies one man's vision to create a unique product that continues far beyond anything he could have possibly imagined.

The 3.5-liter 60-degree DOHC V-12 engine has six Weber DCOE carburetors and two dual point distributors and produces 265 horsepower.

A total restoration of this car was completed in 2021.

Coupe by Touring

This Touring-styled two-seater 350 GT underwent a superb, factory-correct resotraiton in 2013 by FAI, retaining its matching-numbers engine and aluminum Touring 'Superleggera' bodywork.

After the presentation of the first prototype thanks to Ferruccio Lamborghini in 1963, the 350 GTV was mass-produced a year later. Before the end of 1966 Carrozzeria Touring had made 120 models, the majority with 3.5 litre 12-cylinder engine and 320 HP – another 23 models were added to these, already using the 4-litre V12 engine and 320 HP, but with more torque and more comfortable to drive. Two 350 GT were built by Carrozzeria Touring in the Spyder version.

by Lamborghini

Ferruccio Lamborghini had built a significant amount of wealth as a tractor builder. When he bought a Ferrari he expected a vehicle with superior performance and few problems. What he got was a car that did have superior performance but was plagued with mechanical difficulties. Upon returning the vehicle to the Ferrari shop and complaining about the lack of build quality, Enzo Ferrari replied 'You should stick with building tractors and let me be concerned about the cars.' Ferruccio was so enraged, that he began a new quest - to build proper supercars that had performance and quality.

Bizzarini, a brilliant engineer, had just left Ferrari and was a suitable candidate to build Lamborghini a twelve-cylinder engine. Franco Scaglione, an employee of Sargiotto located in Turin, was tasked with designing a new vehicle for the newly formed Automobili Ferruccio Lamborghini S.p.A. Scaglione's resume included work such as the Alfa Romeo BATs and the ATS 2500 GT. Sargiotto Bodyworks was responsible for the metal work while Neri & Bonacini were given the task of building the square tube steel chassis. The result was a prototype labeled the Lamborghini 350 GTV and first displayed at the 1963 Turin Auto Show. The interior was leather while the finish was a bright metallic blue color. The engine was not installed in the car because it would not fit. The vertical carburetors were too large and did not fit under the hood. Only recently has the vehicle been restored and the chassis was altered to allow room for the engine.

After the Turin Show, Carlo Anderloni of Touring was brought in to redesign the 350 and prepare it for production. The design was smoothed out and the pop-up headlights were replaced with units that were gracefully incorporated into the hood of the vehicle. The 3.5-liter V12 with twin overhead camshafts and six twin-choke Weber carburetors were placed horizontally between the camshafts in order to fit under the hood. Along with the redesign, the engine was detuned because Ferruccio Lamborghini desired a smooth running, refined engine rather than a highly-tuned racing power-plant. Horsepower dropped from 350 to 270. A 320 horsepower version was available as optional equipment.

In 1964 Ferruccio Lamborghini debuted the production version, the 350 GT, the V had been dropped, to the public at the Geneva Auto Show. The car was powered by a Giotto Bizzarini designed 12-cylinder engine, sat atop a tubular steel chassis, and featured independent suspension and a ZF gearbox. Disc brakes were placed on all four tires. This was Lamborghini's first serial-production GT vehicle. Producing 280 horsepower, the 350 GT was a formidable contender with the other super-cars of the day.

Two shortened chassis's were sent to Zagato, renowned for their lightweight construction, to create alternative creations to the Touring design. Ercole Spada of Zagato was given the task of designing the body. The result was a very elegant coupe that drew inspiration from previous work such as Lancia and Alfa Romeo racers. It was shown at the 1965 London Motor Show under the name Lamborghini 3500 GTZ. Only two examples were ever created. One was retained by the factory while the other was sold to a customer after the show.

Another coachbuilding factory was commissioned in the mid-1960s to create a mid-engined supercar. It was known as the Miura and was powered by a four-liter V12. In 1966 the four-liter engine was available in the front-engined Lamborghini as optional equipment. This version became known as the 400 GT. A few examples were built before it was replaced by the 400 GT 2+2. The two-plus-two configuration made the supercar a little more practical, allowing room for additional occupants in the rear seats. The design of the 2+2 varied slightly from the 400 GT. The 2+2 was constructed of steel while the 400 GT used aluminum. The most distinguishable difference was the double-oval headlights in the front of the 2+2.

In 1966 a Lamborghini 400 GT Monza prototype was created that carried the mechanical components of Lamborghini with styling reminiscent of Ferrari's legendary 250 GTO series. The design was handled by Neri & Bonacini and was shown to the public at the 1966 Barcelona Motor Show. It was sold to a wealthy Spanish individual who used the vehicle as a daily driver. It was put into storage in the early 1970's with the odometer reading just 7,000 km's. It remained in possession of the family until the owner's death in the mid-2000's. Bonham's Auction had the pleasure of offering the vehicle up for auction at the 2005 London Olympia sale where it was sold for $315,000.

During its introductory year, only thirteen examples of the 350 GT version were created. Around 120 examples were created in total. Since these were mostly hand-built, specifications and designs may vary. For example, most of the 400 GTs intended for the US market were given four round headlights, however, a few had larger oval units that were common on the 350 GT.

There were about 247 examples of the 400 GT 2+2 constructed from 1966 through 1968.

The 350/400 GT Series represent Lamborghini's intention to construct the finest Grand Touring automobiles ever assembled. Many automotive journalists at the time hailed the cars as being better than equivalent exotic machinery.

by Dan Vaughan