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Lamborghini Countach LP 500 prototype reconstruction baptized on track

After making a static debut at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, the reconstructed 1971 Lamborghini Countach LP 500 prototype has met the track for a proper shakedown. A banner day for all involved, no doubt, Pirelli loaned its Vizzola Ticino test track to Lamborghini, collector Albert Spiess from Germany and the contributors who helped create the car from scratch. Spiess said he saw the original prototype at the Geneva Motor Show and then put a Countach poster on his wall as a kid, determined like so many other children for the next 15 years to have one. With the Geneva show car destroyed during crash testing, Spiess eventually determined to convince Lamborghini to build one anew. It likely didn't take him more than 25,000 hours of cajoling to get a "Si" from the principals in Sant'Agata Bolognese, but that's how long the carmaker's historic division, Polo Storico, spent on the reconstruction. Polo Storico chief Stefano Castricini said it took "mad and desperate" research through archival materials, on top of the interviews with original workers and help from suppliers like Pirelli and PPG.   It doesn't look like they worked the LP 500 too hard on track, but it's not like they needed to. In a world awash in seven-figure customs and restomods from manufacturers, and smaller makers putting out cars with specs to make your eyes go googly — there will probably be three more announced next week — this one is special at any speed. For any who'd like to see it for themselves, this very item will be on display at Lamborghini's MUDETEC Museum of Technologies in Sant'Agata Bolognese until November 15, alongside the bare tubular chassis of the production LP 400 (the customer cars got a more reliable 4.0-liter 12-cylinder instead of the prototype's 5.0-liter unit), the second production LP 400 to go down the line, and a Countach 5000 Quattrovalvole. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

VW Group to split brands under four holding companies

The Volkswagen Group is planning a tremendous shift in its internal structure that will decentralize operations by splitting its 12 brands into four different holding companies. Here's the breakdown. Things will be split logically, considering the inter-sharing of parts, platforms, and engines. The Volkswagen brand, Seat, and Skoda make up a passenger vehicle division led by former BMW man Herbert Diess. Audi, which is tightly intertwined with Lamborghini and motorcycle manufacturer Ducati, will be managed by current Audi exec Rupert Stadler. Porsche and Bentley, which are already quite close, will be joined by Bugatti and run by Matthias Mueller. Finally, a commercial vehicles division will include Volkswagen Commercial, Scania, and Man. Former Daimler exec Andreas Renschler will take care of the big vehicles. The massive move, according to Automotive News Europe, is part of an internal VAG effort to move away from the structure established by ousted Chairman Ferdinand Piech, who favored a compact, but highly centralized, management structure to oversee the independent actions of the company's brands. Criticism of Piech's arrangement stemmed from the company's slow responses to changes in the market, ANE reports. The new structure should make for a more efficient, streamlined company that's better able to make crucial decisions. What are your thoughts? Should VAG decentralize, or did Piech have the right idea? Have your say in Comments.

Celebrating Ferruccio Lamborghini's 100th birthday

A tremendous thorn in Ferrari's side was born 100 years ago today. His name was Ferruccio Lamborghini, and today his company's cars are among the wildest and most desirable on the market. While the people of Sant'Agata Bolognese are probably raising several glasses of vino to Mr. Lamborghini, Hemmings has put together a great read on the man behind the brand. Lamborghini's start in the auto industry is the stuff of legend. Unsatisfied with the cars he bought from Ferrari and infuriated after being snubbed by the company's founder, Enzo, Lamborghini added an eponymous auto manufacturer to his tractor-building efforts. The Hemmings piece chronicles this feud, but digs far deeper into the brand's early days. Did you know part of the reason Lamborghini founded his company in Sant'Agata was because of the absolutely killer deal the local government cut with the company's founder? Seriously, the government gave out interest-free loans and exemptions from corporate taxes for its first ten years. Not a bad deal. From hiring Giotto Bizzarrini to design the company's early V12 engines to the debut of the iconic Miura, there's a lot of information here about the man and the company he built, going up until the 1970s, when he sold his shares and retired at just 58 years of age. Head over to Hemmings for the full read. Related Video: