Lamborghini Urraco

Lamborghini Urraco

Lamborghini
aka
Production	1972–1979 791 units
Class	Entry-level Sports car
Body Style	2-door, 2-seat, Mid-Engined Coupe
Length	4,250 mm (167.3 in)
Width	1,760 mm (69.3 in)
Height	1,160 mm (45.7 in)
Wheelbase	2,450 mm (96.5 in)
Weight	1250kg - 1300 kg
Transmission	5-speed manual
Engine	2.0 litre V8 (Urraco P200) 2.5 litre V8 (Urraco P250) 3.0 litre V8 (Urraco P300)
Power	180 hp@7500 rpm 217 hp@7500 rpm 242 hp@7500 rpm
Similar	Maserati Merak Ferrari 308 GT4
Designer	Marcello Gandini at Bertone

The Lamborghini Urraco is a sports car manufactured by Italian automaker Lamborghini in the 1970s. It was introduced at the Turin Auto Show in 1970 but wasn't available to buyers until 1973.

The car was a 2+2 coupé with body designed by Marcello Gandini, at the time working for Carrozzeria Bertone. Rather than being another supercar, like the Lamborghini Miura, the Urraco was more affordable, an alternative to the pricier Ferrari Dino and Maserati Merak.

Both the Lamborghini Silhouette with its detachable roof panel, and its successor the Lamborghini Jalpa with a 3.5 litre V-8 engine, were based upon the Urraco.

Name[]

It was named after a line of Miura-bred fighting bulls.
The name "Urraco" comes from how bulls with black and white hair, like magpies "Urracas" (in Spanish), are defined.

Production Models[]

Lamborghini Urraco P250 (1972-1976)[]

On the November 1970 Turin Auto Show the first pre-production Urraco designed by none other than Marcello Gandini, was on display both on the Lamborghini stand and on the Bertone stand. Unfortunately the Urraco prototype was far from finished, and another two years were required before the first customer car could be delivered.

The original Urraco P250 used an engine cover similar to the legendary Miura, with louvers to cool the engine, note however that a handful of Urraco were delivered with an engine cover similar to the one used on the later Silhouette model, probably to comply with local regulations.

Similar to the Miura, the V8 engine was mid-mounted, but that’s where the comparison ended. The Miura was a full blooded exotic supercar, nearly a street legal race car, the Urraco on the other hand was not as impressive, it was merely a nice touring car with impressive road manners thanks to an all-independent McPherson suspension that was perfected by Bob Wallace.

The Urraco was a good looking car, with a steep windshield, a sharp front with pop-up headlights, large, wide opening doors, all in all a well-balanced car which drove like a kart actually, the deep steering wheel took a little getting used to, but once you got to know the car you would acknowledge it as a true Raging Bull.

But the Urraco was born into some troublesome times for Automobili Ferruccio Lamborghini SpA, the entire future of the company didn’t look as sunny as before, and because it took over 24 months before the first Urraco was available, several people cancelled their order, a serious blow to the already unstable financial state at that time.

The very first Lamborghini Urraco delivered were really not up to the specs Ferruccio intended for his GT’s, workmanship left much to be desired, interior ergonomics were not on the top of the list apparently, the driving position could have been better and only dead ahead would you have great vision in this first baby Lamborghini, although this latter was true for most exotic cars of that era.

However, things were shaping up, during October 1972 an improved Urraco S was introduced, using a full leather upholstery, powered windows that were now also tinted and optional metallic paint was available while the engine received new Weber 40 DCNF carburetors for cars with no emission control.

All these modifications made the Urraco S a lot more reliable than the early models, however the belt drive used on the V8 engine was still a point to take into account when owning the P250.

Final evolution of the Urraco was a Tipo III, in fact nothing else than the US legal version of the Urraco, featuring large black bumpers, different taillights and a down-rated engine with only 180 Bhp instead of the earlier 220 bhp, adding another 200 kg in antipollution equipment. It didn’t take a genius to understand the Tipo III was seriously under powered, and subsequently did not sell too well, causing the original 2.5-Liter Urraco to end its career rather soon, only 520 units were made, but this didn’t mean the end of the Urraco series.

Gallery :

Lamborghini Urraco P111[]

The P111 was developed for the American market. These cars were basically the same as other Urracos with the exception of the obvious heavy black bumpers and large side marker/signal lights on the front and rear fenders. All Tipo 111's also had metallic paint, power windows, air conditioning, seat-belt light with warning buzzer and smog equipment. The engine was also modified with different Caburators to comply with tighter U.S. emission standard. These were Solex units similar to those used by Porsche for their U.S. cars. Horsepower was drastically reduced from 220 bhp to 180 bhp. Only 21 of these cars were made.

Gallery :

Lamborghini Urraco P300 (1974-1979)[]

A much improved P300 was introduced in 1974, this new 3-Liter model would make a difference, the engine was enlarged and featured dual overhead camshafts with a much more reliable chain drive, the heads now incorporated the combustion chambers which placed this brand new V8 ahead of its V12 cousin in terms of specifications, we could state the P300 was the best Urraco of the series in fact.

Not only the engine was updated both the transmission and the suspension were modified which resulted in a more balanced ride, also the bodywork was slightly altered, the headlights were moved further forward and the front hood now used six fins instead of the earlier two seen on the P250, on the inside you would note a better finished interior made entirely in-house at Sant’Agata and no longer by Bertone.

All these modifications created a very good Urraco, and it was regarded as the Urraco Ferruccio intended to build from the start, a high performance Grand Touring car that was finished to the same level as the flagship V12 models, but the P300 ran into one major issue it was never officially imported into the United States, still the most important market for this type of super car for a company like Automobili Lamborghini.

The US still received the P250 Typo III model, and with the required emission-control system and additional modifications to comply with legislation only 180 Bhp would be available from the V8 engine this didn’t rank the Typo III as a true Lamborghini unfortunately and the Urraco adventure came to an early demise after only 190 P300 models were built.

Gallery :

Lamborghini Urraco P200 (1975-1977)[]

Lamborghini introduced the Urraco P200 on the 1974 Turin Auto Show. The P200 received a special de-tuned 2 liters engine and it was only available on the local Italian market, it was built specifically to comply with the then new Italian tax laws that imposed heavy taxes on car engines with a displacement over 2000cc.

The original 2500cc unit from the P250 was used as a base, the original 88mm bore was reduced to 77.4mm, resulting in exactly 1995cc, power output from the Urraco P200 was claimed at only 182 Bhp, which let’s face it wouldn’t make it into Lamborghini territory, not even in the mid Seventies.

The exterior of the P200 remained exactly like the P250, but the interior was still reworked, both the Urraco P200 and the 3-liter Urraco P300 received a higher quality, Lamborghini-built interior while in case of the original Urraco P250, the body shell was supplied by Bertone … complete with plastic seats and manual windows already installed.

Despite the lower taxes for this specific Lamborghini Urraco P200, it never became the success Lamborghini hoped for, only 66 units were sold during its production run … a mere fraction of those are still around today. Despite the Urraco P200 was built in so little numbers, and was only sold in Italy, it is not yet considered to be a true collector’s item while nowadays it is extremely hard to find one.

Gallery :

Specifications[]

Model	Engine	Displacement	Bore x Stroke	Compression Ratio	Max power	Max torque	0–100 km/h (0-62 mph)	Top speed	Units
P200	V8 OHC 16V	1,995 cc	77.4 mm x 53 mm	8.6:1	182 PS (134 kW; 180 hp) at 7,500 rpm	176 N⋅m (130 lb⋅ft) at 3,800 rpm	7.2 s	215 km/h (134 mph)	66
P250 / P111	V8 OHC 16V	2,463 cc	86 mm x 53 mm	10.5:1	220 PS (162 kW; 217 hp) at 7,500 rpm	220 N⋅m (162 lb⋅ft) at 3,750 rpm	6.9 s	240 km/h (149 mph)	520
P300	V8 DOHC 16V	2,996 cc	86 mm x 64.5 mm	10.5:1	250 PS (184 kW; 247 hp) at 7,500 rpm	265 N⋅m (195 lb⋅ft) at 3,500 rpm	5.6 s	260 km/h (162 mph)	190

Lamborghini Urraco Concepts & Prototypes & Factory Specials[]

Lamborghini Urraco Prototype (1967)[]

Automobili Lamborghini SpA asked Bertone to design the new ‘small’ Lamborghini, the V-8 powered Urraco. The Bertone design studio came up with two rather similar looking running prototypes, the first used a strange headlight configuration while the second was more conventional with pop-up headlights and a small integrated rear spoiler and a big air extractor in the front hood.

But Ferruccio decided to have a third prototype designed, also at Bertone but now by Marcello Gandini, this final prototype was further developed into the P250 Urraco production car.

Minor changes were made to this third approved prototype, the pop-up headlight units were moved further forward on the fenders on the production cars. However this prototype was later used by "Bob Wallace" to make his Urraco Rally.

Specifications :

Type	Prototype
Years built	1967
Production	1 unit
Engine	3.9 L Naturally Aspirated V12

Gallery :

Lamborghini Urraco Rally (1973)[]

The one-off Urraco Rally was constructed in 1973 by Lamborghini’s chief test driver and development engineer, Bob Wallace. It was the third and last of Wallace’s factory-sanctioned hot rods after the 1970 Jota and 1972 Jarama RS.

The Rally was built from the third Urraco prototype which had its headlights mounted further up the front fenders than subsequent production derivatives.

Wallace broadly created this experimental Lamborghini along the lines of a Group 4 GT racer, but it was never used in competition for a couple of reasons.

- Firstly, Ferruccio Lamborghini was famously opposed to his cars being raced and refused to sanction a motor sport programme of any kind. Although he had sold 51% of Automobili Lamborghini to Georges-Henri Rossetti in 1972, there was no change in official company policy. Nor were their funds to spare as Rossetti made no significant cash injection to the firm.

- Secondly, the Urraco had proven a commercial flop. Lamborghini had originally hoped to sell over 1000 examples every year. However, only once did the model manage to exceed even a quarter of that figure (in 1973 when 285 were built). As Group 4 regulations required a minimum run of 500 production cars in a twelve month period, an Urraco for racing was out of the question.

Nevertheless, this extensively modified hot rod served as a useful development tool for potential future upgrades.

Chassis :

- The Urraco prototype’s pressed steel monocoque chassis was lightened wherever possible. Wallace then added a series of welded steel and aluminium inserts to act as reinforcements. The rear subframe was beefed up to cope with the extra power. Wallace enhanced the independent MacPherson strut suspension with stiffer springs, uprated Koni dampers and thicker anti-roll bars. Everything was made fully adjustable.

- Bigger Girling ventilated brake discs were fitted along with enormous new 15-inch diameter Campagnolo cast magnesium wheels. Unlike the production Urraco wheels that used five-bolt fixings, these latest rims were mounted on single centre-locking hubs. Both Dunlop and Pirelli tyres were variously trialled.

Engine / Gearbox :

- Like the subsequent Urraco P300, the engine was stroked from 53mm to 64.5mm. This gave an additional 534cc and took overall displacement to 2997cc.

- Wallace had the car running an experimental four-valve cylinder head and also installed a dry-sump lubrication system along with a front-mounted oil cooler.

- Compression was almost certainly hiked beyond the original 10.5:1 and bigger Weber carburettors would have been fitted too.

- An output of 310bhp was often quoted which, if true, was 90bhp more than the standard Urraco P250.

The Rally demonstrated that Paolo Stanzani’s original Tipo L240 all-alloy 90° V8 had real tuning potential. If the dual overhead camshafts fitted to the subsequent Urraco P300 had been utilised, over 350bhp would likely have been possible.

Another important technical feature was the car’s six instead of five-speed gearbox. However, this addition proved a false dawn; it wasn’t until the Murcielago arrived in 2001 that Lamborghini finally moved away from their traditional five-speed units.

Bodywork :

Several dramatic changes were made to the exterior.

- The front bumper was removed and bigger auxiliary lights were installed. An enormous front spoiler was added which wrapped around to the front wheelarches and also housed an intake for the oil cooler.

- The lightweight front lid was given a lip spoiler at its trailing edge to improve airflow.

- A single windscreen wiper replaced the original twin wiper arrangement and two body coloured wing mirrors were mounted on the front fenders.

- Down each flank, the door catches and wraparound triple-vaned rear window slats were removed to save weight. Each rear wheelarch was cut away and then flared to accommodate the wide new wheels.

- Plexiglas was used for the side and rear windows. The chrome window frames were replaced with anodised black metal.

- At the back, an enormous adjustable rear aerofoil was mounted on twin pylons over the bootlid.

- The rear quarter bumpers were junked and two un-silenced megaphone exhausts sprouted from the underside.

Interior :

- Inside, every conceivable piece of superfluous trim was removed.

- While the original orange fabric passenger seat remained, a black vinyl bucket complete with racing harness was installed for the driver.

- A long-range fuel tank was positioned where the rear seats originally would have been and a roll cage was also fitted.

Weight / Performance :

- Weight was cut to ‘under 1100kg’ which, combined with the powerful new engine and six-speed gearbox, would have given astonishing levels of performance.

- A top speed in the region of 170mph was likely possible along with a 0-62mph time of under five seconds.

Gallery :

Lamborghini Urraco Special (1974)[]

A late model Urraco P300 was modified at the factory to serve as a base for research, this car was a P300 US Specifications car, the side running lights were present and the big black bumpers were installed on the car.

This car was finished in bright yellow over a black interior, but the main objective of this Urraco was to obtain valuable information on road holding and suspension settings when using bigger wheels at the back than at the front.

Silhouette wheels were mounted on this car, 8.5×15 inch up front and 11×15 inch at the back with 205/50 and 285/40 tires, because of these big rims, special wheel arch extensions were mounted.

These were taken from the Countach S series, note their round form against the more angular ones used on the Silhouette later.

Suspension geometry had to changed too naturally, because of the wide rear wheels, contact with the road was a major objective, so the McPherson were modified to comply to this new need.

This car performed many test kilometers before it was retired at the factory, the information gained from this unique car led to the Silhouette in 1976.

Specifications :

Type:	Factory Special
Years built	1974
Production	1 unit
Front wheel	8.5×15 inch
Rear wheel	11×15 inch
Front tire size	205/50
Rear tire size	285/40

Lamborghini Urraco Custom (1974)[]

During the late Nineties, a rather special Urraco was offered for sale, this car dated from 1974, but the bodywork looked like the later Silhouette, but without the targa-roof configuration.

Nothing much is known about this specific Lamborghini, only that is was based on a P250 Urraco, the original 2.5-Liter engine was however replaced by the more reliable chain-driven 3-Liter unit from a crashed P300. The most obvious changes are however to the bodywork, a full Silhouette look alike was created from sheet steel panels, the box-shaped wheel extensions and the deep chin spoiler looked almost identical to those used on the rare Silhouette.

Also much wider wheels were mounted, especially at the rear, surprisingly enough these were ‘traditional’ five-spoke wheels instead of the much nicer but very hard to find five-hole Silhouette type wheels. To finish off the exterior modifications a big Countach-style rear wing appeared at the rear.

Specifications :

Years built	1974
Production	1 unit
Engine	3.9 L Naturally Aspirated V12
Type	Custom

Lamborghini Urraco P250 GT-R[]

A very special Lamborghini Urraco was found in Switzerland by Raymond Stofer, nothing much was known about this specific Lamborghini, only that is was based on a P250 S Urraco.

This car has been restored and is finished in black instead of the original white, the visual impact of this special Urraco was high, at the front a deep chin spoiler was mounted, styled in typical Silhouette looks, from which the wheels were also taken, much sought after items to mount on the more recent Jalpa’s.

Also stylish wheel arch extensions were mounted and completely integrated into the bodywork, the front and rear wheel arches were connected by custom running boards with rear intakes, probably to cool down the disk brakes, this P250 S had the big black bumpers, which would designate it as a late model P250, not an US-Specs since no side lights were present.

When taking a look at the entire car it’s strange to find out that no rear wing was mounted, but to compensate this detail, special race-type bucket seats were mounted on the inside, complete with five-point seatbelts, the entire interior was originally covered in white leather with red inserts, together with the white exterior and a fine red line running from the front of the car to the rear, it must have been a very nice looking car when new, today the car is finished in black, the interior color isn’t known right now, it was for sale in mid 2001.

Specifications :

Type	Factory Special
Production	1 unit

Notable appearances[]

A black Urraco was featured in a December 2005 episode of the BBC television show Top Gear. The supercar was purchased by James May (used, obviously) for no more than ten thousand British pounds, and was in mechanically awful condition. Eventually succumbing to complete electrical failure, the car was then believed to have been sold on to a dealer in London for five thousand British pounds.

In the Italian mid-engined supercars for less than a secondhand Mondeo challenge, James's Urraco kept running out of electricity and was the most picked on car of the three. Suprisingly on the road trip from Chippenham to Slough, his car travelled further than the rest as Jeremy's Merak and Richard's 308 GTB have broken down on the way. In Slough, the car ran out of fuel with just 1 mile to go to the finish.

External Links[]

Lamborghini Urraco Review by Colleen Sheehan


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Lamborghini road car timeline ([edit])
Type		1960s										1970s										1980s										1990s										2000s
		0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
					Ferruccio Lamborghini										Rossetti/Leimer					receivership						Mimram				Chrysler							M'tec/V'Power				Audi
FR	GT					350GT
	2+2							400GT		Islero		Jarama
	Coupe									Espada
RMR	V8/V10																	Silhouette						Jalpa																					Gallardo
	2+2											Urraco
	V12		4000 GT						Miura								Countach																Diablo												Murcielago
SUV																												LM002