To describe the Lamborghini Miura as groundbreaking would be an understatement. This, after all, was the speedy Italian roadster that had single-handedly inspired the coining of the term ‘supercar’ when it debuted at the 1966 Geneva Salon. Five decades on, the few extant examples of this true embodiment of race-car royalty remain keenly sought out by admiring auto-enthusiasts. Indeed, their particular pre-eminence was underlined recently when a fully-restored 1971 Lamborghini Miura P400 SV, styled by Italian motoring marque Bertone, went for an eye-watering sum at the Sotheby’s Petersen Automotive Museum Auction in Los Angeles.
One of just 150 Miura SVs ever created and one of just 30 vehicles to be fitted with Borletti air conditioning – something of a luxury back then – the car was previously owned by Claudio Zampolli, a former Lamborghini engineer and the founder of the now-defunct Cizeta motoring company. Lovingly restored to its original specifications, it also comes with an impressive racing pedigree of its very own. No wonder, then, that this resplendent scarlet speedster sold for a stunning US$2.18 million.
