Lamborghini Espada

Between 1968 and 1978 the Lamborghini Company manufactured a great tourer named Lamborghini Espada. This car was one of the most successful cars produced by Lamborghini at that time and was produced to fill the 4 seats car niche of the Italian company lineup. Lamborghini manufactured only 1217 units which were created by Marcello Gandini.



The specific car refers back to the sword (Espada means sword in Spanish) which is used through the toreador to kill the bull. The car was manufactured in three series during its 10 years of production. The series were called S1 (1968-1970), S2 (1970-1972) and S3 (1972-1978) and they all had improvements regarding the engine power and the interior and exterior design. For example, the S2 series had a new dashboard, a brand new steering wheel, vented brakes along with a plus of 25 horsepower.



At the beginning the Espada was designed with a 4.0 liter V12 engine, had an independent suspension and four wheel disc brakes. This car was "the fastest four seats car on the planet" that could go from zero to 60 mph in just 6.5 seconds. In those days cars had manual transmission, but Lamborghini Espada introduced for the first time the automatic transmission. This new transmission had the capacity to soak up the torque of the V12 engine. Moreover, this car were built with a cheaper chassis, but a significantly stronger platform manufactured from pressed-steel which was given by Marchesi of Modena.



The Lamborghini Espada was equipped with two NACA ducts that "feed" the V12 engine’s six Weber carburetors. That’s the key reason why this car wasn’t so quiet when it achieved its maximum speed. With an easier access to the engine bay, the designer introduced a forward-hinged unit that included the hood and the upper fenders.



The inside was spacious enough as we take into account the proven fact that it had been a four seats car covered in leather. All of the instrumentation was placed handy, in front of the driver. The most important features were the switches and the "eyeball" vents. Even when at the start the design of the steering wheel really was ugly having three spokes, the latest models benefited from an improved, an appealing steering wheel.



The second Espada series was called 400GTE and was displayed for the first time in 1970 at the Brussels car show. This new Lamborghini Espada had some improvements regarding the design from the dashboard as the passengers could now enjoy the additional ventilation and also the lighting put into the arm rest. The technical components were updated too, such as the chassis and also the ventilated brakes. However the most important changes are related to the compression boost that increased the ability to 325 bhp at 7500 rpm and the new Lobro CV joints.



The 3rd number of the Lamborghini Espada was stated in 1973 and was part of the Turin Reveal that happened within the same year. The distinguishing options that come with this series were the taillights and it is redesigned front. The car seemed to be designed with an alternative power steering system. Other features that were improved included the shock rates, the brake power and the ac that became standard. The interior from the car suffered some changes only within the dashboard area. The optional features of this new Lamborghini Espada were the sunroof and also the Chrysler TorqueFlite automatic transmission which was used just for 55 Espadas.



The Lamborghini Espada is an exquisite car that impresses car collectors and enthusiasts every time it makes its appearance in the car shows and auctions that take place all over the world, each year.



Joel Dammann writes about Lamborghini Espada at his Car blog.