Lamborghini’s classic car-focused Polo Storico division has just finished restoring a rare 350 GT. Wearing chassis number 0121, the coupe is a historically significant machine because it’s one of the first 15 cars built by the Raging Bull.
While there are no pictures of what the car looked like before the restoration, Lamborghini explains breathing new life into the 350 GT was a highly meticulous process. It’s a very early car, so it stands out with features that were carried over from the 350 GT prototype introduced during the 1963 edition of the Turin Auto Show and changed a little later in the production run. The coupe was built entirely by hand, too, so no two examples were exactly alike. Lamborghini sifted through its vast archives department to ensure that every detail is period-correct.
Mechanics spent 780 hours working on the drivetrain, the electrical system, the cooling system, the brakes, and the fuel system. They also spent no less than 1,150 hours on the body and on the interior. Notably, the company’s body shop wet-sanded the entire car by hand between each of the 22 coats of paint.
Polo Storico guarantees authenticity because it only uses original spare parts; even the Blaupunkt radio is original to the car. Lamborghini explains that originality was of utmost important to the owner so a handful of components — including the pedals — were restored instead of replaced to preserve the GT’s authentic feel. After all, a car is only original once.
The 350 GT’s owner discovered his newly-restored car during a special ceremony held on the Autodromo di Modena, a race track not far from the company’s home town of Sant’Agata Bolognese in northern Italy. The owner drove his better-than-new coupe for about 50 miles under the watchful eye of the original owner, who was invited to help celebrate the occasion, before taking it back home.
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