A cautionary update: ’68 Lamborghini Islero
One of our frequent contributors, Mark S., brought something to our attention. His “nose for unscrupulous behaviour” smelled a potential rat. Not saying he is correct yet, just be wary. We sent an email to the seller for more information. The seller lists 2 different serial numbers in the listing. One is correct for the car according to the Islero Registry. The registry says as of 2013, the Islero #6198 resides in Florida and not Astoria, New York. Sounds like it may have been sold recently to a Florida resident and the eBayer snagged the photos (in the high desert somewhere). My apologies to the seller if we are wrong but our duty to our readers trumps all.
Ferruccio Lamborghini built tractors before he built GT cars. As the story goes, Ferruccio was unhappy with the quality of his latest Ferrari and had words with Enzo. Enzo kind of blew him off and that you don’t do to a Lamborghini. He said he would show Ferrari how to build a proper GT car. It took him a few tries but he got it right. The Islero, like all Lamborghinis, is named after a bull – Islero killed a superstar matador. He was a Miura bull and now we know where that car’s name came from.The Islero succeeds the 400GT built by Carrozzeria Touring. With Touring in bankruptcy, the Islero project went to Carrozzeria Marazzi. The design is an improvement over the predecessor but it lacks some of the boldness of other Lamborginis of the period like the Espada.
The Islero was propelled by a 325 hp V-12 originally designed by Bizzarrini and modified by Gian Paolo Dallara. With a top speed of 159 mph, the Islero was a capable GT car. Trouble is, it wasn’t very successful, selling only 125 cars. Today’s find can truly be called rare with so few built. It looks pretty neat in fly yellow but from the seller’s description, we don’t know for sure if it was born that way. What he does say is the Islero was treated to a few custom touches. The side fender vents were installed to help control the enormous heat from the 12 cylinder engine. It is also air-conditioned and the plumbing partly nestles where the glove box is. A custom center console adorns the interior too. Hagerty has #3 drivers at $98,000. This one could be a lot better than that but only a thorough PPI will tell. Click here for the eBay auction.
One could be tempted to say the Lombardi Grand Prix (a Fiat 850 Berlina in wolf’s clothing) uses the same license plate lights as the Lamborghini Islero. But with half as many Isleros built, it could be the other way around!