Since its founding, the Lamborghini brand has been a highly innovative and pioneering company. Back in 1963, the marque that bears its founder’s name entered a self-confident era in which he surrounded himself with equally enthusiastic professionals. For 59 years, the story has been written of one of the most prestigious and legendary companies in the automotive sector, one that would not exist without more or less famous engineers, technicians in production and innovators. In this article, we will take a look at 6 important people wo made Lamborghini company famous.
Giulio Alfieri
The engineer Giulio Alfieri was born in Parma in 1924, and, just like his younger colleague Gian Dallara, he graduated from the Polytechnic University of Milan. In 1975, Alfieri entered the company and, after seven years, took over the CEO’s chair, inaugurating the era of composite materials. He was in charge of developing the Countach Evoluzione, which was a test model made almost entirely of carbon fiber.
This seemingly flimsy experiment, also designed by Horatio Pagani, was approximately half a ton lighter and reached top speeds of over 330 km/h. That study was put into practice in the form of the acclaimed Countach 25th Anniversary series and the later Diablo. Lightweight construction, introduced by Alfieri, remained a fundamental building block of modern Lamborghini production.
Gian Paolo Dallara
A successful graduate of the Polytechnic University of Milan, Dallara was named Technical Director at the age of only 27. Under his leadership, Lamborghini’s first mass-produced sports car was built. The amazing Miura made journalists use terms like supercar or super sports car. Bertone’s body shop shapes, which hid a V12 in the center for the first time, transformed the Miura into the most sought-after car of its time and a true collector’s item.
Franco Scaglione
A contemporary of Ferruccio Lamborghini, Franco Scaglione was born in Florence in 1916. Franco Scaglione was raised in the heyday of the Futurist movement when artists constantly searched for dynamism, movements, and speed. After graduating in aeronautical engineering, Franco followed his innate passion for design. He began working as a fashion designer before eventually designing cars for the most essential coachbuilders of the day.
His concept car series Berlinette Aerodinamiche Tecniche introduced aerodynamic elements into the artistic style of the cars. In 1963, following a direct request from Ferruccio, he designed the body of the very first Gran Turismo, built in Sant’Agata Bolognese. The 350 GTV’s lines were extraordinary, distinctive, personable and never dated. Its rounded shapes, very thin pillars, and curved windows are unsurpassed.
Bob Wallace
A large band of passionate and dedicated Lamborghini engineers was rightly joined in 1938 by Auckland-born Bob Wallace. A long way from home, he became the chief test driver from 1963 to 1975, working mile by mile on the Apennine Peninsula, developing all the groundbreaking versions, one of which was the Countach. He attempted to modify used parts in his free time and give them a new function in experimental prototypes, producing unique models such as the Miura Jota, the Jarama Bob, and the Urraco Rallye.
Paolo Stanzani
By 1968, technical director and production director positions were given to a young mechanical engineering graduate from Bologna. He, a novice of fewer than thirty years, rose to the top as well after five years with the company. Paolo Stanzani played a crucial role in developing Lamborghini’s icons, taking care, for example, of tests, homologation, and maintaining contacts with body shops. The insights of the erudite engineer are reflected in the tuning of the Miura, Espada, Jarama, Urraco and Countach.
Ferruccio Lamborghini
Ferruccio Lamborghini is primarily to thank for the existence of a prestigious car company, which managed to turn a tractor factory into a sports car manufacturer admired worldwide with few resources. Said industrialist started with agricultural machinery to redefine the paradigm of the automobile at the age of 47. The thriving company’s creations soon aspired to be the best cars in the world. Still, its timeless solutions could not be admired today. Every day without Ferruccio’s collaboration with outstanding engineers, many just graduated from university.
