Taking the Fight to Porsche and Ferrari.(Escape Roads)

Byline: NICK KURCZEWSKI

The 1970 Urraco represented a bright future for Lamborghini. As the company's first move downmarket, the car was designed to compete with the Porsche 911 and Ferrari Dino in the small-GT field.

During tests of a Urraco P250 in February 1971, Road & Track observed that the engine "was designed for use either with a rear-drive layout or a front-engine, front-drive arrangement, which makes us wonder if Lamborghini is planning a sedan.'' Indeed, Ferruccio Lamborghini hoped profits from the Urraco would fund spinoffs using variations of the same mechanicals, including a mass-production, front-engined sedan. The greater sales volume generated by the Urraco would also allow Lamborghini's automotive division to finally turn a profit, rather than being kept afloat by the company's tractor sales.

On paper the original Urraco had a lot going for it: classy body by Bertone, fashionable mid- engine layout, and room for four. Extra care was taken to keep the design simple, allowing ease of production and straightforward maintenance. The engine was new and rather low-tech. This 2.5-liter transverse V8 had just one cam per cylinder bank, single-tooth rubber drive belts and interchangeable, flat-bottomed cylinder heads. Chapman struts with lower transverse arms and antiroll bars were used front and rear. Borrowed from the Fiat 130, it was a cheap but effective design. The sheet steel chassis of the Urraco did away with the labor-intensive space-frame chassis used in previous Lamborghinis. In theory, this granted the Urraco production line greater immunity from the crippling strikes that plagued Italian industry.

Regardless, the downfall of the Urraco began with development problems and lengthy production delays. It was not until 1973 that the first customers finally got behind the wheel of their cars. This setback allowed the Urraco's rivals ample time to up the performance bar-with Dinos sporting a new 2.4-liter V6 while Porsche unleash- ed its sublime 2.7-liter Carrera. Lamborghini found itself ...