Lamborghini Jarama

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Lamborghini
Lamborghini Jarama S.
Lamborghini Jarama S.
Jarama
Production period: 1970-1988
Class : Sports car
Body versions : Coupe
Engines: Petrol engines :
3.9 liters
(239-257 kW)
Length: 4490 mm
Width: 1820 mm
Height: 1220 mm
Wheelbase : 2380 mm
Empty weight : 1650 kg
Previous model Lamborghini Islero

The Lamborghini Jarama is a 2 + 2-seater sports car from the Italian automobile manufacturer Lamborghini , which was sold as the Jarama 400 GT from 1970 and as a further developed version as the 400 GTS from 1972 . The Jarama replaced the Islero and complemented the larger Espada . It was the company's last newly introduced sports car to be fitted with a front engine. The Jarama is also known as "the forgotten Lamborghini" in the English-speaking world. It was not in demand on the classic market for a long time and, more than 40 years after production was discontinued, it has not yet reached the prices of the other twelve-cylinder models from the Ferruccio-Lamborghini era.

History of origin and classification

Predecessor of the Jarama: Lamborghini Islero

Founded in 1948 by Ferruccio Lamborghini as the tractor manufacturer Lamborghini Trattori , the company began in 1963 with the construction of high-performance sports cars that were to compete with Ferrari cars, among other things . The prototype 350 GTV was followed by the 2 + 2-seater series coupé 350 GT , which was replaced in 1966 by the externally identical 400 GT . Its successor was the Islero introduced in 1968, which was technically largely identical to the 400 GT, but had a straight body designed by Mario Marazzi . The Islero notchback coupé, which still had a separate tubular frame , was in the program alongside the Miura mid-engine sports car and the “avant-garde” four-seater front-engine coupe Espada . Compared to these spectacular models, the Islero sold poorly. Observers attribute this primarily to the conservative body, which was clearly in the shadow of the other Lamborghinis. In 1970 Lamborghini then stopped production of the Islero. He was succeeded by Jarama, who, like its predecessor, was to be a distinguished “ Gran Turismo for the established businessman”.

For Ferruccio Lamborghini, the Jarama was “the best compromise between Miura and Espada.” In fact, the Jarama was overshadowed by both models from the start; the appearance of the aggressive Countach reinforced the Jarama's outsider role. The production numbers remained significantly behind those of other Lamborghini models. The takeover of Lamborghini by Swiss investors Georges-Henri Rossetti and René Leimer in 1974 did not improve the model's position. The Jarama, which attracted less attention than the mid-engined sports car and the Espada, was the first model that the new owners stopped producing after the takeover.

Model name

For the Islero, Lamborghini chose a model name for the first time that referred to terms from bullfighting . This tradition was continued in the Miura and Espada, and Lamborghini followed it up with the successor to the Islero. The name Jarama refers to a region crossed by the river of the same name in the north of the Spanish capital Madrid , which is known for rearing fighting bulls.

Model description

Lamborghini's technical director Paolo Stanzani led the development of the Jarama .

Chassis and chassis

Unlike the Islero, which had a tubular frame, Lamborghini used a steel platform frame for the Jarama. It was technically identical to the frame of the four-seater Coupé Espada, but the wheelbase was shortened by 270 mm to 2400 mm. All bikes were hung individually. Double wishbones with coil springs, anti-roll bars and telescopic shock absorbers from Koni were used at the front and rear .

Engine and power transmission

1972 Lamborghini V12 engine with a distributor and air conditioning compressor

The Jarama was powered by Lamborghini's twelve-cylinder V-engine, which was also used in the company's other models. In the Jarama it was installed lengthways at the front. The engine was based on a design by Giotto Bizzarrini , which debuted in Lamborghini's first prototype 350 GTV in 1963. The unit of the prototype, initially trimmed for high engine performance, was slightly revised for the start of series production by Giampaolo Dallara . Among other things, Dallara replaced the dry sump lubrication with a pressure circulation system with a wet sump and changed the carburetor arrangement. In this form, Bizzarrini's twelve-cylinder was used in most production Lamborghinis of the 1960s.

The Jarama was powered by a twelve-cylinder V-engine, the cylinder banks of which were at an angle of 60 degrees to each other. The engine block was made of cast aluminum. The displacement of the Jarama engine was 3929 cm³ (bore × stroke: 82 × 62 mm). Each bank of cylinders had two overhead camshafts that were driven by a chain. The compression ratio was 10.7: 1. The mixture preparation was done by six double carburettors from Weber (type 40DCOE). The engine output of the 400 GT was 350 hp, which occurred at 7500 revolutions per minute. In the GTS version sold from 1972, the engine output increased to 365 hp according to the factory. However, this value is occasionally questioned in the literature.

As standard, a manual five-speed gearbox, designed by Lamborghini itself, transmitted the engine's power to the rear wheels. A three-speed automatic from Chrysler was also available on request from 1974, although this was rarely ordered. Many publications assume that only one Jarama was equipped with the automatic transmission; in brand clubs, however, at least four automatic vehicles are specifically known (chassis numbers 10568, 0574, 10576 and 10650).

body

Trapezoidal line and taillights from the Fiat 124: Lamborghini Jarama

structure

The body of the Jarama was designed to be self-supporting. It was made of sheet steel.

design

Half-covered "sleeping eyes"

The shape of the body was designed in the Turin studio Bertone . The designer in charge was Marcello Gandini . In the area of ​​the passenger cell, “the strictly geometrically designed body” was characterized by a deeply sloping hatchback and a long rear overhang. Gandini resorted to the formal language of the Fiat 128 Shopping , a study by Bertone presented in 1969, which had very similar lines, but was significantly higher than the Lamborghini coupé. The long overhangs and the deep, horizontal bend on the sides of the car also cited design elements from the first series of the Oldsmobile Toronado .

In addition to the trapezoidal shape and the long overhangs, the special features of the body include a spoiler lip on the rear roof end and partially concealed front double headlights. In the idle state, the upper half of the headlights was covered by movable metal sheets that were painted in the vehicle color and that folded away when the lights were activated. They are often referred to as "sleepy eyes". Unlike usual, however, the metal sheets did not pivot upwards - as in the case of the Alfa Romeo Montreal and Iso Lele sports cars also designed by Gandini - but tipped downwards.

Numerous add-on parts for the Jarama came from large-scale manufacturers, especially Fiat . This applies to the door handles and the rearview mirror, for example. The Fiat reference was most clearly visible in the rear lights, which came from the second series of the Fiat 124 Coupé. Here the production model deviated from the prototype, which was equipped with the rear lights of the Audi 100 .

inner space

With piano keyboard: dashboard of the first series

The Jarama was a 2 + 2 seater. The seats in the rear were designed as emergency seats and could only be used by children. The rear backrest could be folded down so that the resulting area could be used as an additional luggage rack. However, there was no access to the trunk, so that there was no large contiguous loading area.

The dashboard of the first series was criticized many times. The main criticism concerned the positioning of the toggle switches, which were mounted on a horizontal surface between the instrument panel and the steering wheel. The unlit switches were difficult to tell apart and difficult to use. Journalists were reminded of a piano keyboard . Lamborghini responded to the criticism in 1972: With the introduction of the second series, there was a completely redesigned dashboard in which the switches were concentrated in the center console. The instruments were also rearranged. The displays for speed, engine speed, tank and battery were located in a two-part instrument panel on the upper level, while several small displays for other functions were set back below. The radio, however, was installed under the roof.

Weight

The Lamborghini Jarama weighed 1540 kg empty. It was heavier than the much longer Espada. In the literature, the high weight, which impaired the maneuverability and driving performance of the car, is primarily attributed to the Carrozzeria Marazzi, where the vehicles were completed. The small and economically weak company was not able to work in a weight-saving manner. Lamborghini's test driver Bob Wallace was of the opinion that the Jarama could have been around 250 kg lighter with the appropriate manufacturing know-how.

Driving performance and driving characteristics

The driving characteristics were extraordinarily high for the conditions at the time. The maximum speed of the 400 GT was specified at the factory as 250 km / h; a test by the German trade magazine Auto Motor und Sport in August 1971 confirmed the value. From 0 to 100 km / h the Jarama took 6.9 seconds with manual transmission. In the 400 GTS, the top speed of the manual version increased to 260 km / h, with the automatic transmission it was 240 km / h.

The short wheelbase made the Jarama very manoeuvrable. Several test reports confirmed that the car had significant understeer when cornering, but also very stable straight-line stability. The lack of power steering in the models of the first series, however, impaired the maneuverability of the car at low speeds considerably; For the US American magazine Road & Track, parking was “torture”.

The individual series

Jarama 400 GT

The basic model was the Jarama 400 GT presented in 1970. It was not available with power steering. 188 vehicles were built by him.

Jarama 400 GTS

With additional air inlet in the bonnet: Jarama 400 GTS

1972 presented a further developed version called the Jarama 400 GTS. The changes mainly concerned the details that had been criticized in the original version of the Jarama. The 400 GTS now had power steering for more comfort and air inlets and outlets in the engine compartment for better cooling. In addition, a different dashboard replaced the so-called “ piano keyboard ”, which emphasized design and led to confusion , and a different exhaust system increased the engine output by 15 hp. In addition, the vehicle received new wheels without central locking.

production

As is customary with contemporary Italian small-series vehicles, the production of the car was divided between several companies. At Lamborghini only the engines were made. Bertone made the platform frame and pressed the body panels. Carrozzeria Marazzi initially took over the assembly . Marazzi was inadequately equipped for the job. Personnel and resource problems meant that the craftsmanship of the cars was unsatisfactory, at least in the first few years. After Marazzi had manufactured all vehicles in the GT series and 48 examples in the GTS series, Lamborghini relocated the construction of the Jarama completely to Bertone.

Production of the Jarama began in spring 1970. According to the factory, production of the Jarama ended in autumn 1976. In fact, due to Lamborghini's economic difficulties, completion of the last vehicles was delayed until 1978. From 1976, Lamborghini was temporarily unable to pay its suppliers and subcontractors on time . You therefore repeatedly interrupted the delivery or work on the respective components.

A total of 327 Lamborghini Jarama were built.

Jarama "Bob"

Lamborghini Jarama Sport and Lamborghini Miura Iota

History of origin

The Jarama "Bob" (alternative name: Jarama Sport) was a special version of the Jarama that Lamborghini's test driver Bob Wallace built. Wallace modified the Jarama with a view to possible use in competitions, both in the body area and in the engine. Wallace's Miura Jota had been written in a similar way a few years earlier . Lamborghini's competitor Ferrari also worked in a similar way: the competition vehicle 365 GTB / 4 Competizione was derived from the production model 365 GTB / 4 “Daytona” . Unlike Ferrari, however, the sport version of the Jarama was not a factory project, but was exclusively a private initiative of Wallace. In contrast to the Ferrari model, the Sport Jarama did not go into series production, but remained a one-off. The Jarama was never used in a racing competition.

Changes compared to the series

Wallace replaced several body panels, which were manufactured in series from sheet steel, with aluminum components. This mainly affected the doors and the bonnet. The side windows and the rear window were made of plastic. Wallace also changed the design of the front section. The sleeping eyes were omitted. Instead, the front cover plate was slightly rounded. The headlights were on the lower part of the vehicle behind a clear plastic cover. There was also a wide front spoiler.

The engine was only slightly revised. Larger Weber carburetors of the type 42 DCOE, lighter pistons and connecting rods as well as modified air filters led to an increase in output to 380 hp, which occurred at 8000 revolutions per minute. The vehicle thus reached a top speed of 270 km / h. To optimize weight distribution, Wallace changed the positioning of the engine. The twelve-cylinder was installed a few centimeters further towards the center of the vehicle. Some sources report that Wallace achieved a weight distribution of "approximately 50/50". The changed position of the engine required modifications to the dashboard and the center tunnel. In the back of the car, Wallace removed the small back seat. In their place he put the battery and a large tank, the filler neck of which was led directly through an opening in the rear window. Other changes affected the suspension and shock absorbers.

Whereabouts of the car

In the economic crisis that the company suffered from 1976, Lamborghini sold the Jarama Bob to a buyer from Saudi Arabia who did not look after it. In 1999 a British collector discovered the car, bought it and restored it. The Jarama Bob is now occasionally shown at exhibitions.

The Lamborghini Jarama in the film

  • The Italian feature film The Grotto of Forgotten Corpses (original title: La notte che Evelyn uscì dalla Tomba ), released in 1971, features the prototype of the Lamborghini Jarama, which has now been painted green.
  • In the 13th episode of the German television series Der Alte ( An uncomplicated case ), which was first broadcast in April 1978, Klausjürgen Wussow drives a dark red Jarama.

The Lamborghini Jarama on the classic market

The Lamborghini Jarama led a shadowy existence on the classic market for decades. For a long time, the prices of a Jarama remained well behind Lamborghini's other twelve-cylinder models of the 1960s and 1970s. In 2007 a Jarama S in good condition was available for around 50,000 euros. This has not changed 40 years after production was discontinued; the Jarama is still the cheapest Lamborghini twelve-cylinder. Nevertheless, from 2010 onwards it experienced a significant price increase. Excellent examples of the Jarama GT cost around 190,000 euros in 2017, a GTS is around 30,000 euros more expensive. This means that the prices for a Jarama rose by more than 200 percent between 2012 and 2017. Its predecessor, the Islero, was listed on the classic market in 2017 with a retail price of 310,000 euros, while an Espada from the first series was priced at around 270,000 euros at the same time.

literature

  • Matthias Braun, Alexander Franc Storz: Type compass Lamborghini: Sports car after 1964. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-613-02645-2 .
  • Decio Carugati: Lamborghini. Mondadori Electa, 2010, ISBN 978-88-370-6763-2 .
  • Peter Collins: Lamborghini Model by Model , Crowood Press, 2015, ISBN 978-1-84797-938-4 .
  • David Hodges: Lamborghini. The Legend . Smithmark Publishers, London 1998, ISBN 978-0-7651-0846-3 .
  • Hans-Karl Lange: Lamborghini. All sports cars since 1963. Verlagsunion Pabel-Moewig, Rastatt 1991, ISBN 3-8118-3063-5 .
  • NN: Ferruccio's favorite . Driving report of a Lamborghini Jarama 400 GTS. In: Motor Klassik No. 10/2007, p. 40 ff.
  • Anthony Pritchard: Lamborghini. The history of the supercars from Sant'Agata. Heel, Königswinter 2006, ISBN 3-89880-574-3 .
  • Bernd Woytal: Ferruccio's favorite . Driving report and purchase advice Lamborghini Jarama in: Motor Klassik, issue 10/2007, p. 40 ff.

Web links

Commons : Lamborghini Jarama  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Anthony Pritchard: Lamborghini. The history of the supercars from Sant'Agata. Heel, Königswinter 2006, ISBN 3-89880-574-3 , p. 72.
  2. ↑ a b c d David Hodges: Lamborghini. The Legend . Smithmark Publishers, London 1998, ISBN 978-0-7651-0846-3 , p. 34.
  3. ^ Anthony Pritchard: Lamborghini. The history of the supercars from Sant'Agata. Heel, Königswinter 2006, ISBN 3-89880-574-3 , p. 77.
  4. ^ A b Matthias Braun, Alexander Franc Storz: Typenkompass Lamborghini: Sports car after 1964. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-613-02645-2 , p. 34.
  5. ^ Matthias Braun, Alexander Franc Storz: Typenkompass Lamborghini: Sports car after 1964. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-613-02645-2 , p. 42.
  6. ↑ Quoted from Bernd Woytal: Ferruccios Liebling . Driving report and purchase advice Lamborghini Jarama in: Motor Klassik, issue 10/2007, p. 41.
  7. ↑ a b c Peter Collins: Lamborghini Model by Model , Crowood Press, 2015, ISBN 978-1-84797-938-4 , p. 78.
  8. ↑ a b c d Anthony Pritchard: Lamborghini. The history of the supercars from Sant'Agata. Heel, Königswinter 2006, ISBN 3-89880-574-3 , p. 73.
  9. ↑ Hans-Karl Lange: Lamborghini. All sports cars since 1963. Verlagsunion Pabel - Moewig, Rastatt 1991, ISBN 3-8118-3063-5 , p. 16.
  10. ^ A b c Matthias Braun, Alexander Franc Storz: Typenkompass Lamborghini: Sports car after 1964. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-613-02645-2 , p. 44.
  11. ↑ a b Bernd Woytal: Ferruccio's favorite . Driving report and purchase advice Lamborghini Jarama in: Motor Klassik, issue 10/2007, p. 44.
  12. ↑ a b c Description of the Lamborghini Jarama on the website www.autorevue.at (accessed on June 13, 2018).
  13. ↑ a b History of the Lamborghini Jarama on the website www.jaramaregistry.com (accessed on June 12, 2018).
  14. ↑ a b c d e Hans-Karl Lange: Lamborghini. All sports cars since 1963. Verlagsunion Pabel - Moewig, Rastatt 1991, ISBN 3-8118-3063-5 , p. 32.
  15. ↑ Images of the Fiat 128 Shopping on the website www.allcarindex.com (accessed on June 12, 2018).
  16. ↑ Figure of the prototype (accessed June 13, 2018).
  17. ↑ Bernd Woytal: Ferruccio's favorite . Driving report and purchase advice Lamborghini Jarama in: Motor Klassik, issue 10/2007, p. 42.
  18. ↑ Illustration of the interior of a Jarama 400 GTS (accessed on June 14, 2018).
  19. ↑ The mean measured value was 249.2 km / h. S. Manfred Jantke: 12 carats . Auto Motor und Sport, issue 17/1971.
  20. ↑ Hans-Karl Lange: Lamborghini. All sports cars since 1963. Verlagsunion Pabel - Moewig, Rastatt 1991, ISBN 3-8118-3063-5 , p. 34.
  21. ^ Road & Track, Volume 23 No. 10, issue of June 1, 1972.
  22. ↑ Hans-Karl Lange: Lamborghini. All sports cars since 1963. Verlagsunion Pabel - Moewig, Rastatt 1991, ISBN 3-8118-3063-5 , p. 34.
  23. ^ A b c Matthias Braun, Alexander Franc Storz: Typenkompass Lamborghini: Sports car after 1964. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 978-3-613-02645-2 , p. 46.
  24. ↑ a b History of the Lamborghini Jarama Bob on the website www.lambocars.com (accessed on June 13, 2018).
  25. ↑ Episode 13: An Uncomplicated Case , Description of the Episode (accessed June 15, 2018).
  26. ↑ Bernd Woytal: Ferruccio's favorite . Driving report and purchase advice Lamborghini Jarama in: Motor Klassik, issue 10/2007, p. 45.
  27. ↑ Oldtimer Markt special issue No. 59: Classic cars from 1920 to 1995 - prices , as of 2017, p. 164.