While Lamborghini remains one of the biggest names in luxury cars, there's one model guaranteed to cause a lot of eye-rolling and turned-up noses among the upper crust. That would be the Espada, a car deemed so butt-ugly when introduced in 1969, the company barely unloaded more than 1,200 of them in the course of a decade. The Espada did enjoy a brief turn in the spotlight in 2018 on the eve of its 50th anniversary, but that's as far as the legacy stretched. Enter a charismatic dude named Elo (yup, just Elo), who provided the ultimate solution: a rat rod version of the ill-fated Estrada that he showed off in a YouTube video on Friday.

Espada Redesign Includes Original V12

The video captured the arrival of Elo's revamped Espada the previous weekend in Miami, where Supercar Week 2021 was being staged. After carefully parking his black beast near a pagoda, Elo eagerly offered some interesting background on the supercar, with the finesse of a carnival pitchman.

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This Espada, he noted, still has the original engine: a front-mounted V12 kicking out 300 horsepower capable of exceeding 150 mph, which was pretty impressive for a late '60s supercar rollout. Noting the poor sales record of the Espada, Elo revealed that when Lamborghini went on to release the Countach, it included that very V12 engine. " So this is the mother of the Countach," declared Elo. "If this car did not exist, the Countach would never have existed."

This Espada Rat Rod Is One Mean Lowrider

Lamborghini Espada rat rod V12 engine closeup
Mike Supercars TopSpeed

Elo's crew didn't do much to the engine, but the rest of the car is virtually unrecognizable from the engine. The front panels and hood were removed to show off the engine, and the entire vehicle was altered into a lowrider, with most of the work dedicated towards the suspension and making the rest of the design a lot sleeker. The crowning touch is a set of mean, red wheels to add a devilish touch to the black exterior.

"I didn't want to change the design," admitted Elo, gesturing towards his dreadlocked mane to stretch a point. "And the designer when we were building it said he wanted it so flat, so aggressive-looking. So when I ride, I ride with my head out."

His Own Supercar Museum

Lamborghini Espada rat rod with owner Elo behind the wheel
Mike Supercars TopSpeed

That said, Elo has had a pretty popular head and body to match, having been a supermodel in a previous career, sharing catwalks with the likes of Naomi Campbell. The flamboyant Brit parlayed his earnings into luxury cars and currently enjoys a decent revenue stream with a London-based museum that not only showcases his supercar collection, it also provides fine dining.

Source: Evening Standard, Mike Supercars TopSpeed

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