Lamborghini has always been one of the top European supercar manufacturers. Most gearheads can instantly tell when a Lamborghini is coming their way thanks to their outlandish designs, brightly-colored paint jobs, and glorious-sounding engines. Lamborghini has a long list of cars to be proud of, but only a few of them were as important as the Murcielago.
The Murcielago had all the great qualities one would expect from a Lamborghini, but the reason why we think it was so important for the manufacturer is that it served as the bridge between old school and modern Lambos. Let's explore ten cool facts about the Murcielago that most gearheads have forgotten.
10 First Lamborghini Developed Under New Ownership
Lamborghini had a great start to life in the '60s. Unfortunately, the fuel crisis and financial downturn of the '70s left the company staring down the barrel of bankruptcy, forcing Ferrucio Lamborghini to sell the company in 1973.
From 1973 to 1998, Lamborghini's s ownership changed several times between private investors and other companies, including the Chrysler Corporation. Lamborghini's savior was ultimately the Volkswagen group, who bought the company in 1998 and reorganized it into the success it is today. The Murcielago was introduced two years after the takeover.
9 A Design Masterpiece
Lamborghini cars are instantly recognizable from a crowd of supercars, largely thanks to their outrageous designs. Just look at the Countach, Miura, LM002, and the Diablo. The Murcielago was no different.
Although the Murcielago utilized Lamborghini's new design language, it combined classic Lamborghini design features with new ones. The Murcielago is wide, insanely low, and has those scissor doors we all love.
8 A Luxurious Interior
In the past, Lamborghinis were always criticized for having an uncomfortable cabin that one couldn't sit in for hours, particularly the Countach. Lamborghini changed that with the Murcielago.
The Murcielago has a spacious cabin that can comfortably accommodate two people and is equipped with luxury amenities like leather seats, a leather steering wheel, and woodgrain interior trim. Buyers also get a decent infotainment system, air conditioning, a gated shifter, and advanced driver assistance systems.
7 Produced In Multiple Iterations
The Murcielago enjoyed a decade-long production run. During this time, Lamborghini produced several Iterations of the Murcielago, including a roadster, the LP 640 coupe and roadster, the LP 650-4, and the LP 670-4 SuperVeloce.
Our favorite is the last and most powerful Murcielago - the LP 670-4 SuperVeloce (SV). Introduced in 2009, the SV was powered by a 6.5-liter V12 blurting out 661 hp and 487 lb-ft of torque, giving it a 0-60 of 3.1 seconds and a top speed of 213 mph.
6 A Powerhouse
Lamborghini is always looking to make its cars as fast as possible. What better way to achieve that other than equipping them with massive engines? Well, that's exactly what Lamborghini did with the Murcielago since it's one of the most powerful naturally aspirated sports cars ever.
The base 2001 Murcielago was equipped with a monstrous 6.2-liter V12 engine making 572 hp and 479 lb-ft of torque, while later iterations got a 6.5-liter V12 with more power.
5 Equipped With An AWD System
With around 600 hp on tap, the Murcielago was one of the most powerful sports cars of the 2000s. As such, Lamborghini decided to equip it with an all-wheel-drive system to ensure it could perform well.
An all-wheel-drive system ensured that the power was distributed more evenly throughout the vehicle, which drastically improved handling on twists and turns. The system also improves the Murcielago's acceleration.
4 Dominated In Motorsports
Unlike many supercars built in the late '90s to early 2000s era, the Murcielago wasn't built with any racing aspirations in mind. It was more of a road car, intended to re-establish Lamborghini's dominance in the supercar market.
However, the Murcielago still found some success on the race track. For instance, the Murcielago R-GT won the Zhuhai 2 Hours and 1000km de Catalunya competitions, while the Murcielago LP670 R-SV won two championship races at the 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship season.
3 Subject To Safety Recalls
It's always sad when automakers have to recall a massive amount of vehicles to fix certain issues. Although Volkswagen did everything possible to ensure that the Murcielago would never be recalled, it still happened.
In 2010, Lamborghini recalled 428 of its 2007-2008 Murcielagos due to faulty fuel tanks. According to reports, there was a possibility of weld failure on the tank's fuel pump support that could potentially lead to a fuel leak and fire.
2 A Hollywood Icon
The Murcielago's outrageous design and power made it a perfect car for Hollywood producers. The Murcielago Roadster was featured in the 2005 film Batman Begins while the LP640 was featured in The Dark Knight. If you've watched the film, you probably were stunned when one of the Murcielagos was destroyed. It's definitely one of the most expensive cars destroyed in a film.
It's not just film producers that love the Murcielago. The car was also featured in popular racing games like Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit.
1 A Valuable Collectible
With over 4,000 examples built, the Murcielago wouldn't be described as a rare supercar. However, it's still a valuable collectible that most gearheads would love to have in their garages.
The Murcielago cost around $300,000, which is slightly more than people pay for well-maintained examples today. Low-mileage examples can easily go past the $400,000 mark.