Guide: The Revolution is Now - a Historical & Technical Appraisal of the Lamborghini Espada Series 1
Background
At the Geneva Motor Show in March 1967, a space-age four seat Lamborghini supercar stole the show. The Bertone-designed Marzal seemed so far removed from convention that production seemed an impossibility.
However, the same had been said about the Miura one year earlier.
By the time of the Marzal’s 1967 unveiling, Miura production was about to begin in earnest.
Reaction to the Marzal convinced Ferruccio Lamborghini that he should build an equally outlandish four seat Gran Turismo. As architects of both the Miura and Marzal, Bertone were given the commission; the result was the fabled Lamborghini Espada.
Visually, the Marzal was not the only Bertone show car that heavily influenced the Espada’s final form. Six months after the Marzal had wowed the crowds at Geneva, Bertone unveiled the privately commissioned Jaguar E-type-based Pirana at the London Motor Show (October 1967).
The Espada then followed at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1968. Its arrival established Automobili Lamborghini as a genuine rival to Ferrari and Maserati.
A more restrained front-engined 2+2 (the Islero) was launched alongside the Espada, which meant Lamborghini now offered a choice of three models.
Like the Miura and Islero (as well as Automobili Lamborghini’s raging bull insignia), the Espada’s name was inspired by Ferruccio Lamborghini’s love of bull fighting; ‘Espada’ was a Spanish Matador’s sword.
Constructed in three series, the Espada became Lamborghini’s most commercially successful model. 1217 were completed by the time production ended in 1978.
During its ten year lifespan, the Espada was at various times a rival to the Ferrari 365 GT, 365 GT4 and 400, the Aston Martin DBS and V8 and the Maserati Indy and Kyalami.
Chassis
Unlike the earlier 350 GT and 400 GT Lamborghinis which utilised a tubular chassis with Touring’s Superleggera body construction technique of skinned small diameter skeletal steel tubes, the Espada featured a pressed steel monocoque bodyshell.
At 2650mm, the wheelbase was 100mm longer than any model Lamborghini had offered thus far.
Track dimensions were also expanded and the engine was positioned well forward in the chassis.
The result was a car with enough space for four adults to travel in genuine comfort at 150mph.
The suspension was to the latest specification of the day: double wishbones with coil springs, telescopic Koni dampers and anti-roll bars at either end.
Servo-assisted Girling disc brakes were fitted all round. They had a 300mm diameter at the front and 280mm diameter at the rear.
Centre-lock 7 x 15-inch Campagnolo magnesium alloy wheels were originally shod with Pirelli Cinturato tyres.
Twin fuel tanks with a combined 95-litre capacity were mounted either side of the rear luggage area.
Engine / Gearbox
During the late 1960s, Lamborghini’s all-alloy dual overhead camshaft 60° V12 was arguably the ultimate high performance road car engine.
Originally designed by Giotto Bizzarrini, the initial 3.5-litre capacity had by this time been taken out to four-litres as a result of a 5mm bore increase.
Overall displacement was 3929cc thanks to a bore and stroke of 82mm and 62mm respectively.
The Espada engine was almost identical to the improved unit found in the Miura. The main differences were its compression ratio (reduced from 9.8:1 to 9.5:1) and six sidedraught instead of downdraught carburettors (40 DCOE instead of 40 IDL).
Sidedraught carburettors were fitted to allow the lowest possible engine profile (not an issue for the mid-engine Miura).
The Espada also had much larger air-conditioning units and power-operated brakes, all of which meant peak output was downrated slightly.
The Espada produced 325bhp at 6500rpm compared to 350bhp at 7000rpm for Miura. However, the torque rating was improved slightly with 276lb-ft on tap at 4500rpm against the Miura’s 262lb-ft at 5000rpm.
Ignition was via a single spark plug per cylinder, a single distributor and two Magnetti Marelli coils.
A five-speed Lamborghini gearbox was mounted in unit with the engine. Transmission was through a Borg & Beck single dry-plate clutch and in-house differential.
Bodywork
Styled by Marcello Gandini, the Espada ranked alongside the seminal Miura as a true icon of its era.
Twin headlights per side were mounted within the main nose aperture along with a full width chrome bumper.
Two NACA ducts located on the large single-piece hood fed air to the cabin ventilation system.
Vents carved fore and aft of the front wheelarches allowed hot air to escape from the engine bay.
For reasons of practicality, any notion of the Marzal’s enormous Gullwing doors making it into production were dropped at a very early stage.
Espada body panels were steel apart from the bonnet which was aluminium.
One of the Espada’s most distinctive features was its upswept rear side windows and gently sloping roofline. To allow such a profile, the Kamm tail fascia was much taller than usual. To partially fill the space, Gandini chose to install a slim slatted window that looked great and slightly improved rear vision.
A U-shaped full width back bumper was contoured to match the tail profile.
Access to the boot was by way of a glass rear window that opened hatchback-style.
Only Series 1 Espadas had opening quarterlights.
Interior
Aside from an instrument binnacle that showcased Bertone’s love of polygons, the Espada cockpit was remarkably sensible. It also offered more space than any other high performance four seater available at the time.
Behind the three-spoke wood-rimmed steering wheel, a large 300kmh speedo and 10,000rpm tach were split by a small ammeter and oil pressure gauge. In a separate pod on top were more small gauges for water temperature, fuel and oil temperature.
The central control panel was home to the rest of the switchgear to include the air-conditioning controls and clock.
Electric windows were standard.
When specified, radios were inconveniently mounted in the dash ahead of the passenger.
All four seats were well-bolstered but comfortably padded.
Apart from the floor, leather was used to cover practically every interior surface.
Options
As the Espada had such a high standard specification, optional upgrades were limited to fabric upholstery, a radio, air-conditioning and a glass roof.
Weight / Performance
Lamborghini quoted a weight of 1625kg, a top speed of 155mph and 0-62mph time of 6.4 seconds.
Production
The gold Espada displayed at Geneva in March 1968 was the second prototype. Production started in June and by the end of the year 37 cars had been completed.
Early on, the floorpan was lowered underneath the seats by 20mm to improve headroom. The seat headrests were also changed to a new style to provide better support.
Production continued until December 1969.
In total, 186 Series 1 Espadas were built, four of which were right-hand drive.
Developments were few. Most notably, an extra 2cm of rear headroom was found during production thanks to a minor floorpan alteration.
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Lamborghini - https://www.lamborghini.com
