Most cars are designed to be shared: with a passenger, with the family, with friends. The Lamborghini Egoista was designed for the opposite. It has a single seat, and its name in Italian means exactly what you imagine: selfish. It was built in 2013 for Lamborghini’s 50th birthday and was never sold.
Photo: Herranderssvensson / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
A birthday present
In 2013 Lamborghini celebrated half a century with a big event at Sant’Agata Bolognese and a tour of hundreds of cars on Italian roads. At the end of the celebration a car appeared that nobody expected. It was a gift from Walter de Silva, head of design for the Volkswagen Group, which owns Lamborghini, for the brand’s birthday.
De Silva said he wanted to create a car that fully expressed Lamborghini’s character: excess, aggression and pure pleasure for the driver, with no compromise at all.
A fighter jet on wheels
The inspiration came from the world of aviation. The cabin is a canopy that recalls an attack helicopter or fighter jet. To get in, the canopy is removed and the steering wheel comes off, as in a single-seat race car. Inside, the gauges and switches are inspired by a cockpit, and the driver sits in a seat that wraps around the body.
The body is full of sharp angles, made of carbon fibre and aluminium. The windows are tinted orange, like pilots’ visors. The rear lights and fins resemble parts of a stealth aircraft.
Photo: Herranderssvensson / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
What lies inside
The Egoista is mechanically based on the Lamborghini Gallardo. Behind the driver sits a 5.2-litre V10 with about 600 horsepower, driving all four wheels. No official performance figures were published, because the Egoista was not built to break records. It was built to show an idea.
A museum car
The Egoista never went into production and was never sold to a customer. After its unveiling it went to the Lamborghini museum at Sant’Agata, where anyone who visits can see it. It is not a classic car in the chronological sense, but it is already a legend for fans of the brand.
The Egoista reminds us of something that made Lamborghini special from day one, from the 350 GTV and the Miura to the Countach: the daring to build something nobody needs, but everyone wants.
P.Kefalas