The Lamborghini Calà is a fun concept car released in 1995 at the Geneva motor show. It was almost the first “small” and “cheap” Lambo as everything beforehand was a big V12. Lamborghini was interested in this project to expand its customer base but it never saw the light because the company lacked cash. Its name literally means “look, over here” in a Northern Italian dialect. Powered by a 3.9-liter V10 engine (395 horses) which sits in the mid-rear area and features rear-wheel drive. Its body has cues from other Lambos like the Miura and Countach but looks very distinctive. Made using carbon fiber and aluminum folded and bonded panels, which was cutting-edge technology back then.
Lamborghini Cala origin
Before the Cala was made Lamborghini wanted to release a new entry-level supercar and developed a prototype called the P140 designed by the famous Italian Marcello Gandini who has created cars like the Miura, Countach, and Lancia Stratos Zero. In the end, the P140 project was scrapped because of the Gulf oil crisis which plummeted the sales of supercars. And due to the high-tech nature of the car, it was very expensive to produce. But the engine and transmission were transferred over to the Cala concept car and in 2002 when finally an entry-level Lamborghini was released called the Gallardo it featured an evolution of the P140 V10 engine.
One of the party tricks this car had was the possibility of taking off the roof to turn it into a targa. The lines of the car are much smoother than the P140s and look much more modern. The interior on the other hand was basic for a concept car but had a beautiful 6-speed manual and all the controls were pointing to the driver. Overall the Cala looks like something a James Bond villain would drive.
Today the concept is housed in a Lamborghini museum in Sant’Agata Bolognese.
Italdesign
The creator of this car was Italdesign Giugiaro S.p.A which is a design and engineering company based in Italy. Founded by Giorgetto Giugiaro and Aldo Mantovani. In 2010 it was sold to Lamborghini by whom the firm is owned by to date.
They have created concepts for clients like Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, Lamborghini, BMW, Ford, and others.
They have designed production cars such as the Alfa Romeo Brera, DMC DeLorean, Maserati MC12, and countless other consumer and performance cars.
