The Newsletter for Lamborghini 350GT, 400GT Interim and 400GT 2+2 Enthusiasts ~ Volume 1, Number 1, October 2005 ~ In this issue: - Letter from the Editor - Chassis/Engine/Body Numbering - 350/400GTs at Concorso 2005 - Factory Update Letter from the Editor Welcome to the first issue of the 350/400GT newsletter, which will be published from time to time and available only via the internet. Although we are a small community of owners and enthusiasts, with probably less than 300 cars remaining of the original 367 built, I believe it's past time we band together with a united voice. Hopefully this newsletter will help to serve that purpose. In this newsletter you will find bits and pieces of information which I hope you find either interesting or invaluable. Primarily this newsletter will serve to organize these bits and pieces in a convenient format, but also it's time that 350/400 GTs are honored for what they truly are: some of the finest and most sophisticated supercars ever built. Possibly even the best in the world when they were first introduced. This is the first step. I encourage anybody who wishes to contribute an article about their car or one of a technical or historical nature to do so. As the information is received it will form the basis of the next newsletter, which can either be read online or printed out. I want to personally thank Jack Riddell, Robert Ross and Marcel DeLange for supporting the 350/400GTs through the years with their unending enthusiasm for the cars. Many more owners and enthusiasts are out there and will join the cause, but for now it's time to get this project off the ground. Enjoy! Fred Paroutaud 1967 400GT 2+2 #655 Lamborghini Numerology Trying to keep track of 350/400 chassis, engine and body numbers has always been problematic. Many owners, shops and dealers have either misread, mistranscribed or otherwise mangled these numbers, resulting in a seemingly endless sea of mistakes throughout the Lamborghini community. Simply put, the chassis and engine numbers are on a plate riveted to the firewall. Make sure not to confuse chassis and engine numbers when transcribing, which is probably the most common mistake people make -- especially throughout the DMV system. The Chassis number is the lowest one on the plate, and the engine number is in the middle. The body number is located on a smaller tag riveted to the aluminum engine compartment surround, directly above the firewall plate. Here too, mistakes are common, even by the factory. Here is Fred Z's 350 body number, in which Touring added an extra "0." (The number should read 18017.) If the firewall plate is missing or damaged beyond recognition, there's still hope. The engine number is also located midway down the top surface of the block, between the cylinder heads and underneath the coolant pipe, and the chassis number is stamped into a plate riveted to the frame below the passenger side distributor. Here is my engine number, 0638, which is barely visible midway down the top of the engine block on the passenger side, in-between the head and the water pipe. You'll probably need a flashlight to see it. And here is my chassis number. Note that Lamborghini 350/400 chassis numbers are typically in 3's (203, 206, 209, etc.), starting with chassis 100, and that the letter X is often used to represent a space. So mine reads: "LAMBORGHINI 4002+2GTX0655X" which translates into 400GT 2+2 0655. 655-100 = 555/3 = 185. So my 400GT 2+2 was roughly the 185th car off the factory production line. Please crawl into your engine compartment and send in any numbers you can find for the chassis/engine number database spreadsheet we are compiling. Thanks! Fred Paroutaud 350/400GTs at Concorso 2005 We had a good turnout of 350/400GTs at Concorso this year. Jack Riddell was there with his freshly painted 1967 400GT 2+2 #1033, and did the annual magic trick of pulling a picnic table, umbrella, food and several bottles of wine out of the trunk for everybody to enjoy. Here Dan and Nettie Silva enjoy their picnic while Chris Holl no doubt discusses Miuras. My silver 400 is behind the umbrella and Jorge's 400GT 2+2 #928, just beyond that, completed the 400GT corral. Sadly, somebody had backed into the passenger-side of Jorge's car at the gas station so he was always careful to show the car from the driver's side. Steve Lindsay was there with his beautiful blue 350GT #274, famous for appearing on the cover of the March 1966 issue of Sports Car Graphic, which introduced me to these magnificent machines -- I still have the copy. More photographs of Concorso 2005 are available at: http://www.400gt.com/photos/concorso_2005/concorso_2005.htm http://www.lambojack.com/Monterey%202005.htm Factory Update 400GT 2+2 #1324 is (apparently) finally finished, and was recently seen driving around the factory grounds -- this lovely photograph is by Marcel DeLange. This car has been at the factory since 2001, and I took photos of it in 2004 under restoration (that's Dr. Ing. Giorgio Gamberini peering in). More photos are available at: http://www.400gt.com/photos/1324/factory_restored_400gt_2.htm If you have an article or comments to contribute, please email them to FredParoutaud@earthlink.net Fred Paroutaud and all contributors bear no responsibility for any information in this newsletter -- accurate or otherwise. ~o0o~