Ferruccio Lamborghini

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Ferruccio Lamborghini was born on 28 April 1916 to viticulturists Antonio and Evelina Lamborghini in house number 22 in Renazzo di Cento. He was baptised as a Roman Catholic four days later, on 2 May. As a young man, he studied at the Fratelli Taddia technical institute near Bologna. In 1940 he was drafted into the Italian Royal Air Force, where he served as a mechanic at the Italian garrison on the island of Rhodes, becoming the supervisor of the vehicle maintenance unit. After the war, he opened a garage in Pieve di Cento. He modified an old Fiat Topolino into a roaring 750-cc open-top two-seater and entered the 1948 Mille Miglia, but crashed into the side of a restaurant in Fano after 1,100 kilometres. In 1947, using parts from military vehicle engines and differentials from ARAR centres, he built the first of his 'Carioca' tractors, based on six-cylinder petrol engines of Morris trucks. He augmented the Morris engines with a fuel atomiser of his own creation, allowing the tractors to start on petrol then switch to cheaper diesel. Based on the Carioca's success, he founded Lamborghini Trattori in 1948. In 1959 he opened an oil burner factory, Lamborghini Bruciatori, which later entered air conditioning equipment. He founded Automobili Lamborghini in 1963 and a fourth company, Lamborghini Oleodinamica, in 1969. A Riva Aquarama Lamborghini (Hull #278) was registered and delivered on 7 June 1968 to Lamborghini, the first and only one fitted with two Lamborghini engines, with a special side railing for water-skiing and record attempts. He owned the boat for over 20 years until July 1988, when he sold it to Angelo Merli. By the late 1970s he sold off many interests and retired to an estate in Umbria, where he pursued winemaking.

Reader's Guide

Ferruccio Lamborghini's significance lies in founding two major companies: Lamborghini Trattori, which became an important agricultural equipment manufacturer during Italy's post-WWII economic boom, and Automobili Lamborghini, a maker of high-end sports cars. His mechanical know-how and entrepreneurial drive led him from repairing military vehicles to creating tractors and later luxury automobiles. His dissatisfaction with Ferrari's road cars—he thought they were too noisy and rough, with poorly built interiors and inferior clutches—motivated him to build his own grand tourer. After successfully modifying one of his personally owned Ferrari 250 GTs to outperform stock models, he gained the impetus to pursue an automobile manufacturing venture. He believed a grand tourer should have high performance without compromising tractability, ride quality, and interior appointments. Financial difficulties in the 1970s, including cancelled tractor orders from South Africa and Bolivia, forced him to sell his holdings. In 1972 he sold his entire holding in Trattori to rival SAME. He sold 51% of Automobili to Georges-Henri Rossetti for US$600,000, and by 1974 sold his remaining 49% to René Leimer. He then retired to a 3 km² estate named 'La Fiorita' on Lake Trasimeno in Castiglione del Lago, Umbria, returning to his farming roots.

Did You Know?

• Ferruccio Lamborghini was baptised as a Roman Catholic four days after his birth, on 2 May 1916.
• He served as a mechanic and supervisor of the vehicle maintenance unit on the island of Rhodes during World War II.
• His first tractor, the 'Carioca', used six-cylinder petrol engines from Morris trucks and a fuel atomiser of his own creation to switch to diesel.
• He owned a Riva Aquarama boat (Hull #278) fitted with two Lamborghini engines, the only one ever made, from 7 June 1968 until July 1988.
• After retiring, he lived on a 3 km² estate named 'La Fiorita' on the shores of Lake Trasimeno in Umbria.