For Sale at Auction: 1968 Lamborghini Miura in Carmel, California

Chassis No. 3832
Engine No. 2619
Body No. 388

When Lamborghini introduced the Miura S in November 1968, the house of the Raging Bull refined what had already redrawn the supercar template. The S designation brought a series of meaningful changes beneath the Bertone-penned coachwork, sharpening both the driving experience and the cabin's appointments.

Foremost among the changes was a reworked transverse V12. Compression rose from 9.5:1 to 10.5:1, paired with more efficient inlet porting, revised manifolding, and higher-lift camshafts. Output climbed to a quoted 370 brake horsepower, with maximum torque growing from 272 to 286 lb-ft. Engineers worked in concert with Weber to broaden the torque curve, as test driver Cesare Lodi explained, "to have an engine that would cross Modena, Bologna, or Milan without experiencing problems." Lastly, the Armstrong dampers used on the P400 gave way to internally adjustable Konis.

Inside, leather trim became available for the first time, while the storage tray on the center console gained a lockable lid. A new center grab handle, slimmer slot-in headrests, and a full-length roof console housing rocker switches all marked the S apart, with electric windows now standard equipment. A persistent complaint about cabin heat was addressed with a V-shaped reinforcement at the front of the chassis tub, joined by a fiberglass deflector channeling hot air away from the wheelarches.

With only 338 examples built, chassis number 3832 is an early production P400 S, just the 13th example of its kind built. Carrying Bertone body number 388 and engine number 2619, it left the factory on 2 December 1968 as the factory records indicate.

The Miura was sold new by Perugia, Italy-based dealer Eugenio Ferranti to Maria Germagnoli, a partner in the dealership Autosalone Piacenza, for the sum of 6,920,368 Italian lire. Still unregistered, the car was then sold to its first private owner, Giulio Vignale of Turin, nephew of the coachbuilder Alfredo Vignale. Remarkably, Vignale kept the car in his collection for nearly four decades, unseen and seldom driven, retaining it until his passing in 2010. Throughout that period the Miura was never registered and was safeguarded from modifications, accidents, and wear that have compromised so many of its contemporaries.

In 2014, the car was acquired by a German dealer, at which point it was reportedly in a tired state but remained entirely original and unmodified. In the same year it was sold via Miura authority Simon Kidston to a European collector with the odometer then showing under 6,400 kilometers. On behalf of the new owner, Kidston oversaw a comprehensive two-year restoration carried out in Italy, the work beginning from an exceptionally original foundation that retained the car's matching-numbers engine and original body panels.

The bodywork and paint were entrusted to the marque specialists Carrozzeria Cremonini, while the mechanical restoration was performed by the award-winning Top Motors, encompassing overhauls of the engine and transaxle alongside the brake and suspension systems. A complete new electrical system was constructed to original specification by the period-electrics specialists Gatti William of Bomporto. The interior was partially re-trimmed by Lamborghini specialists Alessandro Bussolari and Andrea Barbieri, who preserved original elements wherever possible. The technicians involved noted the car's undisturbed state with some astonishment, finding intact a number of components that have long since vanished from most surviving examples, including the original fuse cover, the brake fluid reservoir cap, and the emergency winders for the headlamps and electric windows; each was retained.

Following the restoration's completion, the Miura was sold via Kidston to a new owner in London, the odometer reading 6,380 kilometers. The car was registered for the first time in its history in 2017 and has been used with care since, accumulating roughly 1,400 further kilometers. It is accompanied by an unusually complete file of original documentation, including its Certificato di Origine, warranty certificate, Certificato di Approvazione, and the declarations of sale recording the purchases by both Maria Germagnoli and Giulio Vignale.

Showing just 7,838 original kilometers (4,870 miles) at the time of cataloging, chassis 3832 remains one of the most original and thoroughly documented early P400 S examples extant, its 39-year tenure in the Vignale collection having preserved a level of authenticity that no restoration alone could replicate. Today, it is finished in the striking factory color of Azzurro Mexico Metallizzato, a light blue metallic, with its original Nero interior and Blue fabric seat inserts. With its stunning presentation, matching-numbers status, ultra-low mileage and equally impressive documentation, chassis 3832 is a superlative example of the Miura S, widely considered the most beautiful variant, combining the iconic "eyelash" headlights with elegantly proportioned rear fender flares.