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Homebuilt cars are nothing new and a lot of them are interesting vehicles. But it’s rare that a near-exact replica of a supercar is made in somebody’s basement. That’s what Ken Imhoff built, though. The fabricator built a Lamborghini Countach in his basement several years ago and later sold it online. Now, it’s back up for sale by its second owner. Looking effectively identical to a real Countach on the outside, it’s an impressive piece of work that has almost everything besides a V12 engine.
It took Imhoff 17 years to build the car starting in 1990, constructing the frame and hand-beating every panel to perfection. It even has some real Lamborgini parts on the outside to get the car as close as possible to the real thing. When it was done, complete with a Ford 351 Cleveland V8 good for roughly 500 horsepower, he punched a hole in the side of his basement to get it out. He enjoyed his labor of love for many years, but later decided to sell it after claiming he couldn’t take good enough care of it, and that completing the project took a toll on his health and personal life.
According to the YouTube channel Wonder World, Imhoff ended up selling the car for around $90,000 to the current owner, who is asking $229,000 for the vehicle. The replica, painted a dark metallic grey, features exquisite craftsmanship inside and out. Although it’s not the real thing, the car could still be considered quite valuable on account of the incredible circumstances in which it was built. Of course, its Ford V8 doesn’t hum like the real Countach’s V12, but 500 hp is 500 hp.
The seller doesn’t say that any considerable work has been done to the vehicle since it was purchased unless you consider photographs taken with scantily clad women to be regularly scheduled maintenance (he seems to be a fan of that kind of thing.) He has posted a few videos of the car on his YouTube channel, though.
It would be a different story if the builder, Imhoff, was selling this car for $229,000 having sunk so much time and money into the project. That’s not the case, however. The seller appears to deal in replica Lamborghinis, which effectively makes this sale a flip.
In this case, it’s probably best to appreciate the story, respect the builder, and carry on.
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