For many car enthusiasts, myself included, the passion starts at a young age with one particular car. Whether it’s a big-screen super car or a dusty barn find, one car can captivate you and set you on a lifelong track of busted knuckles and reckless financial decision-making. For our friend Sean Meares, that car was the Lamborghini Countach.

At the susceptible age of 15, Scott saw the 1988 film It Takes Two, where the main character buys a Countach as an irresponsible binge before his wedding date. From that day forward, Scott knew he had to have a Countach replica and started keeping a mental plan for its completion. Scott’s plan encountered a few roadblocks along the way, including difficulties sourcing a replica near his home in Queensland, Australia. After several dead ends, Scott was able to find a replica chassis and fiberglass body from builder Mike Webb, who was willing to complete the build.

Scott’s Countach started off with a fairly extensive to-do list, as it was only a steel chassis and fiberglass bodywork. To fill in all the gaps, Scott started sourcing parts; brake components from Ceika, custom radiators for the Countach’s signature scoops, DOT-approved glass to fit the unique three-panel door windows and many miscellaneous fiberglass details. Scott was between a rock and a hard place where the rubber met the road. He knew finding a set of authentic wheels would be difficult, but also knew the wheel design was essential to the unique look of the Countach. To ensure his replica looked right, Scott contracted Dragway Wheels to make a wheelset in 18-inch and 19-inch diameters to fit the large brakes.

The gem of Scott’s build thus far is its V12 engine and transaxle. A Lamborghini V12 engine would reap havoc on Scott’s build budget, so instead, a BMW M70 V12 was used. In a stock configuration, the M70 makes 300 hp and 330 ft-lbs of torque, and can be readily sourced from many 6 and 7 Series cars from the 1990s. The M70 was rebuilt and the BMW logos on the intake manifolds were replaced with Lamborghini logos. Joined to the V12 is a five-speed Albins AGB10 transaxle with gear ratios similar to the original Countach. Having added some length to the drivetrain with a custom bell housing, the engine was moved forward just under the rear windshield to keep the transaxle contained in the bodywork. 

Most recently, Scott and Mike have been working out other major fabrication jobs on the Countach. Originally planning to use a Lexus front suspension setup, it was found that the A-arms would not fit the Countach dimensions, so a custom set was made. The M70 V12 was also fitted into the car for further test fitting and the final work on the firewall relocation.

Scott and Mike have been working on the Countach since September 2013 and hope to have it finished by early 2017. Now that they’ve seen the V12 in the car and have much of the underside completed, we have no doubt that the Countach will start making massive strides toward completion. Watch our site for updates on Scott’s build in the next Countach Chronicle.