1996 LAMBORGHINI Diablo Roadster 5.7 V12 5MT (492 HP)

Vehicle Overview

Lamborghini showcased a roadster version for the Diablo in 1992 as a concept car at the Geneva Motor Show, and customers asked the carmaker to make it a series product.

The Italians were surprised by the customers, and, moreover, the German tuner Koenig Specials asked Lamborghini for permission to cut the roof on existing Diablo models. Lamborghini gave the OK, but it worked hard to develop an original version. TThe Italian engineers managed to introduce an all-wheel-drive system on the Diablo in the next year, and Lamborghini was able to offer the roadster with that traction system. This is how the Diablo VT Roadster was born and appeared as a production model in late 1995 as a 1996 model, and Koenig Specials stopped cutting the Diablo’s roof.

With its radical design, the Diablo offered an unmistakable view on the road. Besides being a very quick supercar, it offered a light, removable roof, which could have been stored behind the seats. But the carmaker didn’t want to compromise the car’s handling abilities and left a transverse bar behind the cockpit and included a small roll-down windscreen. Thus, it managed to offer a roadster sensation into an almost targa vehicle.

Inside, the open-top version sported the same interior as the coupe, with the same flat areas on the center console and the center stack. Its raised instrument cluster displayed the same layout with up-mounted dials for the speedometer and tachometer and the engine’s gauges at the bottom.