Widebody Lamborghini Murcielago on the cover of super street?
Why not?!
You’re either saying to yourself, "what the f@#k?"
or "f@#k Yeah!" This Murcielago isn't your typical Super Street
feature car but we hope you feel the same way about it as we do. This Lambo is
the shit!
While many of us aren't versed in exotic supercars and will
likely never own or drive one, we can all appreciate a well-executed project
Car enthusiasts are car enthusiasts. Unless you're a mad hatter, there are no
boundaries to what we can like and appreciate whether it's Hondas, hot rods,
Bimmers, Mustangs and even Lambos. This particular Murcielago was one of the
most talked about cars at SEMA. Chances are you've seen hundreds of pictures of
this Murci on Facebook, but we couldn't let it go unnoticed to our readers
before giving it the recognition and quality photography it deserves.
Widebody
Lamborghini Murcielago on the cover of super street? Why not?!
Let's get something out of the way first though; this raging
bull isn't your typical Lambo. You won't find it posted in front of a Gucci
store with candy colored wheels and Louis Vuitton upholstery. The origins of
this build are from Japan. While many can say the exterior is a bit over the top
with riveted fenders and a brushed aluminum style exterior, we feel it's
beautifully done without being overly tacky themed, yet intended to drive and
dominate on the street, which is exactly what the owner Wataru Kato, CEO of
Liberty Walk, intended.
Just a brief history behind Kato-san and his company,
Liberty Walk specializes in all types of custom fabrication and installation.
Established in '93, the tuner has built a name for themselves designing body
kits for Chrysler 3000s, Suzuki, Dodge Chargers and of course, Lamborghinis.
The Lamborghini division is known as LB Performance where full body kits are
offered for the Gallardo, Murcielago and soon Aventador. There are over 50
complete LB Performance cars worldwide but this new wide-body example is
without a doubt the shop's sickest project to date. The story of this Murci
starts in Japan with some familiar faces you might know. We begin with Mark Arcenal,
the father of Fatlace, illest and Hellaflush. He's also the catalyst that
brought Rauh Welt Begriff and all their Porsche glory to North America. Two
years ago, Mark put on his Hellaflush show in Kansai, Japan where he was
introduced to Kato-san. Mark offered up his shop to Liberty Walk in the case they
ever needed a place to build a car. A few months later, Liberty Walk was
knocking at Fatlace's door. Kato-san purchased this '04 Murcielago and had it
delivered to Fatlace headquarters where it would be transformed and set to
debut at SEMA.
SEMA 2011 LB
Performance Murcielago on Forgiato Wheels
At this time, two more players came into the picture. We
learned that Mr. Rocket Bunny himself, Kei Muira of TRA Kyoto was a key part in
the design of the fenders. RWB boss Akira Nakai was also involved. Although
Nakai-san didn't have anything to do with Liberty Walk and their cars, he had
vast experience designing and building over fenders so he came to Fatlace and
ensured a perfect install.
Without a doubt, the fenders are the projects bread and butter.
According to Liberty Walk, the fenders are based on the slammed and wide “Shakotan”
style that became popular in Japan more than 30 years ago. Kato-san hasn't seen
many tuners using over fenders currently except for companies like RWB and TRA
Kyoto, so he decided to reintroduce it with his Lamborghini program.
While the Murci flares look mega wide, they only extend the
body five centimeters per corner. But the amount of metal that had to be
chopped off will make you cringe the front fenders were cut 5” while the rears
were butchered 7'. If you ask us, ach considering Murcis retailed for more ion
US dollars and there were only 4000 rnad The World. Bye-bye resale value!
The LB Performance treatment continued with a more
aggressive front bumper and lip spoiler. The rear featured a lower diffuser,
wing and exhaust tips, plus side skirts were mounted to flow with the fenders
and give the Murci the illusion that it's lower. The stock suspension is height
adjustable and the car is lowered from stock height, according to Mastermind
NA.
The LB Performance
treatment continued with a more aggressive front bumper and lip spoiler
After Nakai-san finished his magic on the body, it was time
for paint. Instead of going with a typical candy or matte paint job, Kato-san wanted
the car to look like it was straight out of Top Gun. So what better look than a
brushed aluminum finish to give it a raw metallic, fighter jet feeling. He flew
in guys from Boomcraft Japan to complete the intricate wrap.
The bigger brakes were imported from a company called CSD Japan,
however Kato-san decided to go American with the wheels. Through Liberty Walk's
close relationship with Mastermind NA in Southern California, who's also the
exclusive US distributor for everything LB Performance, the Murci received a
custom set of iForged Equip V3 wheels. The forged aluminum rims feature a super
concave shape making the 19x8S" fronts and 20x13" rears appear
massive. Toyo Tires supplied the crazy sizing of The rubbers.
While this Murci looks out of this world, we've basically
summed up its modifications. Everything is mostly aesthetic leaving the engine
and drivetrain factory. First gen Murcis come out of the box with a 571hp V12
motor that's capable of 3.7 second zero to sixty and a top speed of 205mph. It's
also one of the best sounding engines in the world so we don't mind that
Kato-san left the motor untouched aside from a custom exhaust tip.
The body kit alone cost $30K add in the price of the car,
wheels, brakes and wrap, this is probably the most expensive ride to grace the
cover of our magazine. We hope you enjoyed our decision to feature Liberty
Walk's creation. While 99.9% of us can't relate to spending this kind of money,
we can relate to the style, passion and balls it took to build this car. We also
have to give props where props are due and accept how the scene has evolved. We
can't be limited to just Hondas, Evos and GT-Rs anymore, but appreciate any
project car that's nicely done on four wheels. If you hate our decision, show
us a'lil mercy! We'll be back with more of your regularly scheduled Super
Street programming next month.
[Tuning menu]
2004 Lamborghini Murcielago
Owner liberty walk
Hometown Aichi, japan
Occupation chopping up Lambos and making it rain
2004 Lamborghini
Murcielago
Engine 6.2 liter 48-valve DOHC V12 with LB
Performance exhausts tips
Drivetrain Six-speed manual, all-wheel drive
Wheels & tires 19x8.5" 2 front, 20x13"
30 rear iForged Equip V3 wheels; 235/35 R19 front, 345/25 R20 rear Toyo Proxes
T1R tires
Brakes CSD Japan six-piston big brakes
Exterior LB-R Limited Works body kit with Version 2
front bumper, Type 2 front diffuser and canards, side skirts, carbon side
diffusers, rear bumper, rear diffuser, over fenders and Version 3 rear wing;
Boomcraft Japan brushed aluminum wrap
Interior LB Performance steering wheel wrap and door
sill plates
Website: libertywalk.co.jp; fatlace.com; iforged.com;
mastermindna.com; toyotires.com
