Lamborghini Surprises Its 50th Anniversary Faithful With a New Concept BOLOGNA, Italy - Lamborghini surprised participants in its 50th anniversary Grande Giro celebration Saturday with a bizarre concept car. Called Egoista, the Italian word for "selfish," it is, fittingly, a single-seater. Its designer, Walter de'Silva, said in introducing the car that it was meant to befun and "hyper-sophisticated, to the most extreme and special extent possible." It is, he added, intended to allow the owner to "express his own personality to the nth degree." The concept, which induced gasps and wild applause from the audience of Lamborghini owners and their friends, appeared ready for either takeoff, or at least transformation into an instrument for world domination, like the characters in the "Transformers" movie franchise. The Egoista was an emphatic slap-down to some recent critics of the brand who had complained that its styling had lost its legendary Countach-caliber edginess. The boos had become louder since the introduction last year of the Urus sport utility concept, which is meant to appeal to wider audience, at the expense of Lamborghini's five-decade quest for iconoclastic exclusivity. "This represents the extremes of hedonism," Mr. de'Silva said. It is a car without compromise. In a word: Selfish. It appeared from the car's enthusiastic reception that Lamborghini would have no trouble selling the Egoista, at whatever price might be attached to it. Lamborghini, it must be remembered, pre-sold all three of its recently announced Veneno supercars, despite a $4 million pricetag. But Mr. de'Silva said there was no plan to produce the Egoista, despite that its Gallardo-sourced underpinnings and V-10 engine were readily available. The concept's unveiling here was a satisfying coda for a week of celebration of the eccentric brand's 50 years in business. Nearly 350 Lamborghinis participated; it was the largest gathering of Lamborghinis ever, the company announced. Cars from 27 countries were shipped in. But a French couple drove a burgundy 1964 350 GT - the ninth car made by Lamborghini - to the event and said they had fixed a transmission failure themselves en route. They planned to drive it home after the tour. The collection of Lambos also included rare examples of the Jarama, LM002, Islero, Espada and even a one-off Iota. A 1969 Miura S once owned by Frank Sinatra won the concorso prize. The Grande Giro, or Grand Tour in English, started Thursday in Milan, and proceeded down to the Ligurian coast, then to Rome, and back north to Bologna, near the Lamborghini headquarters in Sant'Agata Bolognese. Another highlight of the festivities was the arrival Saturday morning of Valentino Balboni, Lamborghini's longtime test driver, in a 350 GT convertible - one of two made. Mr. Balboni had just completed restoring it in a marathon round-the-clock thrash. "I have worked on it for six months, and I have just finished in the hours after midnight," Mr. Balboni said. I drove it here from the factory; I did not want it brought on a truck. It started to rain as I drove into town, and I had to stop in a gas station until the rains stopped, because I did not have time to restore the convertible top. Mr. Balboni, who in 45 years with the company is reputed to have test-driven 80 percent of the cars the company has made, looked around and said of the gathering, "This is very touching." He held his hand to his heart. I know every one of these cars like my children.