Never a company focused on racing, Lamborghini’s V-12-powered supercars needed to do just two things: be very fast and look more extreme than anything else on the road. In 1998, Lamborghini was sold to Audi, solving the company’s near-constant financial issues, and allowing them to develop a successor to the aging Diablo. This new model was named the Murciélago and was first shown to the public at the 2001 Frankfurt Motor Show. As with many of Lamborghini’s cars, the name came from a famous fighting bull and also translates to “bat” in Spanish.

Designer Luc Donckerwolke penned the new car, which retained Lamborghini’s signature wedge styling, but was updated for the 21st century with more curves than angles. Of course, Lamborghini’s signature scissor doors were implemented, and the new multi-piece Speedline wheels paid homage to the famous five-hole design that has been around since the Countach LP400S.

Powering the Murciélago is a variant of the Giotto Bizzarrini-designed Lamborghini V-12 that served the company for nearly 50 years. In the first generation Murciélago, it displaced 6.2 liters and produced 572 hp, which was enough to help the car achieve over 205 mph. Initially, a gated six-speed manual was the only transmission option, with a paddle-shifted E-gear setup debuting at the 2003 Frankfurt Motor Show.

This 2003 Lamborghini Murciélago was built in February 2003 and delivered new to Platinum Motors LLC of Santa Ana, California, in May of the same year. Finished in Nero Aldebaran (Black) over Nero Perseus (Black) leather, this Murciélago showed 23,188 miles at the time of cataloguing.

As an early build car, this Murciélago has the ultra-desirable six-speed manual gearbox with its famed gated shifter. With more than 1,900 first-generation Murciélagos built, just over half of them were optioned with this gearbox. The interior is wrapped in Nero Perseus leather, which is accented on the seats and dashboard with deviated white stitching. An upgraded Kenwood stereo head unit with a foldout LCD screen has been fitted, which plays through Focal speakers and features upgraded amps in the front trunk.

Finished in an appealing color combination and fitted with the desirable six-speed manual gearbox, this Murciélago is offered with its original window sticker, factory books, manuals, service records, tool kit, and Lamborghini car cover. The Murciélago represents the end of the line for V-12-powered, manual-transmission Lamborghinis, and is a design that looks more elegant with every passing year.