Lamborghini and Zagato, two icons of Italian motoring, come together to create a striking one-off: the 5-95 Zagato Concept.

Coachbuilding, the art of taking a luxury production car straight from the factory and crafting a new unique and exclusive body for it, might be a dying trade in today’s landscape of unibody construction, but happily there are still some who appreciate the place this centuries-old craft has in today’s automotive world.

One of the most famous, Carrozzeria Zagato, celebrates its 95th birthday this year, and it is this special occasion for which the Lamborghini 5-95 Zagato was commissioned. Its commissioner is one Albert Spiess, a Swiss who already counts other well-known Zagato works such as the Alfa Romeo SZ and RZ, 1985 Aston V8 Vantage Zagato, and 2012 V12 Vantage Zagato within his stable. So what’s another one to add to the collection, eh?

Mechanically, the 5-95 is pure Gallardo LP570-4. So that means a 570 hp 5.2L V10, permanent four-wheel drive, 0-100 km/h in 3.4 seconds and top speed in excess of 320 km/h.

The exterior though, has been re-interpreted according to “Zagato’s philosophy of functionalism and rationalism”. According to them, this gives it the key values of an “instant classic”. The signature Zagato cues are there: a double-bubble roof integrated with a functional roof scoop, and continuous glass surfaces that give the car a pillar-less look. Up front, a floating spoiler takes inspiration from another Lamborghini concept, the Raptor Zagato, and comes to “a firewall in carbonfibre” that conceals the air intakes, while the rear end features a chopped, truncated tail that “reveals the brutality of mechanical components” situated there.

Say what you will about the styling, but certainly no one can doubt that it’s a striking design. More importantly, as long as the customer is happy, does it really matter that much? As Mr Spiess says, “I always appreciated the ability of Zagato to create timeless lines with a forceful visual impact. The 5-95 will be a fundamental piece of my collection."