Ferrari / Lamborghini Saudi Arabia during the 1960's and 1970's

Hello, LamboPower members.

 

I thought I'd repost a thread on history of Italianissimo and Lamborghini in the Kingdom as a warm "hello" and introduction:

(Do excuse the Ferrari biased pictures.)

 

These are based on the vague recollections of my father, who worked in the dealership/workshop as manager from 1973 until 1978.

 

Ferrari, as part of the Fiat umbrella, entered the Middle East region the in the late 1960's under the agency of Meta Automotive.

 

META Automotive was a company under the ownership of the late HRH Abdullah bin Saud, the fourth son of the late King Saud, who held the office of Minister of Agriculture and then Governor of the Western Province until the early 1960's. META Automotive was a subsidiary of META (Middle East Trading Agency Holdings) established by the Prince after his retirement from government office.

 

They served as the sole agent in the ME region for the four Fiat brands: Autobianchi, Lancia, Maserati, and Ferrari in addition to Lamborghini. Autobianchi and Lancia comprised the bulk of sales, between 50 to 80 cars per month, while Ferrari, Maserati, and Lamborghini sold a total of one to three cars per month. Sales of luxury cars were primarily to the Saudi and Lebanese markets. The entire non-Saudi Gulf market would account to one or two cars per year.

 

The workshop consisted of six to eight mechanics with European and Lebanese experience.

 

The sales of sports cars during the era was limited by a relatively undeveloped road system. There was only one strip within the city that allowed owners to extract any semblance of speed from their high-performance machines.

 

Operations ceased in 1978, when the Prince closed the automotive subsidiary for personal health reasons.

 

Fast Auto Technic reestablished the Ferrari agency in 1998, and Al Ghassan Motors acquired Lamborghini. I'm unsure as to who held the agencies within that 20 year gap.

 

Unfortunately, sales and vehicle details are non-existent. It would've been nice to retroactively track down the VIN and title numbers of the cars sold within the era. All that remain are a few pictures taken sometime between 1975 and 1978.

 

Feel free to ask any questions that you might have.

 

I hope you enjoy,

 

Ramy.

 

Malas Street, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia during the summer of '76.

 

Father, head mechanic, protruding 308, 512BB, and a De Tomaso Pantera. Riyadh, 1977.

 

Head mechanic and a 308.

 

Head Mechanic and a 512BB.

 

Friends posing with Papa's Daytona. Riyadh, 1975.

 

Papa and his baby, 1975.

Here's a tour of of the META dealership Riyadh circa mid-to-late 1970's:

 

Ferrari/Lambo Saudi Arabia: Client area and Quattroruote magazines

 

Ferrari Saudi Arabia: Alfa & Fiat section

 

Ferrari Saudi Arabia: GM's desk with 365 GTB/4 'Daytona' calendar

 

Ferrari Saudi Arabia: Secretary's desk with 308 & Formula 1 312 T2 sales poster

 

512BB

 

512BB at the workshop

 

Ferrari Saudi Arabia: Nero 365 BB & 365 GTC/4

 

Ferrari Saudi Arabia: diagnostics terminal

 

 

 

On dealer practices:

 

Originally Posted by Jeff Kennedy

Did META also have a dealership in Jeddah? Would think that more of the cars would have been kept there - somewhat more conducive weather.

 

Jeff

 

 

Replied: "Although META did not have a brick & mortar dealership in Jeddah, the port city was, and still is, the main point of entry of imported goods. The cars would be shipped from Italy to the Kingdom via the Suez Canal. They agency relied on advertisements in nationally circulated newspapers for sales. The FIAT adjusted quota was $11,000 in 1975, or an inflation adjusted $46,600 in 2012. Orders and specifications would be relayed via Telex.

 

Upon arrival in Jeddah, META would then clear the car at customs and traffic police. Jeddah customers would then pick up their car outside the traffic department or have the cars delivered to their house. The agency would have the Riyadh and Eastern province cars transported or driven to the respective cities. A few of the sportier-engined owners from Riyadh would pick up the car from Jeddah to enjoy the stretch of highway and 'break-in' on the way back.

 

The cars would be stored at the workshop or in covered parking at HRH's residence in Riyadh. Storage was kept in the Capital due to proximity of operations and bulk of sales. The luxury sales ratio of Riyadh to Jeddah was around 9:1. As for long-term storage, I would think Riyadh's average humidity level of ~30% might be friendlier than Jeddah's ~50%?"

 

 

And do excuse the lack of Lamborghini pictures from the dealership. All that remain are the posted P400 photo and father's story about his Verde "Periscopo".

Great old pics. I think the date is off on the first pick, the car appears to be an s3 US spec Countach which didn't exist in 1976. Maybe 1986?

 

 

First Countach pic is definitely not 1976..

Great old pics. I think the date is off on the first pick, the car appears to be an s3 US spec Countach which didn't exist in 1976. Maybe 1986?

 

First Countach pic is definitely not 1976..

 

 

Unfortunately some of the dates were from the father's memory. I'd peg the dates as later 70's or early 80's?

Love the pics and history! Thank you for sharing.

Fantastic. Love historical pics, especially of such cars which were 'normal' value before the mad prices of today.

 

 

Tks for sharing!

Great subject. Love old pics, very nostalgic.

Love the pics and history! Thank you for sharing.

My pleasure!

 

Fantastic. Love historical pics, especially of such cars which were 'normal' value before the mad prices of today.

 

Tks for sharing!

Papa says they were a pain to drive and maintain within those desert conditions. That, and due to a lack of appreciation for their astronomical future monetary and sentimental value is one of the primary reasons those cars have rarely remained in the Kingdom or in the hands of their original owners.

 

What a pleasure it would've been had he kept a Daytona or Countach in the garage. I always get a laugh by sending him his pictures of his automotive babies with the current six and seven digit auction values attached.

 

Great subject. Love old pics, very nostalgic.

I'm glad you've enjoyed a glimpse into those golden days.

Great read, thanks for posting.

Great post!!

Awesome post. Thank you for taking the time and sharing with the forum!

Great pics! Thanks for sharing.

This is an awesome thread

Great read, thanks for posting.

Great post!!

Awesome post. Thank you for taking the time and sharing with the forum!

Great pics! Thanks for sharing.

This is an awesome thread

 

Pleasure's mine, gents! I'm glad they were enjoyed. Do hope to find more as days pass and coax the father into sharing a few more stories.

Thank you!

Very Cool! Thanks for sharing!

Very cool

Thanks for sharing. Always great to see this kind of history!

Pretty cool to see what it was like to be around the cars in the 1970's! Post more if you have it!

Very nice cars, great pictures. Easily my favorite era of exotics.

 

Love seeing the prominence of the BB in these shots......I happened to spot the very rare 365 GT4/BB amongst all the other period Italian pieces.

 

Very Cool! Thanks for sharing!

Very cool

Thanks for sharing. Always great to see this kind of history!

Pleasure's mine, gents!

 

Pretty cool to see what it was like to be around the cars in the 1970's! Post more if you have it!

A golden era. Will do!

 

Very nice cars, great pictures. Easily my favorite era of exotics.

Love seeing the prominence of the BB in these shots......I happened to spot the very rare 365 GT4/BB amongst all the other period Italian pieces.

 

The seventies were a decade before my time, but also my favorite. The father's expression still warms into a fond smile when he speaks of his experiences with his 'babies'.

Forty years on, he remembers vividly the carburated purr of his 'Daytona' that stylistic "!" the Countach was introduced into the era's design consciousness.

(And causing some of the city's first traffic jams when they'd overheat in the desert climes. "Why doesn't your bird fly" is the approximate translation of one he'd hear when stranded on the highway, doors up.)