The cheapest way to buy a Lamborghini - as long as you don't mind driving a TRACTOR! 1964 1R model made by supercar manufacturer goes on sale for £15,000

Sports car enthusiasts could get their hands on a Lamborghini for just £15,000, if they're happy to drive a tractor. 

One of the rare bright orange and blue Lambo 1R model tractors was up for auction and expected to fetch up a minimum of £15K, with the auction house describing it as 'the most affordable route to Lamborghini ownership'. 

The 1964 model, manufactured by one of the most expensive car brands in the world, was used to tend to land before it was lovingly restored at an Italian garage in 2016, Daily Star Sunday reports. 

After being left unloved for several years Garage 961 gave the tractor a much-needed face lift - removing grime and years of old paintwork and returning it to its original colours, the listing on Car and Classic explained. 

The 1964 1R model of the Lamborghini tractor was restored to look identical to the type seen in Italian fields in the 1960s

The impressive machine was put up for auction with a guide price of £15,000 to £20,000 but was later removed from auction

Garage 961 in Italy took the rusty machine and restored it to its former glory, even making sure to include the original bright orange and blue colours

The eye-catching vehicle, which was transformed from a once rusty and unusable machine, was put up for auction with a guide price of £15,000 to £20,000 but was later removed. 

Included in the price was a restoration book and a Ferruccio Lamborghini Museum certificate signed by its director, Tonio Lamborghini.

The auction listing reads: 'Perhaps you’re a Lamborghini connoisseur, or a collector of old farm machinery. 

'Somewhere, there’s a Venn diagram where those two circles overlap, in which case it’s hard to think of a more perfect vehicle than a Lamborghini tractor.

'But a general increase in interest for models like this one means there are probably plenty of people reading this who wouldn’t mind chuntering around a square of land in a Lamborghini 1R.'

The company first began manufacturing tractors in 1948 and were a familiar site in fields in Italy. 

Sports car enthusiasts may consider a tractor as they new route to buying a Lamborghini, with the striking vehicle priced at £15K

Included in the price was a restoration book and a Ferruccio Lamborghini Museum certificate signed by its director, Tonio Lamborghini

In the early to mid 1960s the 1R model was hugely successful with around 2,000 of the two-cylinder diesel engine vehicles built during the period. 

Lamborghini Trattori still makes the machines, with some models costing up to £107,000. 

Those who purchase one of the tractors join car enthusiast Jeremy Clarkson, who owns a more modern model of the supercar tractor which, according toThe Sunday Times Driving Magazine, he drives around his farm in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire. 

Supercar brand owner Ferruccio Lamborghini's family were all farmers and, while he did not share their passion for the outdoors, he began making tractors after serving in the Second World War. 

The company first began manufacturing tractors in 1948 and were a familiar site in fields in Italy

In the early to mid 1960s the 1R model was hugely successful with around 2,000 of the two-cylinder diesel engine vehicles manufactured during the period

Off the back of his tractor success he bought luxury cars, including a Ferrari which he believed was too noisy on the roads. 

He decided to tell owner Enzo Ferrari, who was creating some of the most high-spec sports cars at the time, about the issues he had identified with his cars.  

The feedback was not well received and a bitter rivalry began, leading to Lamborghini setting up his own luxury car business. His first model was revealed just four months after he drew up the plans.   

From tractor mechanics to luxury sports cars: The history of Lamborghini 

Before the name became associated his one of the world's most expensive sports cars, Lamborghini was best known for manufacturing tractors. 

Ferruccio Lamborghini founded Lamborghini Trattori in 1948, using discarded war materials to make its first tractor. 

Demand for the vehicles grew in the following years, going from one tractor a week to 200 a year - soon using Italian-made engines instead of surplus war materials. 

Business was booming and by 1962 they were producing four-wheel-drive tractors with air-cooled engines. 

After making the tractor business such a success, Ferruccio decided to start his own luxury car company, sparked by a disagreement with Enzo Ferrari about the faulty clutch on his 250GT. 

The first model, the 350TGV, was launched in 1963 and by 1966 the Lamborghini Miura was unveiled - pushing Automobili Lamborghini into the world of super sports cars.

When the world financial crisis hit, Ferruccio's companies began to struggle financially, particularly his tractor business which exported around half of its production. 

Orders from around the world, including South Africa and Bolivia, were being cancelled and Ferruccio was forced to sell Trattori to tractor builder SAME in 1972. 

In the same year he was also forced to sell 51 per cent of the sports car company to Swiss businessman Georges-Henri Rossetti. 

As political unrest in Italy in the late seventies grew and the 1973 oil crisis hit, sales of the cars were also plummeting. 

Again, Ferruccio was forced to sell up, this time relinquishing his remaining 49 per cent share to one of Rossetti's friends. 

He cut all ties with the brands which bore his name and retired to an estate on Lake Trasimeno, Italy, until his death in 1993.