Maybe it was the lack of a CD player and the malfunctioning air-conditioning system. Or the stone chips on the front bumper that came with the 88,000 kilometers on the clicker. Unless it was the car's shady past: seized by the Canada Revenue Agency as part of a tax settlement.

In any event, the federal government has auctioned off a 1987 Lamborghini Countach 5000 QV at the relative bargain price of $63,333, or almost $7,000 less than the initial minimum bid.

The sticker price on the car when it was new was about $180,000, and the government tried to sell it last year with a minimum bid of $70,000.

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After no one expressed any interest, the minimum price went down to $58,000, and Ottawa finally found a buyer on its online auction system this week.

The black, two-door coupe with a V12 Bosch K-Jetronic fuel-injection engine will bring joy to its new owner as it zips down the highway at up to 300 km/h. In addition, the government boasted in its sales brochure that it had changed the car's battery and fuel lines, and topped up all the fluids.

"Whoever bought it got a good deal, for sure," said Glen Kohut, president of the Lamborghini Club of Canada.

Still, Mr. Kohut said the new owner will likely have to spend about $20,000 "to bring it up to snuff," at which point the Italian speedster could be worth up to $100,000. The air conditioning needs servicing, the tires have to be replaced, and small dents on the front fender and cracks on the radiator intake ducts need to be fixed. In addition, the new owner might want to replace the cassette player with a more modern sound system.

"They're nice cars if they're in good shape," Mr. Kohut said.

The Lamborghini was likely the first such car to be auctioned off by Crown Assets Distribution (CAD), the agency that sells things like used computers and seized goods for other federal agencies. CAD is currently auctioning off everything from a $2,500 white gold pendant to excess gun holsters from Correctional Services Canada.

While CAD has sold at least one Ferrari in the past, other vehicles on offer are run-of-the-mill pickups, cars and minivans, including a 1994 Chevrolet Astro that will go to anyone willing to offer $175.

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CAD is administered by the Department of Public Works and Government Services Canada. In the matter of the Lamborghini, it was acting on behalf of the Canada Revenue Agency, which could not provide further details on the events that led to the car's seizure, or the identity of the new owner.