Lamborghini initiated Project 132 in June 1985 under the ownership of the Mimran brothers, with a brief demanding a minimum top speed of 315 km/h. Marcello Gandini, who had designed the Countach and Miura before it, was contracted for the styling. When Chrysler Corporation acquired Lamborghini in 1987, its design team in Detroit undertook a third extensive redesign of Gandini's proposal, smoothing its sharp edges into a more aerodynamic form. Gandini would later realise his original concept independently in the Cizeta-Moroder V16T. The total development cost was estimated at 6 billion lire.
The Diablo was presented publicly on 21 January 1990. Its 5.7-litre dual-overhead-cam V12 produced 492 PS (485 hp) and 580 Nm of torque, driving the rear wheels through a five-speed manual gearbox to a top speed of 325 km/h (202 mph). It came better equipped than the Countach, with adjustable seats and steering wheel, electric windows, and an Alpine stereo system as standard.
The Diablo VT (Viscous Traction), introduced in 1993, became Lamborghini's first all-wheel-drive production sports car. A viscous centre differential — derived from the LM002 system — could send up to 25 percent of torque to the front wheels during rear-axle slip. The same year saw the SE30, a 150-unit limited edition celebrating the company's thirtieth anniversary, with output raised to 525 PS, a stripped interior, carbon fibre racing seats and four-point harnesses. Around 15 SE30s were further upgraded to Jota specification, developing 595 PS.
The Diablo SV (Super Veloce), introduced at the 1995 Geneva Motor Show, revived the Super Veloce designation from the Miura SV. Priced as the entry-level Diablo despite producing 510 PS, the SV deleted all-wheel drive in favour of a lighter rear-drive layout and featured an adjustable rear spoiler as standard.
The Diablo VT Roadster debuted in December 1995 with a manually removable carbon fibre targa top stored above the engine lid.
The Diablo GT, introduced in 1998 in a limited run of 80 examples, used an enlarged 6.0-litre V12 producing 575 PS. Its bodywork was predominantly carbon fibre, with an aggressive front air dam, a large central ram-air duct, and a carbon fibre diffuser replacing the rear bumper. The GT underpinned several subsequent racing and road variants.
The Diablo SV-R, unveiled at the 1996 Geneva Motor Show, was the first Lamborghini officially built for motorsport. It powered Lamborghini's own one-make Supertrophy series, whose inaugural round supported the 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans. The SV-R's 5.7-litre V12 was reworked to 540 PS, and the car weighed 1,385 kg — 191 kg less than the road-going SV. Thirty-one examples were produced. The first series champion was Thomas Bscher.
The Diablo GTR, introduced at the 1999 Bologna Motor Show, succeeded the SV-R for the 2000 Supertrophy season. Based on the GT, it used the 6.0-litre engine tuned to 590 PS with titanium connecting rods, individual throttle bodies, and a lightened crankshaft. Forty cars were built for competition, with 40 additional chassis prepared as race replacements. A Diablo GTR run by Team Lamborghini Australia won the 2003 and 2004 Australian Nations Cup Championships in the hands of Paul Stokell.
Lamborghini also contracted Signes Advanced Technologies to build the Diablo GT1 Stradale, a purpose-built GT1 class racer with a tubular steel chassis and 6.0-litre V12 producing 655 PS. Financial difficulties prevented factory competition, but the racing example was acquired by Japan's JLOC team and raced in the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship from 1997 to 2000.
A mid-cycle facelift in 1999 replaced the pop-up headlamps with fixed composite lenses licensed from the Nissan 300ZX and updated the interior with an integrated wave-shaped dashboard inspired by Bang and Olufsen products. All models received ABS for the first time. The Diablo VT 6.0, developed after Audi's acquisition of Lamborghini in 1998, used the GT's 6.0-litre engine tuned to 550 PS and featured styling revisions by Luc Donckerwolke that foreshadowed the Murciélago's design language. The final limited run was the Diablo VT 6.0 SE, produced in just 42 units in two special colours representing sunrise and sunset.
The Diablo defined the supercar era of the 1990s and became one of the most recognisable Lamborghinis ever built. Its appearance as the cover car for Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit in 1998 made it emblematic of the racing game genre of that decade. The car's eleven-year production span yielded numerous variants across road, roadster, and racing configurations, reflecting the breadth of development undertaken during a turbulent period that saw the company pass through Swiss, American, Indonesian, Malaysian, and ultimately German (Audi/Volkswagen) ownership.