Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 2012 Overview
I've never been to a bullfight, and maybe that's why something about the logic behind Lamborghini's naming policy eludes me.
The Aventador, his new supercar, follows previous Lamborghinis by taking on the name of the famous fighting bull.
The original Aventador entered the fray in October 1993 at the Zaragoza arena, earning the Trofeo de la Pena La Madronera for its outstanding daring. Apparently.
Courageous, no doubt, but certainly doomed. No amount of horned bravado will save him from a guy dressed as Lady Gaga with a long, shiny blade. I'm pretty sure the bulls are on the wrong side of the longest losing streak in history.
The bull-herding people noticed these differences and protested. According to a poll last year, 60 percent of Spaniards were against it, and as a result, Barcelona fought their last fight some time ago after Catalonia imposed the ban.
Thus the Aventador is named after a dead bull from a spectacle that is more and more out of step with the times. You can't help but wonder if Lamborghini has the right branding strategy. Supercars already feel like an endangered species. Will we witness their heroic last stand?
Fortunately, no. The Aventador doesn't seem like the last in the lineup; by no means. This is a supercar from the future that has just arrived in Star Trek style. It was designed by Darth Vader and features the latest warp drive. It boldly goes where no supercar has gone before.
VALUE
The Aventador has a price tag as sky-high as its capabilities - and a growing number of competitors even at that level - but Lamborghini is determined to sell. It already has 1500 orders and shows no sign of abandonment despite an economic storm on the horizon. There is already a waiting list for 18 months.
Design
With its arrowhead style, the Aventador is a stealth fighter without stealth; it could probably avoid radar detection, but you will never miss it on the road. The Aventador is the first production car to use this design language after it was used for two special editions: the Reventon, the Murcielago version, and the Sesto Elemento, the all-carbon version of the Gallardo.
Upward-opening doors have been a hallmark of Lamborghini flagships since the Countach, and they're making a comeback here. They turn up and you float in limbo. Ahead are the virtual dials from the deck of the Enterprise, the start button under a hinged red lid, and many more angular surfaces. Anyone familiar with high-end Audis knows that the buttons aren't custom-made, but there's nothing fake about them.
TECHNOLOGY
Like almost everything else in the Aventador, the transmission is new, and Lamborghini has developed its own robotic seven-speed system rather than borrowing existing technology from parent Volkswagen. The company has developed a system called the Independent Shifting Rod, which is lighter and more compact than the dual-clutch transmissions ubiquitous in sports cars. It's also very fast, shifting gears up or down in 50 milliseconds in track mode. Even on the strada, the reaction seems instantaneous.
The all-round double wishbone suspension uses the pushrod design favored by race cars. Located inside, Lamborghini says it is lighter and more compact than the Murcielago, while providing better comfort and dynamics. Tires are 19-inch front and 20-inch rear, and huge carbon-ceramic brakes. At the front, they measure 400 mm and are compressed by six pistons.
They can curb the Aventador from 100 km/h in just 30 m, which means they are incredibly efficient. It also feels like short braking zones in some corners and you're playing with fire if you don't brake in a straight line. Like the Murcielago, the Aventador has electronically controlled air intakes that adjust automatically, as well as a rear spoiler that raises as needed and then changes its angle of attack.
DRIVING
I went to the Sepang Raceway in Malaysia to try the car for the first time. There are much more car journalists here than cars, so this is two laps of the track, and, moreover, with a strong collision. The Gallardo, Lamborghini's junior supercar, acts like a race car with a professional driver behind the wheel.
When you see an Aventador next to a Gallardo, you will understand how extreme it is. Only in this context could Gallardo look as tall as a man and as intimidating as the Play School. Aventador is longer than Commodore, but does not exceed 1.1 m in height. If it were no more than 2m wide, you could step over it. There is only time to get familiar with the details related to driving the car through 15 turns and 5.5 km. It's log in and get started.
Acceleration is more linear and less harsh than expected, but completely relentless. The naturally aspirated 6.5-liter unit behind the cab is Lambo's first new V12 in decades. The Murcielago, its predecessor, squeezed more and more out of the previous engine until there was nothing left to give. It starts above that with 515kW at 8250rpm, which is high revving in any language and impressive for a V12.
It also loves revs and is good for a top speed of 350 km/h. On the track, I already understand triple digits well, because it takes only 2.9 seconds to reach 100 km / h. Floor it and you fly to the next corner faster than you expect. Not that I'm looking at the speedometer. No time.
The mid-corner clutch, with its huge tires, all-wheel drive and ubiquitous diffs, feels off the charts, although I only check it when something isn't quite right, like a line in a corner. As the speed increases and decreases, the surfaces and air intakes of the car react.
Corners are quick too, albeit with quite a bit of weight shifting from one side of the car to the other when changing directions quickly. This may be because I made the mistake of following the instructions and leaving the suspension settings on the road when sport or track would be more appropriate. A colleague with a rebellious streak chose sports and said that the weight of the car had evaporated. Not that it was all that hard anyway.
The Aventador is 90kg lighter than the Murcielago and definitely lighter for its size. Lamborghini has made the entire passenger compartment out of carbon fiber - it's one of the few cars to do so, along with the new McLaren - and despite taking up a city block footprint, it weighs just 1575kg when dry. Carbon fiber is stronger and stiffer than equivalent aluminum or steel construction and as a result the Aventador is 1x stiffer than the Murcielago.
Two circles pass in a fog of impressions. There is something otherworldly about the Aventador. It takes the driver to a place where the usual sensations of speed and performance no longer apply. As intimidating as anything you can buy, it takes supercars to the next level, and my senses and reflexes haven't had time to adjust yet. It appears to be less feral than the Murcielago, but has the technology and characteristics to back up its menacing appearance.
If there's a surprise, it's the relative lack of drama in how he handles his business. From the pit lane, watching the cars speeding in a straight line, it was the Gallardo racing car that made the more appealing sound. I expected a little more fury from the Aventador. A little more snorting performance, a little more hoof scratching. However, he loudly declares that there is still a lot of life in the supercar.
VERDICT
A flagship Lamborghini comes out about once every 10 years, so it will take some time before he needs to find a name for the next one. By then, bullfighting may be a thing of the past and Lamborghini will be left with a dilemma. But as long as there are supercars, they can call them whatever they want.
LAMBORGINI AVENTADOR LP700-4
Cost: $754,600 plus travel expenses
Engine: 6.5-liter V12
Outputs: 515 kW at 8250 rpm and 690 Nm at 5500 rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed robotic mechanics, all-wheel drive
12 EVIL LAMBORGHINI CYLINDERS
350GT (1964-66), 3.5L V12. 160 built
Miura (1966-72), 3.9L V12. 764 built
Countach (1974-90), 3.9-liter (later 5.2) V12. 2042 built
Diablo (1991-2001), 5.7L V12. 2884 built
Murcielago (2001-10), 6.2L V12. 4099 built
