It’s been more than 30 years in the waiting but today Lamborghini has finally pulled the covers off a new high-performance SUV.
The Lamborghini Urus follows in the footsteps of the 1986 LM002, and the Italian exotic car maker has dropped a colossally powerful engine into a 4x4 to create an offroad family vehicle that will be able to blitz just about everything that comes into its path. Revealed in Italy today, the Urus uses a 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 engine packing 641bhp.
If you want to fit a child car seat – and why not, considering this is an SUV – Lamborghini has kitted the car out with Isofix mounting points in the back. Meanwhile, it says the boot has a capacity of 616 litres, which is more than a Skoda Octavia and should be easily able to swallow a pushchair and the shopping.
While some car fans may consider an Lamborghini SUV to be sacrilege, the Italian car maker is the latest in a line of premium manufacturers catering for what their deep-pocketed customers want.
Porsche's SUV range now consists of two models - the Cayenne and Macan - as does Jaguar's - the F-Pace and E-Pace - while Bentley has also released its Bentayga.
Even Rolls-Royce has a 4x4 in development called the Cullinan and Aston Martin promises the DBX in 2020.
Lamborghini said the Urus will take the market even further, though, and ‘create a new niche in the luxury segment’ offering ‘benchmarking power, performance and driving dynamics, unparalleled design, luxury and daily usability’.
In a sign of the times, the Urus offers a 4x4 with the kind of power and performance once only found at the top of the supercar tree.
It’s certainly not short of potency, with the new V8 engine packing more brake horsepower than the V12 powering the McLaren F1 – which is still the fastest naturally-aspirated production car of all time.
The addition of two turbos to the Urus’ V8 engine – which is taken from the Bentley Continental GT and Audi RS6 –and four wheel drive means it will launch from a standstill to 62mph in no less than 3.6 seconds – that’s quicker than a Ferrari F40 and F50 and fast enough to embarrass Aston Martin’s V12 DB11 in a sprint.
And a 190mph top speed means this five-seat 'Super SUV' will be one of the quickest school-run cars the planet has ever seen.
Does that make it the fastest SUV on sale? The 707bhp Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk also takes 3.6 seconds to move the speedo to 60mph, but it has a top speed of just 180mph, meaning the crown has to go to to the Lamborghini.
‘It is a true Lamborghini in terms of design, performance, driving dynamics and emotion as well as drivable every day in a range of environments,’ ceo Stefano Domenicalli told the world’s press during the official unveiling at the brand’s headquarters in Sant'Agata.
‘It is the culmination of intensive development and passionate skill to create a new breed of bull: a Super SUV that transcends the boundaries of expectations and opens the door to new possibilities, for both our brand and our customers,’ he added.
There’s no denying that the latest addition to Lamborghini’s fleet retains all the flair and drama of models that have come before it.
The Urus – a name that derives from the name of a Spanish fighting bull – blends a low-line coupe silhouette and characteristically sumptuous lines but in a less familiar jacked-up package.
Lamborghini says the design takes cues from the 1986 LM002 and mashes it together with a super sports car with enough space for a driver and four passengers.
Short overhangs give it a muscular and assertive presence, while the tapered front end encompasses styling influences from iconic models like the Miura, Countach and Aventador.
As with any Lamborghini to get the nod of approval, it is awash with massive air intakes, including the Y-shaped front vent that mimics the one on the LM002 and also details an Italian flag to remind you of where it was created.
Even the hexagonal wheel arches are inspired by the SUV that came 31 years before it, while the wheels – available in sizes 21- and 23-inches – are the largest you’ll find on any SUV on sale.
The mass of vents and svelte body suggest it will tear a hole in the air with no problem, but Lamborghini’s official specifications reveal that this is no featherweight.
Tipping the scales at 2,200kg, it’s a match for the Range Rover Sport, though the Italian firm has refrained from revealing what impact this has on the emissions output and fuel economy of this ultra-powerful offroader.
Fortunately, the V8 motor has a clever trick - it can cut four of the cylinders when travelling at low speed, transforming it from a fire-breathing supercar-eater into a Ford Fiesta when cruising around town. Reports suggest it will still only return an average of 22mpg and emit 290g/km CO2 even with this stealth urban-driving mode.
Away from town, it will undoubtedly be capable of going offfroad – though we can't see many venturing too far from the tarmac.
Pre-release video footage has shown the vehicle thrashing through the desert, showcasing its usability on all terrains as well as its rear-wheel steering system.
It’s the same set-up as the recently released Aventador S that can adjust the rear-axle angle by three degrees.
It should be able to stop as well as it accelerates with carbon ceramic brakes coming as standard - enormous 440mm discs at the front and 370mm discs at the rear, the biggest rotors fitted to any car on sale to date.
Six different driving modes will be available, as revealed in the short piece of driving footage shown last month: Strada (road), Sport, Corsa (track), Sabbia (sand), Terra (dirt) and Neve (snow), with the latter three raising the ride height to ensure that any obstacles underneath are cleared safely.
Inside, the flamboyancy of Lamborghini continues, with sports seats for those up front, a Y-shaped dashboard that’s been inspired by the LM002 and a three-spoke steering wheel with a vibration damper to stop it juddering in your hands if you accidentally drive through a pothole.
As well as a touchscreen system for the satellite navigation and audio settings, the driver also gets a fully-digital TFT display that offers a three-dimensional view of the information that can be tailored to preference.
Lamborghini says it has enough leg room to offer comfort to three rear-seat passengers who also get electrically adjustable seats that are heated, just like those up front.
If you want to fit a child car seat – and why not, considering this is an SUV – Lamborghini has kitted the car with Isofix mounting points in the back and says the boot has a capacity of 616 litres, which is more than a Skoda Octavia and should be good enough to squeeze in a flat-packed pushchair.
- Daily Mail
