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2019 Lamborghini Urus First Drive Review: The prodigal son of Rambo Lambo

If you're fascinated by the absolutely bonkers, 1980s-era Lamborghini LM002 like we are, it's hard not to hope the new 2019 Lamborghini Urus is a proper sequel to the late, great, notorious sport 'ute. The new silhouette is far friendlier than the '80s-era jumble of trapezoidal planes and, more crucially, this time around motivation comes from a much more powerful twin-turbo V8, not a massive V12 as it was the wild, Countach-powered LM. So where does the Urus sit in the supercar-on-stilts spectrum? We traveled to Rome and tackled road, track and trail to find out. While the Cheetah that begat the LM002 was intended to serve as a legit military vehicle, the Urus's faceted sheetmetal is wrapped around the Volkswagen Group's MBL EVO platform, a modified version of the steel and aluminum chassis found in the Audi Q8, Bentley Bentayga, and Porsche Cayenne. Though you'll find some Lamborghini styling elements sprinkled throughout including the jagged nose, angular wheel arches, hexagonal cues and Y shapes, there's also a vague VW Group family resemblance that has triggered a vigorous online debate about the overall Lamborghini-ness of the effort. View 58 Photos Climbing into the cabin reveals a painlessly un-supercar-like ingress and egress, and there's a good amount of space all around, from the front seats to the rear leg and headroom. The cabin can be ordered with 2+2 style rear bucket seats, or a five-seat configuration with a folding rear bench. Also un-Lamborghini-like is the rear cargo area, a 21.8 cubic foot space that can swallow two full size golf bags. There are a few familiar elements about the cabin from Sant'Agata, like the hexagonal vents and the missile launcher-style ignition button. But other parts, such as the twin touchscreen displays, betray the Audi/Porsche roots — not necessarily a bad thing, as the haptic screens works simply and intuitively, even if they lack the tactile pleasure of pushing physical buttons. Driving modes are controlled via what Lamborghini calls the "Tamburo," two toggles on either side of the Start button. The left determines the Anima (drive mode) setting, calibrating a slew of variables like throttle response, shift patterns, four-wheel steering and damping/ride height through six modes: Strada (road), Sport, Corsa (race), Sabbia (sand), Terra (offroad) and Neve (snow). Curiously, the paddle only scrolls in one direction; to select the previous mode, you'll have to flip through the five modes ahead.

Audi reportedly shoots down $9.2 billion investor bid for Lamborghini

Volkswagen is open to divesting some of the brands in its portfolio, but it hasn't put a "for sale" sign on in front of Lamborghini's lawn yet. The firm allegedly shot down a big offer for the brand from a group of investors. Quantum Group SA, a newly-established holding company based in Zurich, Switzerland, made the non-binding offer in May 2021, according to anonymous sources who spoke to WardsAuto. The publication adds the group is ready to spend 7.5 billion euros (around $9.2 billion at the current conversion rate) to buy the entire Lamborghini division from Audi. The sale would include the brand, its intellectual property (like its trademarks and patents), its historic factory in Sant'Agata Bolognese, and its racing division. Full details about the proposed acquisition were closely examined by top Volkswagen executives, including company CEO Herbert Diess and Audi boss Markus Duesmann. While the offer sounds like it's neatly packaged, Volkswagen replied that it's not having a garage sale. "Lamborghini is not for sale. This is not the subject of any discussion within the group," a company spokesperson told industry trade journal Automotive News. These comments are in line with the ones made in December 2020. Quantum's aim wasn't to sever all ties with Volkswagen. It planned to turn Lamborghini into "a spearhead for innovation by consistently implementing new clean drivetrain technologies" across the range, a strategy that's already in the pipeline; Lamborghini announced it will electrify in the 2020s and launch its first series-produced EV. Investors also hoped to sign a five-year supply agreement with Audi, and to create what they called an Advanced Automotive Innovation Center headquartered somewhere in Lower Saxony, the German state Wolfsburg is in. In late 2020, when rumors about an imminent Lamborghini spin-off were rampant, Volkswagen stressed it had no plans to sell the Italian supercar manufacturer or to find a new home for Ducati, which Lamborghini owns. Unverified reports claim a chunk of the company could be listed on the stock market in a bid to raise revenue, however. Bugatti is another part of the Volkswagen empire that Diess and his team allegedly wanted to trade in to fund the group's pivot towards electric powertrains. In September 2020, reports claimed top executives had approved swapping the storied French carmaker and its assets for a significant stake in Croatia-based Rimac that would be transferred directly to Porsche.

Richard Hammond helps terminally ill girl live pink Lamborghini dream

Emilia Palmer, an eight-year-old from Kimbolton, Herefordshire in England's West Midlands, suffers from a rare lung illness, requiring her to constantly be on oxygen. She made a request through Rays of Sunshine, which is like the Make-A-Wish Foundation, to get a ride in a pink Lamborghini, driven by everyone's favorite Hamster, Richard Hammond. And last Sunday, she got to do just that, escaping from her hospital just long enough to stop home and get a surprise visit.
Within days of receiving Emilia's wish, Rays of Sunshine found someone willing to donate a Lamborghini Aventador Roadster, and let the charity get it resprayed in an eye-searing, matte pink. The charity also managed to get Hammond to fly in for a personal visit with Emilia.
You can take a look at video of the meeting down below. You can also click over to Rays of Sunshine's website and donate, so that they can continue granting wishes for terminally ill children across the UK. Now, if you'll excuse us, we need to step away and get all this dust out of our eyes.