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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.

Lamborghini Huracan Performante is getting a drop-top version

If you just released a specialized, lightweight track weapon with fancy active aerodynamics, what would you do next? If you said chop the car's top off, you must work for Lamborghini, because that's just what the company is doing to its Huracan Performante. Our spy photographer has caught roadster versions of the ultimate Huracan out during testing. The car looks pretty much as you would expect. The lower body work from the front bumper back is all effectively carry-over from the coupe. The rear wing looks to have the same shape and functionality, too. Where things really change is with the engine cover. Like the normal Huracan roadster, the Performante loses the glass engine cover in favor of an opaque cover and a hard tonneau for the top. The engine cover features larger vents at the base of the wing's pedestals, and they appear to have large scoops at the other end. In addition to the new engine cover, this Performante roadster has different wheels which seem to be taken from the standard model. However, these will likely be swapped for the coupe's mesh-style wheels. A close examination shows that the wheels are shod in Pirelli P Zero Corsas that are probably the same compound as the standard tires for the Performante coupe. While this won't be the first time Lamborghini has built a roadster out of its high-performance entry-level sports car, the decision to turn the new Performante into one seems a little strange considering the effort to lighten it and endow it with magical aero. Even more so when the result is a car that Lamborghini claims laps the Nurburgring faster than the bonkers Porsche 918 Spyder. It feels like a step backwards to add a retractable top that probably weighs more and messes with the aerodynamics. But then, Lamborghinis are known mostly for being flashy and fast, and this Performante convertible will fill both criteria with ease. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Road & Track goes inside Lamborghini's Sant'Agata engine factory

While it's fair to think that the Lamborghini factory in Sant'Agata Bolognese is a place where mustachioed Italian sorcerers weave spells into hypercars, the truth is sadly far less magical (although the results are just as impressive). Road & Track took a peek behind the curtain and toured the home of Lamborghini's engine works, where the 691-horsepower thumper from the Aventador is bolted together. Not only is it an interesting look inside the facility, R&T's host provides a great contrast with the current facility and its low-tech past.