2008 Lamborghini Gallardo Reviews

Where other high performance cars tend to make many aggro, a Lambo turns them meek and mild, yielding out of their lane or giving way at cross roads as the sleek Italian supercar burbles by. If only they really knew what it is like to drive a car like the Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, they would totally lose it.We have and we nearly did.It's everything you might imagine and more.The experience is almost mystical for the mechanically inclined, certainly a sensory overload and possibly the best ego massager money can buy apart from a private jet or multi- million dollar yacht which not many people can see you in anyway.They sure do in the Lambo Spyder _ the convertible version of Lamborghini's V10 Gallardo supercar.Essentially the same as the mid-engine tin-top the Spyder has an electrically folding soft top and no engine window through which to view the “crown jewels.” You can't have everything.It costs a pretty penny (around $460,000rrp) for the stunning mica orange car we drove that was kitted out with extra goodies like robotised sequential paddle gear shift called e-gear and other luxuries.Competitors are from that other Italian supercar company whose name starts with F and to a lesser extent, Porsche though they are a cut below the two Italians in prestige if not performance.The name Lamborghini rolls off your tongue like a delicious feast and that's what the Gallardo Spyder is like _ delicious. It is sensational to drive at any speed.An aggressive looking beast, the Spyder is all angles and air vents, low slung with a big rump and short front that is totally in keeping with its performance potential and the incredible sound blasting out those twin big-bore exhaust pipes.If you have been to an F1 race and heard what a highly developed V10 on-song sounds like then you will appreciate the Gallardo's auditory assault. Funny enough, it only bellows, nay blasts when the throttle is pushed hard otherwise it could be your average unassuming sports car with a handsome baritone ringing from the engine. But moving to Metallica mode doesn't take long.Built around an aluminium space frame a-la Audi (owner of Lamborghini), and various polycarbonate and aluminium panels, the two seater Gallardo Spyder tips the scales at a respectable 1570kg which means its going to have plenty of get up with 382kW and 510Nm spinning from the highly developed 5.0-litre V10 engine. It will put away a 0-100kmh sprint in 4.3 seconds and according to company literature, will run right through 300kmh given access to a handy airfield.Better yet is the Gallardo Spyder's handling and ride _ aided by all-wheel-drive and sophisticated electronics that help keep everything in check regardless of speed (well, within reason).The suspension is based around aluminium components and is double wishbone front and rear. Lambo has added a really handy lift mode to the front suspension for negotiating speed humps and dish gutters. Works a treat.It rolls on gumball 19-inch Pirellis of large proportion fitted to some of the best looking composite alloy wheels we have ever seen.Handling is controlled, quick to response, neutral at high speed, well damped and surprisingly supple, even in `sport' mode. Power is delivered with a greater bias towards the rear axle and a partial limited slip rear diff.The optional e-gear system takes a bit of getting used to and isn't as rapid changing as some other systems but does the job well and is fun to use, even selecting reverse with a push button.It has a large turning circle which is sometimes annoying and likes a drink of high octane premium but with 80 litres in the tank, touring range is pretty good. The pedal box is tight so it's left foot braking.There is plenty of luxury kit inside the cabin including electrically adjustable and heated seats, premium audio, climate control aircon and power assisted ancillaries. The seats are upholstered in a soft leather with contrast piping and all controls are easy to use and stylishly laid out.Its a surprisingly comfortable car to drive relatively roomy in the cockpit and offering reasonably good visibility but minimal boot space. Access is easy, egress a little more difficult due to wide rocker panels under the doors.The Gallardo is a work of art for the mechanically attuned to behold. The massive disc brakes, superb build quality, lustrous paint, clockwork engine that has a serious sting in the tail and possibly the best exhaust note of any road car we have driven. How does it get past ADRs? Who cares, we drove around all the time roofless even in inclement weather just to savour the sound. Plenty of people had their phones out filming and recording the awesome sound track.We just worried about it all the time, a problem when you have responsibility for something as valuable and revered as the Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder. 

The mission statement for the newest member of the Lamborghini family is simple.The Gallardo LP560-4 is tasked with making the Italian exotic maker the most desirable super sports brand in the world, a big job, because Lamborghini has always struggled to be as credible or as fashionable as near-neighbour Ferrari.Lamborghini's LP560-4 – the name stands for for Longitudinal Position, 560-horsepower, four-wheel-drive – is a heavily revised remake of the original `Little Bull' that has been around since 2003 and has become the most successful Lambo model in history with 7100 sold.The plan is to give the substance to support its neck-snapping extreme designs and to lift sales 5 per cent on the 2046 result of last year.“We want to become the most desirable super sports car brand in the world – the most profitable and, for our employees, the best place to work,” Lamborghini boss Stephan Winkelmann says.“A Lamborghini is not something you need to have, it is something you want to have.”The new Gallardo has gone ahead in all the right places and is lighter, faster, kinder on the environment and more pedestrian-friendly.There are significant gains for a coupe, which will cost $455,000 in Australia, where 15-20 cars from next year's production batch of 1000 will be sold.The V10 engine has been redesigned by Lamborghini and it has increased capacity – up from 5.0-litres to 5.2-litres – and a higher compression ratio for a rise in power from 382kW to 422kW and a flatter torque curve that improves driveability across all engine speeds.Against the clock the new baby Lambo arrows to 100km/h in 3.7sec (.4sec quicker than the previous model), has a maximum velocity of 325km/h (up 10km/h) and has shed 20kg to sit at a 1410kg kerb weight.Countering all of this testosterone-driven performance is the huge 18 per cent reduction in emissions, with C02 at 327g/km, a figure for the E-gear transmission fitted to 90 per cent of cars.A lot of work has been done on optimising the updated engine with the Audi-issue all-wheel-drive layout, where a mechanical differential at the rear allows 45 per cent limited slip with a front electronic diff lock.The suspension front and rear has been redesigned. It has fresh springs, dampers and anti-roll bars. And an added tie-rod at the rear is said to help provide the fastest set-up.Body changes include a reshaped front-end, larger side air intake scoops, and a crisp, clean rear with new striking tail lights above a black-mesh air outlet with four tailpipes harnessed in a tough-looking rear diffuser.The newest Lamborghini is a flawed genius.There are few other ways to describe this exotic, two-seat, mid-engined monster with its deeper-breathing V10 engine.The press preview drive in Las Vegas revealed cars that got hot too easily and with a nervous feel in the rear end – not good for a car of this price and position.The new Gallardo is an exercise in controlled evolution, since the original “Baby Bull” helped fire the unprecedented Lamborghini sales spurt since joining the bigger, badder Murcielago.It was unleashed at the Las Vegas Speedway, first on the Nascar oval, then the twisting infield course, before a run on desert roads leading to monstrous Lake Mead.At the track you would think the LP560-4 would stick like a slotcar, but there at times it was a little hesitant in the rear.This was repeated on the highway when cornering at a gentle 80km/h.Lamborghini says its new rear suspension is the best way to get the car to turn, but the compromise is this little rear-end moment.If you lift off the throttle or brake or shift gears the rear-end feels like it wants to walk around.There is never any suggestion it wants to swap ends but it is a flaw that has been dictated by the stopwatch rather than ironing out a stability glitch that should not be there.On the overheating front, it took only five laps behind a Lamborghini test driver for some of the Gallardos to drop maximum revs from 8000 to 6000.The company says the cars ran too close to those in front and were not getting enough air circulating through the enlarged side scoops.Still, the cars were set for serious track time. They had sports suspension, carbon-ceramic brakes and 19-inch Pirelli P-Zero rubber, with a double compound and 10 per cent less rolling resistance up to 80km/h.The good news about Gallardo II is that steering is communicative, brake pedal feel is superbly modulated and the E-gear transmission is well hooked up to the engine.But judging by a right-hand drive display car, the cabin is compromised. The US driving was in left-hand drive cars, but the display unit showed a squared-off wheel arch that intrudes into available foot space. Pedals are offset to the left but the steering wheel remains in the right place.So you will constantly brush your right foot against the wheel arch intrusion when applying the throttle.Inside, the partnership with Audi is showing tangible signs of taking Lamborghini to new levels of quality. A blend of Audi and Bentley touches show in the gear and instruments.The Lamborghini is a slick weapon, but it will not out-run a Porsche 911 GT3 on any point-to-point run. It is also debatable if it is worth $200,000 more than the Audi R8 two-seater.