http://www.lamborghinicar.net en-us Mon, 08 Sep 2008 00:55:18 -0500 http://www.lamborghinicar.net/lamborghini-murcielago/ The Lamborghini Murcielago is a sports car produced by Italian automaker Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. and designed by Luc Donckerwolke. It was introduced in 2002 as the successor to the Diablo. The Murcielago is a two-door, two-seat coupe. To celebrate the company's 40 years in operation, 50 special edition Murcielagos were built during the autumn of 2003. An open-top version called the Murcielago Roadster was introduced in 2004 for the 2005 model year. The roadster features similar performance to the coupe with a more aggressive rear flank, as well as a considerably higher price tag.

The name Murcielago (pronounced moor-thee-EH-la-goh in traditional Castilian Spanish and moor-see-EH-la-goh in Spanish of Latin America), means "bat" in Spanish, comes from a bull that survived 24 sword strokes in an 1879 fight at the arena of Cardoba, and fought with such passion and spirit that the matador chose to spare its life, a rare honor. In another Lamborghini tie-in, the bull was later presented as a gift to Don Antonio Miura, who was a noted breeder and whose bull ranch the Lamborghini Miura was named after, and went on to sire a line of famous fighting bulls.

The Murcielago sports a 6.2 Liter version of the legendary Lamborghini V12 engine, a six-speed manual or six-speed sequential automatic transmission, and four-wheel drive. It also has a rear spoiler that can be raised to an angle of 70 degrees, side mirrors that fold in to improve aerodynamics, and side scoops that automatically open to the needed size to let in just the right amount of air needed to cool its engine. The 2008 car's fuel economy is 8 mpg (U.S.) (29 L/100 km) city and 13 mpg (U.S.) (18 L/100 km) freeway, making it the least efficient 2008 car for city driving, according to the EPA.

In 2006 the Murcielago's engine was replaced by a stronger 6.5-liter engine and the car's name was changed to Murcielago LP640. For the 2007 model year Lamborghini did the same with the roadster model, which is now called Murcielago LP640 Roadster. Both versions received a minor facelift.

LP640.
The LP640 version was first shown at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2006, as a facelift for the coupe version. It features a 6.5 Liter engine, now producing 631 bhp (471 kW), improving performance substantially. Like the base Murcielago, the engine is mounted "backwards", with the transmission in front of the engine and the differential behind it, instead of a transaxle normally seen on mid-engine cars. There were also a few minor external changes, primarily to the low air intakes. The front and rear bumpers have been reshaped to channel air more efficiently, and the new exhaust has been shaped into the rear diffuser to minimize aerodynamic lift. The air intake on the left side has been enlarged to accommodate the feeding of the oil cooler. The car's body is made up of steel and carbon fiber, while underneath a revised suspension has been added to keep up with the car's performance. It also has an all-wheel-drive system that normally distributes 70% of the torque to the rear wheels, but can allocate up to 100% to either end depending on where the grip is running out. There are also new 18-inch (460 mm) Hermera alloy wheels running huge 335/30 tires at the rear. The LP640 retains the original car's scissor-opening doors. The LP640 coupe U.S. MSRP rests at $318,800.

Inside the LP640, the seating has been reshaped to accommodate greater headroom, while an upgraded instrument panel is flanked by an improved stereo system. The LP640's optional equipment includes ceramic brakes for swifter braking, chrome paddle shifters, and a glass engine cover which shows off the LP640's 6.5 Liter V12 engine.

LP640 Versace.
Presented at the Paris International Autoshow, the Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 Versace is a special edition version of the LP640 Coupe, with all the same performance features. The only difference is the two tone white-black trim, shown on both the exterior and interior of the car. However, Lamborghini de Spa have also built 1 black LP640 & LP640 Roadster. It also features custom Versace leather seating and a Gianni Versace logo plaque inside the vehicle. The Versace material costs $10,000 per seat.

LP640 Roadster.
Lamborghini announced the LP640 Roadster version at the 2006 LA Auto Show. It features the same engine as the LP640 coupe and replaces the 6.2 Liter Murcielago Roadster. The only design changes were oil cooling vents behind the air intakes, interior changes, and a reinforced body. ]]> Thu, 27 Mar 2008 11:39:08 -0500 http://www.lamborghinicar.net/lamborghini-murcielago/ http://www.lamborghinicar.net/lamborghini-gallardo-spyder/ The 2007 Gallardo is a 2-door, 2-passenger luxury sports car, or convertible sports car, available in two trims, the Coupe and the Spyder. We would stop and review closer the Spyder model.

Two years after the launch of the Coupe version of the Gallardo, Automobili Lamborghini is presenting the new Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder at the Frankfurt Motor Show. This latest addition brings the marque’s range of supercars to four models.

Gallardo Spyder is not just an open-top version of the Coupe, but is a completely new model. It has an attractive new design and a unique system for opening and closing the fabric roof that utilizes the engine compartment to store the folded roof.

The Lamborghini Centro Stile and engineers from the Research and Development team have worked in close partnership to develop this new design and to bring these clean and sharp lines on the road.

The dimensions of the Gallardo, combined with its competitive performance targets, ensure the car has an athletic compactness. The long wheelbase complemented by short overhangs dynamise its appearance. The Gallardo Spyder features typical and unique mono-volume proportions, which integrate the Lamborghini design attributes of purism, athleticism and sharpness.

The roof raising/lowering system of the Gallardo Spyder is based on an electronic control system with electrohydraulic actuators. The roof raising/lowering mechanism is extremely simple to operate by way of two push-buttons on the centre of the dashboard. And the whole operation takes just over 20 seconds.

The rear screen moves automatically while the roof is being opened or closed. This automatically-controlled movement always returns the screen to the raised position. The driver can also choose to have the screen in the lowered position (also with the roof raised) by pressing the appropriate button on the dashboard. There is also a "service function" that positions the roof so as to allow access to the engine.

Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder features a number of important modifications to the original engine and transmission from the Coupe. The 10-cylinder 4961 cc propulsion unit now develops 520 bhp at 8,000 rpm. The six-speed gearbox now has lower ratios (1st gear is 27% lower, 2nd gear is 13%, 3rd / 4th / 5th gears are all 6% lower, while 6th gear is 3.5% lower), which create a more dynamic performance.

The steering is also more direct and precise and the suspension has been recalibrated. Like the other models in the range, the Gallardo Spyder also benefits from aluminum bodywork and features permanent four-wheel drive.

And finally, its performance figures: the Gallardo Spyder – which complies with EURO 4 homologation standards – reaches a top speed of 314 km/h with the roof up and 307 km/h with the roof down, accelerating from 0 to 62 mph in 4.3 seconds. ]]> Sat, 26 Jan 2008 14:58:29 -0600 http://www.lamborghinicar.net/lamborghini-gallardo-spyder/ http://www.lamborghinicar.net/lamborghini-reventon-1-million-euro-supercar/ Here in Frankfurt, Lamborghini debuted a supercar which would be the most powerful and expensive car in the world. With its exotic view at the level that is incredible it really looks mean, it`s like "the Darth Vadder of cars!", says one of the eyewitnesses of the show.

Lamborghini Reventon is based on the Murcielago LP640, and it'll cost one million euro. The official press states that only 20 are set to be constructed, and all have been already betrothed to group of high performance car fans, who had rapidly transfered more than $300,000 each as a deposit.

Initial reports suggest that the 6.5 litre V12 may receive a power boost of approximately 15 kilowatts = 10 horsepower, bringing the new ouput close to 490 kW = 650 horsepower. In spite of this, and the car's carbon fibre components, the Reventon accelerates to 100 km/h (62 mph) in the same time as the Murcielago LP640 (3.4 seconds).

The instrument panel in the Reventon comprises three TFT liquid crystal displays (LCDs) with two different display modes. The instruments are housed in a structure milled from a solid aluminum block, protected by a carbon fiber casing. The G-Force-Meter is completely new and it is one of the talking points of the Reventon. It displays the dynamic drive forces, longitudinal acceleration during acceleration and braking, as well as transversal acceleration around bends. These forces are represented by the movement of an indicator on a graduated 3D grid depending on the direction and intensity of the acceleration. Formula One teams also use a similar device to analyze dynamic forces.

By simply pressing a button, the driver can switch to the second, quasi-analogical display, where there are the usual circular instruments; speedometer and tachometer. The G-Force-Meter still remains at the center of this display mode. Lamborghini has also picked up some of parent company Audi's design language. For the first time, Lamborghini incorporated daylight running lights with the headlamps of the Reventon. Seven Light Emitting Diodes at each headlamps flank the Bi-Xenon main beam and they stay lit whenever the car is in movement. Due to the high temperatures in the rear lower part of the car, special heatproof LEDs are used for the indicator and hazard lights, stoplights and rear lights with a triple arrow optical effect.

The rumors of a new super Lambo are true, but the most remarkable aspect of the new Lamborghini Reventon isn't its horsepower or torque, it's the price - 1 million euros even. That's more than a 300 percent premium over the Murcielago upon which the Reventon is based. "It's the most powerful and expensive Lamborghini ever built", said Stephan Winkelmann, CEO of Lamborghini SpA at the reveal here in Frankfurt.

Forking over an extra $700,000 gets you about 20 extra horsepower, loads of carbon-fiber trim and some questionable bodywork. So yeah, it's not much of a deal, but with only 20 slated for construction in 2008, the exclusivity of the Reventon is the real draw. ]]> Sat, 22 Dec 2007 10:21:17 -0600 http://www.lamborghinicar.net/lamborghini-reventon-1-million-euro-supercar/