08 Lamborghini Gallardo Spider 8k Miles E-gear Navigation Silver Calipers 07 09 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Dax Shephard, Lamborghini Super Trofeo racer?

Dax Shepard is no Paul Newman, nor even Patrick Dempsey, but he has a pretty cool gig mixed with plenty of acting and racing. While you might know him from Hollywood comedies like Employee of the Month and Hit & Run, the Michigan native now seems to be dabbling in road racing after competing in the Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo North America, and to celebrate, Lamborghini has issued a new short video introducing Shepard and kicking off its new pro-am racing series.
Like many kids of the '70s and early '80s, Shepard's love of cars can be traced back to a Lamborghini Countach, and, fittingly, his first time road racing in a car happened to be in a Lamborghini - an experience he comically suggests would be like another sort of "first time" with Selma Hayek. In addition a few chuckles, the video posted below also gives us some of our first racing footage of the Super Trofeo North America's opening weekend at Lime Rock in early July, in which Shepard grabbed a third-place finish.

Watch a ham-fisted Russian wreck his Lamborghini

Russia is responsible for some of the best dashcam videos on the planet. And today, we're sorry to say that includes the destruction of a poor Lamborghini. You can't always judge a book by its cover, but based on the look of this particular Lambo – a chromed finish and aftermarket alloys – its driver probably has more money than talent. That's probably the best explanation for why he was driving so quickly in such treacherous conditions. After looping around one vehicle, the back steps out and the car – The Daily Sun incorrectly calls it a Huracan, but it's a Murcielago – spears an innocent Peugeot. The Lambo ends its journey by colliding with a guardrail, splaying most of its front end across the M9 motorway outside Moscow. Police took the Lamborghini's driver, a 30-year-old man, into custody for his role in the wreck. One witness told The Daily Sun that the supercar passed the film car like it was standing still, something police confirmed, saying "[The Lamborghini owner] was driving at high speed on the wet tarmac and lost control." Related Video:

Lamborghini designers channel brand's past to keep supercars fresh

Lamborghini design boss Mitja Borkert smiles as he sums up the brand's design language with an anecdote. "I bought a 1/18-scale Countach in Frankfurt, and I put it in my carry-on suitcase. One of the guys at the security screening asked 'what's that?' His colleague looked at the screen and immediately said "it's a Lamborghini!" Borkert points out the unmistakable silhouette is a major part of what defines a Lamborghini. He gives Marcello Gandini credit for the styling cue. The talented Italian designer penned a long list of emblematic sports cars, including the Miura, the Countach, and the Lancia Stratos. For Borkert, the Gandini line is deeply-rooted and permanent. However, he doesn't feel the least bit constrained by it. "First of all, for me this line is written in stone. It will remain in the next 100 years, regardless of what technology we will have. I'm very sure of it. Of course, we always have to find an interpretation of that line for specific projects. When we created the Urus, we also wanted to use the line but we had to interpret it in a way that worked for that specific architecture. How we did that you will see in the future. "The Huracan has one interpretation of the Gandini line. The Aventador is longer so we had to stretch it. You can set a lot of tension in that line, you can give it a bit more wedge. In the Centenario the rear is a little bit lower, for example. "So, for me, this is the component we have to keep. Then, there are the design themes like doors, fenders, and what we are doing with the front and rear. That's when we apply the motto 'expect the unexpected.' We are always challenging ourselves, and always looking for something new." The first step of the design process is to get the proportions exactly right. "If the main proportions aren't right, you will never be able to catch up with the design," he notes. And while most people assume modern-day designers start sketching on advanced CAD software, a Lamborghini still comes to life the old-fashioned way: with a pencil and a sheet of paper. Once the proportions are locked in, Borkert and his team of young, spirited designers begin adding secondary styling cues like character lines, angles, and creases. The last part of the process is when designers pencil in the final details such as vents, moldings, emblems, and miscellaneous trim pieces. Heritage plays a large role there, too. The hexagon is another one of the defining features that characterize a Lamborghini.