2006 Lamborghini Gallardo Base Coupe 2-door 5.0l on 2040-cars

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2016 Lamborghini Huracan LP 610-4 Spyder First Drive

Convertibles get a bad rap when it comes to performance cars. Once, a lack of a roof meant extra performance. Now it means added weight and loss of structural rigidity. This stigma even applies to supercars, maybe more so. In the case of Lamborghini, the Huracan LP 610-4 Spyder is the "lifestyle" version. Which is silly, but doesn't diminish the appeal. Essentially, the Spyder is a Huracan with a fabric roof. Same 602-horsepower V10 inches behind the cabin, same hybrid aluminum-and-carbon-fiber construction, and same all-wheel-drive (though updated across the line for 2016). The performance compromise is a mere one mile per hour drop in top speed, and two-tenths of a second slower claimed 0-62 mph time of 3.4 seconds. (We suspect this is generously slow, to protect the egos of coupe owners). All told, the Spyder adds about 220 pounds in curb weight versus the coupe (Italian "dry" weight numbers are notoriously optimistic, so take the 3,650-pound Spyder claim with a grain of salt). The aerodynamic management on the Spyder is so good that the 201-mph top speed is valid with both the top up and retracted. In detail, the conversion in making the Huracan convertible is extensive. The roof itself is three layers of fabric, with a middle rubberized ply to cut down on interior noise. The design brief was to maintain the Huracan's hexagons-gone-wild theme with the top up and down. Spend 17 seconds waiting for the fully automatic top to lower, and the shape retains the coupe's motif. Part of the top's electronic ballet is a pair of flaps that extend out to preserve the shape of the B-pillar. Those flaps also feature narrow slits that smooth the wind along the side of the car, reducing turbulence near the driver's and passenger's ears. Additional side deflectors keep more wind away from your head. And with the top down the rear window's maximum height is restricted to prevent it from catching air. The aerodynamic management on the Spyder is so good that the 201-mph top speed is valid with both the top up and retracted. Suck on that, coupe aficionados. The Huracan's performance is so ridiculous that few can explore the margin between the two bodystyles. In any case, we didn't get much chance to stretch the Huracan's legs on our press drive in Miami, due a torrential downpour and the fact that South Florida is a terrible place for driving. Maybe that's where the "lifestyle" portion comes in, because Miami is a fantastic town for flaunting wealth.

Like an iPhone S, the 2017 Lamborghini Aventador S adds speed and features

When most automakers introduce a new generation of vehicle, it represents a dramatic change in performance or design. Don't tell Lamborghini that – while the company calls its new Aventador S a new generation, the reality is that this is Sant'Agata's facelifted flagship, complete with some modest visual tweaks and a couple of new pieces of technology. In fact, it's closer to Apple's product cadence of introducing an S model of the iPhone before an all-new model. Those aesthetic changes include a new fascia that Lamborghini claims is more aerodynamic, while the vertical ducts on the outside of the lower intake optimize airflow around the front tires and those huge front wheels, while channeling more air toward the rear radiators. In back, there's a restyled diffuser, and a neat hexagonal exhaust outlet. Above that, there's a three-position active rear wing. All told, Lamborghini claims front downforce is up 130 percent while "overall efficiency" in high-downforce mode increases 50 percent and low-downforce mode improves 400 percent. New for the Aventador is a trick four-wheel steering system, a first for a series production Lamborghini. The idea with the system is like other four-wheel-steering. At low speeds it turns the rear wheels in the opposite direction of the fronts, tightening the Lambo's giant turning radius. At high speeds, the system works in reverse by turning the rear wheels in the same direction as the fronts and providing improved stability. But none of these style and tech changes are worth a damn without that big lump of fury in the Aventador S' middle. Like previous versions, there's a 6.5-liter V12, but its output is up to an SV-matching 740 ponies – torque is unchanged from the LP700-4 we tested in 2015, at 509 pound-feet. Max engine speed is up from 8,350 rpm to a wild 8,500 rpm. The result? Zero to 62 miles per hour in 2.9 seconds and a top speed of 217. Prices for the 2017 Aventador S start at an eye-watering $421,350 and – we're guessing – can creep up near $500,000 with a few carefully selected carbon-fiber accents and Ad Personam options. Lamborghini is planning to start deliveries in spring 2017. Related Video:

The mood at this year’s Paris Motor Show: Quiet

The Paris Motor Show, held every other year in the early fall, typically kicks off the annual cavalcade of automotive conclaves, one that traverses the globe between autumn and spring, introducing projective, conceptual and production-ready vehicle models to the international automotive press, automotive aficionados and a public hungry for news of our increasingly futuristic mobility enterprise. But this year, at the press preview days for the show, the grounds of the Porte de Versailles convention center felt a bit more sparsely populated than usual. This was not simply a subjective sensation, or one influenced by the center's atypically dispersed assemblage of seven discrete buildings, which tends to spread out the cars and the crowds. There were not only fewer new vehicles being premiered in Paris this year, there were fewer manufacturers there to display them. Major mainstream European OEM stalwarts such as Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Nissan and Volkswagen chose to sit out Paris this year, as did boutique manufacturers like Bentley, Aston Martin and Lamborghini. This is not simply based in some antipathy on the part of the German, British and Italian manufacturers toward the French market — though for a variety of historical and societal reasons that market may be more dominated by vehicles produced domestically than others. Rather, it is part of a larger trend in the industry. Last year, Mercedes-Benz announced that it would not be participating in the flagship North American International Auto Show in 2019 — and that it might not return. Other brands including Jaguar/Land Rover, Audi, Porsche, Mazda and nearly every exotic carmaker have also departed the Detroit show. Some of these brands will still appear in the city in which the show is taking place, and host an event offsite, to capitalize on the presence of a large number of reporters in attendance. And even brands that do have a presence at the show have shifted their vehicle introductions to the days before the official press opening in an attempt to stand out from the crowd. In many ways, this makes sense. With an expanding number of automakers, with diversification and niche-ification of models and with wholesale shifts that necessitate the introduction of EV or autonomous sub-brands, there is a growing sense that, with everyone shouting at the same time, no one can be heard.