2013 Lamborghini Gallardo Performante. on 2040-cars

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A car writer's year in new vehicles [w/video]

Christmas is only a week away. The New Year is just around the corner. As 2014 draws to a close, I'm not the only one taking stock of the year that's we're almost shut of. Depending on who you are or what you do, the end of the year can bring to mind tax bills, school semesters or scheduling dental appointments. For me, for the last eight or nine years, at least a small part of this transitory time is occupied with recalling the cars I've driven over the preceding 12 months. Since I started writing about and reviewing cars in 2006, I've done an uneven job of tracking every vehicle I've been in, each year. Last year I made a resolution to be better about it, and the result is a spreadsheet with model names, dates, notes and some basic facts and figures. Armed with this basic data and a yen for year-end stories, I figured it would be interesting to parse the figures and quantify my year in cars in a way I'd never done before. The results are, well, they're a little bizarre, honestly. And I think they'll affect how I approach this gig in 2015. {C} My tally for the year is 68 cars, as of this writing. Before the calendar flips to 2015 it'll be as high as 73. Let me give you a tiny bit of background about how automotive journalists typically get cars to test. There are basically two pools of vehicles I drive on a regular basis: media fleet vehicles and those available on "first drive" programs. The latter group is pretty self-explanatory. Journalists are gathered in one location (sometimes local, sometimes far-flung) with a new model(s), there's usually a day of driving, then we report back to you with our impressions. Media fleet vehicles are different. These are distributed to publications and individual journalists far and wide, and the test period goes from a few days to a week or more. Whereas first drives almost always result in a piece of review content, fleet loans only sometimes do. Other times they serve to give context about brands, segments, technology and the like, to editors and writers. So, adding up the loans I've had out of the press fleet and things I've driven at events, my tally for the year is 68 cars, as of this writing. Before the calendar flips to 2015, it'll be as high as 73. At one of the buff books like Car and Driver or Motor Trend, reviewers might rotate through five cars a week, or more. I know that number sounds high, but as best I can tell, it's pretty average for the full-time professionals in this business.

Listen to Lamborghini's 830-horsepower track special scream its heart out

Lamborghini's next V12-powered hypercar is around the corner, and there's a good chance you'll hear it coming before you see it. The company released a preview video that confirms its 12-cylinder sounds better than ever. The 17-second clip shows the as-yet-unnamed model lapping a race track as part of its shakedown testing program. We can clearly hear the naturally aspirated, 6.5-liter V12 whirring away as it approaches its redline. It's an evolution of the engine found in the mighty Aventador S, among other cars, but it's tuned to deliver 830 horsepower. As to the transmission it's paired with, your guess is as good as ours, but we wouldn't expect the manual gearbox to make a glorious comeback. Lamborghini's in-house design center, Centro Stile, and its triumphant racing division, Squadra Corse, joined forces to create the model. Developed exclusively for track use, it's decked out with numerous vents, wings, and scoops. The video suggests the widespread use of composite materials like carbon fiber keeps weight in check; we notably spot it on the massive rear diffuser and on the equally large spoiler. Odds are it's all over the interior, too. The company has pointed out the front sub-frame is manufactured from aluminum, and that an innovative self-locking-type differential makes the car more drivable as it approaches its limits. Center-locking wheels wrapped by sticky Pirelli tires are part of the package, too. The video does a formidable job of hiding the car's overall lines. It looks like the driver enters the cabin via a scissor door, which suggests the model is Aventador-sized (or, like rumors claim, Aventador-based). Alternatively, it might be a preview of the Aventador's replacement, which is due out in the early 2020s with hybrid power. What's certain is that it wears a low-slung design; it's no minivan, though Lamborghini has made one before. Lamborghini will release additional information in the coming months, and the car's full unveiling is scheduled to take place this summer. It's a limited-edition model, and while there's no word yet on how many examples will be built, it's reasonable to assume they'll all be spoken for by the time we see it. Lamborghini Performance

GoPro checks out Tokyo's automotive night life in 4K

There's something bizarrely fascinating about Japanese car culture, especially around Tokyo. The metropolis packs people tightly together in a way that would seem to make owning any car tough. And yet, there's still enough enthusiasm around anything with an engine to support everything from wildly tuned bosozoku rides with exhaust pipes reaching toward the sky to seriously fast Porsche and Lamborghini models. To promote its latest Hero4 camera, GoPro has embarked on a short film series called Adventure of Life in 4K, and the latest installment goes inside Japan's speed scene with some gorgeous cinematography of vibrant vehicles rocketing through the city. It's all mixed over more serene images of Tokyo landscapes that combine to form a mini-documentary that's a feast for the eyes. News Source: GoPro via YouTube Aftermarket Lamborghini Porsche Videos gopro