Lamborghini Gallardo Base Coupe 2-door on 2040-cars

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Valentino Balboni thinks the Miura greatest Lambo ever

Valentino Balboni spent 40 years at Lamborghini, a few years as a mechanic's apprentice at the beginning, then as a test driver at the request of old man Ferrucio himself. He is embedded in the brand, said to have driven 80 percent of the company's entire production until he retired in 2009. He has ridden and tamed so many bulls that they named one after him, the 2010 Lamborghini Gallardo LP550-2 Valentino Balboni, and even made it rear-wheel drive because that's how he likes it. Balboni spoke to Road & Track in advance of an auction in New York on November 19 that will see a 1969 Miura P400S go on the block. A fixture from the days when mad men weren't merely characters on a television show, Balboni discusses taking customers for test drives, being sent on warranty calls, his favorite car, and why there will never be another one like it. Head over to RT to read the full interview from the man who helped make the original Countach, and therefore Lamborghini, what it is today. And in case you want in on the action, the pre-sale estimate for the centerpiece Miura is $800,000 to $1.6 million. Related Video:

Former Ferrari F1 chief could be new Lamborghini CEO

The word on the street in Bologna is that Lamborghini is in for a changing of the guard. Current CEO Stephan Winkelmann is tipped to step down after 14 years at the helm in Sant'Agata, likely to move to another role at Audi. And in his place, the German automaker is anticipated to appoint Stefano Domenicali. Domenicali was formerly the head of Scuderia Ferrari, rising through the ranks at Maranello to succeed Jean Todt as team principal in 2008. He resigned in 2014 to be replaced first by Ferrari US chief Marco Mattiacci and then by Marlboro man Maurizio Arrivabene as the team has struggled to find its form again. Shortly after leaving Maranello, Domenicali took up a new position at Audi, where he was rumored to be working on the company's anticipated foray into Formula One with Red Bull. But after that program was shut down in the wake of the diesel emissions scandal, Domenicali is now tipped to move back to Italy to take over the supercar business. Stefano would be the second Domenicali to head an Italian performance brand under the VW/Audi umbrella, joining Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali (they not believed to be related). The move would also be a particularly emphatic gesture to Sergio Marchionne. The Fiat Chrysler Automobiles chief has previously lost top lieutenants to Volkswagen, most notably Luca de Meo, who headed up VW brand's passenger car marketing department before taking over at Seat. While previous Ferrari chiefs Todt and Montezemolo came up through the racing department, Marchionne assumed the chairmanship in Maranello and brought in outside talent instead. Meanwhile Winkelmann has been in charge of Lamborghini since 2005, when he was appointed by Audi to run the company it had just acquired a few years prior. Under the tenure of the German-Italian executive, Lamborghini sales have risen from 1,600 units per year to over 2,500 last year. The introduction of the forthcoming Urus crossover, birthed under Winkelmann's leadership, is expected to more than double that overall figure. Given his success in transforming Lamborghini, it isn't likely that the Volkswagen Group will simply show Winkelmann the door. Word has it that he'll receive another posting at Audi, potentially taking over the growing Quattro GmbH division in Neckarsulm. The division is responsible for all of Audi's RS models as well as the R8 – the latter of which Audi sells as many units as the entire Lamborghini division does in a year.

Lamborghini Aventador SVJ teased at Nurburgring

We've been seeing prototypes and hearing reports about a hopped-up version of the Lamborghini Aventador, but only now have we seen something official from the company. It's officially called the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ, and the company teased it in the above trailer of the car at the Nurburgring. It gives us our best look yet, and some tidbits about what we'll hear next about the car. Let's first address the looks. The front fascia has been revised with a much deeper chin and a big wing splitting the main air intakes in the front. The side skirts are wider with end caps at the forward sections behind the front wheels. Those wheels have motorsport-style single center nuts. In one of the trailer's clips, we can see they're wrapped in Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R tires. It also has the outrageous rear wing we've seen in spy shots, and the exhaust also sits high up like on the Huracan Performante. Finally, while not necessarily part of the looks, we get a look at the instrument cluster that reveals this Aventador has a redline of roughly 9,000 rpm. The other part of the trailer to address is the location. The whole trailer takes place at the Nurburgring, and there's usually only one reason to make a big deal about that: lap times. Lamborghini already proved it can make some wickedly fast track cars with the Huracan Performante, a car that laps the infamous track faster than any other Lamborghini (so far) and faster than even the Porsche 918 Spyder. We expect the Performante's left-right split active aerodynamic system will appear on this car. Add to it much more power from the V12, and we have a potential 'Ring monster. Rumors even suggest the Aventador SVJ will have a lap time of around 6 minutes, 45 seconds, faster than the 911 GT2 RS. The SVJ will probably be much lighter than other Aventadors, too. The Twitter post that features the trailer says something slightly ambiguous about having "the best weight to power ratio." We assume that means the best of any Lamborghini. Since this is a teaser, we're expecting to see a more full-fledged video in the near future, hopefully with at least lap time, if no other specifications. Also, the fact that Lamborghini is showing this much of the car now is a sign that a full reveal can't be far away. The Paris Auto Show would be a natural location since it's early this fall. Stay tuned for more in the near future. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences.