2015's Top Ten Tech Cars: Lamborghini Huracán LP 610-4
Fast, but it won’t run away from you
Lamborghinis have always been fast. But they’ve often been infuriatingly balky and volatile. Enter the Huracán, which has finally managed to harness technology to become Lamborghini’s best, most civilized supercar yet. The latest Lambo to be named after a famous Spanish fighting bull, the Huracán showed me its snorting stuff at Spain’s Ascari racing circuit.
The successor to the Gallardo shares its all-wheel-drive chassis with the upcoming Audi R8 supercar (both brands benefit from technology developed within the expanding VW empire). The chassis is basically an erector set of bonded-and-riveted aluminum interspersed with carbon fiber that’s 10 percent lighter—yet 50 percent more rigid—than the Gallardo’s. An alluring, modern wedge of a body is tasteful and functional, developing 50 percent more aerodynamic downforce than its predecessor.
Price: US $240,245
Power train: 455-kW (610-hp) 5.2-L V-10
Overall fuel economy: 14.7 L/100 km (16 mpg)
Inside, the Lamborghini is the first car to feature the Audi-engineered “virtual cockpit,” in which drivers can reconfigure a 12.3-inch LCD touch screen with all manner of data, such as a virtual tachometer or a full-screen navigation display. Meanwhile, on terra firma, power flows to all four wheels from a brand-new, 455-kilowatt (610-horsepower) V-10, good for a concussive 3.2-second run to 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour). The new, fighter-jet-inspired Inertial Platform plops a trio of gyroscopes and accelerometers at the car’s center of gravity to analyze physical forces and optimize systems for performance.
What really tames the Huracán are the whip-crack shifts of the Lamborghini Doppia Frizione. A dual-clutch, seven-speed automated gearbox is a first for a Lamborghini and a huge improvement over the clunky, lurching unit of old. Even as it scorched the Andalusian countryside, the Huracán pampered me and a passenger, adjusting its performance personality via the Anime switch on the steering wheel. Push the car beyond its lofty limits and you can feel the AWD system divvying power between front and rear wheels to keep the car on its swift and sure-footed course. More than any previous Lamborghini, the Huracán is an Italian lothario you might actually live with on a daily basis, without feeling cheap or getting your heart broken.
Lawrence Ulrich is an award-winning auto writer and former chief auto critic at The New York Times and The Detroit Free Press.