Here’s What Worries Me About The Lamborghini Aventador S
Before you start cracking jokes, no, it isn’t the moderately ridiculous speed of the new Lamborghini that worries me. I’ve driven the non-S car a couple of times in anger, and it’s every bit as mighty as you’d hope. News of a faster, better, even more exciting one certainly caught my attention.
I love this brand. It’s like a no-strings relationship; you know what you’re in for and there’s nothing to muddy the waters. Power, speed and some of the most outrageously stunning styling anywhere in cardom.
Travel back through the company’s 53 years to the brutal Murcielago, the multi-talented Gallardo, the Diablo and Countach and you see the same things. There’s nothing more complicated than the magnificent V12s and V10s hugging the backs of the cabin’s two seats. Sometimes there’s four-wheel drive, sometimes not, but one thing Lamborghini has always steered clear of is making its cars over-technical.
They are simpler, on paper at least, because they don’t need to waste their breath on active aerodynamics, lap time-chasing gearbox tunes or everyday usability. These things already belong to the likes of Porsche and Ferrari, and we like it that way because it separates the brand images.
Want to drive your supercar every day and be comfortable? Get a Porsche or McLaren. Want Italian passion? It’s a Ferrari. And for the supercar with the most raw desirability? That’s Lamborghini. They are poster cars; the cars you drooled over as a kid and that gave you the biggest ‘wow’ when you first saw one. Cars whose remit is to batter the road into submission with rude power.
But a fly has just landed in my metaphorical soup. Reading about the new technology in the Aventador S, some of it just felt wrong. Magneto-rheological suspension has already debuted on the Aventador SV, so that’s already out there, but four-wheel steering? Hmmm. That’s not very Lamborghini. That’s very… Porsche.
Volkswagen owns Audi, and Audi owns Lamborghini. We’re never quite sure whether Volkswagen also owns Porsche or it’s the other way around – with tongue firmly in cheek it seems to depend who’s on the board of directors at the time. But ultimately the result is the same: parts sharing.
Those of you who are more familiar with the Volkswagen Group will know that both the fancy magneto-rheological suspension and the four-wheel steering already exist. At Porsche and Audi. It seems parts are being shared, but this techy way of making cars faster is owned, morally and historically at least, by the Germans. Likewise, adding downforce and an adjustable rear wing is, well, a bit Ferrari-ish.
The Stuttgart, Ingolstadt and Maranello brands will add active this and adjustable that all day long if it shaves a tenth off their lap times or adds extra refinement, but that’s not what Lamborghini is about. I love Lamborghini for what it is; for how it has always done things differently, and the Aventador S takes a step towards the ethos of brands it was actually founded to frustrate.
Hopefully this is just a one-off, or at most a sign that the company will make more technological S-badged versions of its future cars. I can’t be the only one hoping Lamborghini sticks to its own path, doing its own things and sticking two fingers up to the establishment for another 53 years.
Comments
Well, it seems like Lamborghini is aiming for performance and lap times.. And ferrari aiming for looks, comfortable gt’s and fuel efficiency…
I agree to an extent, while I don’t like the idea of a super techy lambo, or a hybrid for that matter, the tech here isn’t new. 4 wheel steering is old, active aero is even older. I’ll give you the suspension is pretty trick but it’s also the only way to get really great handling and borderline comfort in a Lamborghini. I would love to see more brutish wild Lamborghinis like that of the past. But that would end them so fast it’s not even funny. There is a reason the gallardo “grew up” through its life cycle and the huracan is posed to do the same. It’s all about sales. And up to this point I forgot about he urus, I hate that concept but I’d be a liar if I didn’t think it would help Lamborghini. Really I think Lamborghini has realized they need to be like Ferrari if they want to remain relevant.
Coming down to selling the production models to pay the bills and making the special editions to pay homage and please the enthusiasts who will know why they made it.
Here’s What Worries Me About The Lamborghini Aventador S- the fact that I will never have enough money to get one.
Four wheel steering?
reminds me of the skyline
Lamborghini Marketing Department
“Alright we’ve made a new car”
“Ok now we need a topless version”
“Ok we’ll get on it”
-2 days later
“we need a newer version with less power”
“k den”
-5 day later
“we need a new special edition, let’s make a RWD version”
-3 months later
“let’s slap some paint on it, add a wing and give it a name that no 7 year old can pronounce “
“Ferruccio would be proud “
I don’t think it matters how complex it is, as long as it FEELS normal. Sometimes 4-wheel steering makes the driver feel as if there’s some weird voodoo magic going on behind him (or her), but I haven’t heard any such complaints about the Aventador S. Similarly, I honestly don’t care if Lambo have to go hybrid or turbo (or both) as long as the car still feels raw. If the Lamborghinis of 2030 end up like an NSX or Regera (no hate on either of these two), that to me would be losing brand identity. But if they make something that drives like a P1, I’ve got no problem with that.
Come to think about it, Lambo should ditch AWD. At the moment, the car that sums up what how I would want a Lambo to be like isn’t actually a Lambo - it’s the F12tdf.
Never have been much of a fan of the Aventador. Everything on it just seems to sharp and aggressive. I’d take the Huracan instead :)
Errrmm, the Aventador has an active rear wing…
I’m tired of people wanting Lamborghini to be WORSE than it’s competitors. Like it or not, they’re a car company and they need to sell cars. All this nonsense about “They’re poster cars, this shouldn’t be here, it’s functional, shouldn’t be like this, the Huracan isn’t mean enough” it’s annoying. Everyone used to complain about automatics,about aero, about AWD, more recently about downsizing and now this. They will keep being awesome, they will keep making fast and desirable cars and soon enough you won’t even remember about this four-wheel steering thing.
Umm, the Aventador and some murcielagos had active wings and Cooling. I’m begining to hate that Audi owns Lamborghini. They are making them less Lamborghini and Italian, and making them german which is all about technology rather than the experience. The Aventador SV did an under 7 minute lap around the ring with only 1 clutch, no rear wheel steering, no active areo, no forced induction, no hybrid systems. It will be a very sad day when Audi forces Lamborghini to go hybrid or forced induction.