LAMBORGHINI HURACÁN EVO RWD
by Nik Ellis
The Gallardo was the first model to emerge from Lamborghini after Audi
took control in 1999. Rumour has it that Audi needed to reduce their
1-10 quality scale to -3 just to encompass the somewhat agricultural build
standards. After being introduced in 2004, the Gallardo was very successful
for Lamborghini, trebling world wide sales.
Ten years later, having extracted every inch of life from the Gallardo, it was
replaced with the all new Huracán in 2014. Following the Gallardo’s formula
of a V10 petrol engine and four wheel drive, the first ones developed an
incredible 610 bhp.
The Evo Evolution
It had a significant redesign last year, with many upgrades based on the
track focused Performante, now known as the Huracán Evo. Using the
Performante’s uprated engine, coupled with renewed magnetic suspension
including rear steering, revised aerodynamics & some very clever processing
software, culminating in a reduced 0-60 sprint down from 3.2 to 2.9 seconds.
The Evo received Lambo’s new infotainment system with an 8.4” widescreen
brining Apple & Android connectivity. One of my favourite touches is an
exhaust system now exiting from two large pipes high up on the rear panel.
This year they have brought out a simplified version, the Evo RWD,
abandoning the ‘2’ appended to previous models to denote two wheel drive.
RWD stands for rear wheel drive although this is only the start of the story.
On top of losing the front drive train, it also loses the rear steering, carbon
brakes (they are an option) and some of the stability trickery, making the
vehicle more suited to the purist driver. 33kg lighter, it even gets a unique
traction control system allowing torque to be phased out, thus allowing oversteer,
great for some drifting fun.
This is a more ‘accessible’ model at £34k less than the 4WD, although with
plenty of options & customisable colour schemes, it’ll still end up the wrong
side of £200k.
Test Drive
Being familiar with the stunning handling of the four wheel drive Huracán
(and it’s Gallado predecessor) where 30 - 50% of the power goes to the front,
I was eager to compare this less complex, rear wheel drive version. As often
happens with road tests, the Evo RWD was delivered to me whilst the Wirral
was going through some torrential rain. Firing up the 610bhp engine that sat
a couple of feet behind my head and knowing that all that power was going to
just the rear wheels, with a traction control system that allowed an extra 30%
oversteer, gave me a slight degree of trepidation.
The Huracán has three driving modes thanks to the ANIMA (Adaptive
Network Intelligence MAnagement), starting with Strada (road), the wisest
for wet roads & ‘normal’ driving. It’s actually fairly easy to drive in this
mode; the gearbox sits in automatic mode, suspension comfortable, whilst
the engine & transmission are relatively calm. It will still really move in this
setting, but for quicker driving, I shifted into Sport, after I’d got to grips with
the feel of the car. Switching into this mode, the V10 instantly sounds deeper,
with the dual clutch gearbox willing it to move & the engine revving much
higher between gear changes.
Corsa (track) mode takes it all to another level, with the traction systems
almost non existent. The exhaust becomes fully open and very loud, whilst the
stiffer suspension works hard to give incredible grip. However in this mode,
the driver needs to be fully alert as it doesn’t take much to slide the back end,
especially in the wet and with an extra sensitive accelerator, it’ll happily light
up the rear tyres in a straight line, well beyond UK road speed limits. This
is a mode recommended for experienced drivers or track days. Or possibly
waking up the neighbours.
Sport mode is a good balance between the two, giving a tight, sporty response
yet with the comfort of an electronic safety net. Some degree of drift, coupled
to a very powerful & noisy motor makes for some very enjoyable driving. The
dual clutch changes through the seven gears incredibly quickly & smoothly.
The single clutches found in the Gallardo & still in the Aventador can give a
mighty mechanical kick between gears. This is a much smoother gear change
& generally very intuitive in automatic. Large paddles either side of the wheel
control the bull in manual mode, and gives much more feel & control than
the auto mode.
The interior is built solidly with some lovely touches such as contrasting
stitching around the leather. The somewhat pointless fighter jet start switch
adds to the drama. Everything feels very solid & the infotainment touchscreen
is fairly intuitive to use. The only weird thing is the single little indicator
switch on the left fork of the steering wheel, a bit like a motorbike’s, possibly
an afterthought.
The RWD differs from the four wheel drive Evo more than I’d first expected.
There’s clearly a lot more, or actually less, than just the number of wheels
driven that makes up this model. It strikes me as a bit more of a fun drive
than the more serious 4WD & at £34k cheaper it is more accessible.
Both versions are incredibly agile so I guess it depends how you want to
get round corners; fast & technical or fun & sliding (with change to buy a
BMW 5 series). Whichever Lamborghini you drive, the sheer sense of drama,
of driving something very special, of driving one of only a few hundred
examples, the noise & performance, is sure to put a big smile on your face.
Price: (from) £164,000
80 wirrallife.com