2014 Lamborghini Aventador LP-700R

Scribing a Line

Sant ‘Agata Bolognese oversteps the mark.

Lamborghini LPI 800-4 ‘Countach’. drivesection

Heritage is a highly lucrative business model amid the upper echelons of the OEM motor industry. For carmakers with a history to plunder and a reputation to uphold, there are seemingly unlimited numbers of what are politely termed high net worth individuals with bank accounts fit to burst, seeking super-priced, super-exclusive, supercar nirvana. For those at the sharp end, cost, it does appear really is not an object, but execution is, heritage is, provenance certainly is and authenticity, not to mention bragging rights very definitely are.

Given the strictures, regulations and privations currently visited upon carmakers, finding new and profitable revenue streams has become the very stuff of life itself. Currently there appear to be two main prongs to this end of the market: The limited run series, (or one-off), which largely tend to Continue reading “Scribing a Line”

Casting the Die

Lamborghini launched the Urus earlier this week, opening a ghastly new front in the SUV wars. But is its significance greater than simply its unabashed aggression? We have gathered some thoughts on the matter.

South of Revenna, and situated between the cities of Forli and Rimini, flows the Rubicone. From its source in the Apennine mountains, the river travels for about 80 km eastwards before meeting the Adriatic. In Roman times, it marked the border between Cisalpine Gaul and what we might call the greater Roman state. In 49 BC, General Gaius Julius Ceasar crossed this body of water with his army in direct contravention of the Republic’s laws, precipitating what can best be described as a military coup. As he did so, Ceasar not only unintentionally created a metaphor for the ages but is believed to have Continue reading “Casting the Die”

Grabbing The Bull By The Horns

Maybe Italian supercarmakers should revisit the past modus operandi of hiring the services of external styling houses. A recent case certainly gives food for thought in this regard.

fullsizeoutput_f19 — A Lamborghini Aventador S braving a sand storm in the desert of Photoshopistan, photo (c) Lamborghini S.p.A.

Bertone: gone. Italdesign: Volkswagenised. Pininfarina: part of the Mahindra conglomerate. The Italian carrozzerie have seen better times than today, that much is certain. Continue reading “Grabbing The Bull By The Horns”

Cars I Can’t Write About 4: The 2014 Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-R

I am unable to address the Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4.

I’d wanted to write that I could say nothing about Ferrari’s current range of cars. However, as a matter of fact I devoted a whole post to their website some months back. That said, there is nothing much about Ferrari’s actual cars that attracts me. The last time I saw a new one (I really don’t know which it was but it was red) I was as unmoved as if I had been shown a trough of diamonds being tipped in a lake.

Nonetheless, to be strict, I need to find a similar sort car to not talk about, one I haven’t even mentioned. The one in question is treated here. Continue reading “Cars I Can’t Write About 4: The 2014 Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-R”