It’s oncein a lifetime that one gets a chance to drive one’s ‘poster-car’. We are all exhilaration (and acceleration’ of course) as we share our experience behind the wheel ofthe Lamborghini Gallar do LP550-2
FORGET EVERYTHING THAT AN Indian would look for in a car, from its practicality, utility, cost-effectiveness and fuel effi ciency, etc.
Forget that cars are basically meant to ferry people from point A to point B and also forget the fact that they need to be sensible. Open up your minds, widen your imagination, use your creativity and think radical. Imagine a car that disrespects every purpose an ordinary man would look for in a vehicle. Imagine a car that is wild, ruthless, raw and utterly untameable. Yes, we are talking about the Lamborghini.
Most of you reading this piece would have seen, at some point of time in your lives, a poster of this car (or one of its siblings’) stuck on the wall. If not, they certainly have missed fantasising about the wildest cars on the face of earth. As for myself, I have loved Lamborghinis from the time I understood words like ‘car’ and ‘speed’. And why wouldn’t I, or, for that matter, any car-lover?
Just look at this machine we got for test here. Even when stationary, it looks utterly fast. Its sharply cut edges, steeply raked windscreen, big pentagonal air dams at the front and a roof that slopes all the way to the tail-lights are all responsible for its aggressive stance. Ever since Audi acquired Lamborghini a few years ago, the headlights and tail-lights too got the trademark LED treatment, which, undoubtedly looks stunning. The car’s body colour, yellow in this case, is carried inside the cabin too. Acres of yellow and black leather laid on dashboard, doors and upholstery look striking and bold. Fine details like the yellow stitching on black leather give the cabin an eye-catching contrast. Then there is the Lamborghini badge that sits proudly on the dash. Some of the bits in the cabin are plain and simple, such as the air vents and air-conditioning controls, while others seem to have come straight from the cockpit of an aircraft, like the switches to roll the windows up and down and to toggle the ESC on and off. The two analogue pods in the instrument console are also quite modest – one for the tachometer and another for the speedometer, simple and nothing outlandish about it.
The more interesting things begin when you take the key, put it in its slot and twist it to bring the gigantic 5.2-litre V10 engine to life. Now the curtain goes up and all the drama begins as the engine comes to life with a big shudder, revving up to 2,500 revolutions per minute and then settling down to idling speed. Unlike any other automatic gearbox, this one does not have the conventional selector. Pull the paddle with a ‘+’ on it and a minor ‘thuck’ confirms that you are in the first gear and ready to go.
From here onwards, there are a few things that one should keep in mind and abide by them without fail. One, it is a 550-PS and 540-Nm torque motor that promises to go from standstill to 100 km/h in less than four seconds and that is lightning quick. Two, the name of the car is LP550-2 and it suggests that all of those 550 PS are being transferred to only the rear two wheels, which means that it is going be a wild beast raring at the leash. Three, the car is worth almost three-and-a-half crore of rupees and if you don’t happen to own it, you might as well step out or take it easy, because you will not be able to afford to fix even the smallest of damages caused by your recklessness or carelessness.
With all these things clear in my mind, I started depressing the Gallardo’s pedal to crawl ahead, making my way through the hustle and bustle of Navi Mumbai. To my surprise, this car wasn’t that difficult to manoeuvre through traffic. It is quite a small a car and can actually go through narrow gaps with ease, although you might always be worried about scratches. The ground clearance also was good enough to take in its stride all the speed-breakers that I came across without scratching the underbody even once. Of course, it was the ride height lift function that played a role in keeping the under-body from any damage.
After driving around in traffic for some time, the moment finally came when the stretch of tarmac in front of me seemed to be long enough with no crossroads and sparse traffic. I could finally open the throttle brutally and see what the Gallardo was all about. Sitting only a few inches above the road and having felt every little undulation on the road through its stiffly sprung suspension and low-profile tyres, I decided to go flat out. Everything that happened afterwards was enough to give me the goose bumps and leave me panting for breath towards the end of my drive. Pedal to the metal, the LP550-2 roars and rushes to three-digit speeds even before your brain can register it. Every gear shift sends a strong ‘thuck’ through you and propels the car forward with an urgency the weak-hearted had better beware of. The delivery of power in this car is raw and ruthless. The eagerness that the car shows in losing sight of everything in its mirrors is unbelievable. And, believe me, all this in the normal manual mode. To make things even more menacing, there is a ‘Sport’ button on the centre console, which improves the throttle response and makes the roar louder. Beyond this, for hardcore racing purposes (strictly not advisable in everyday driving) is the ‘Corsa’ mode. Once selected, this mode stiffens up the suspension further, makes the steering heavier, reduces the interference of electronics in your driving and makes things hardcore. The Lamborghini, which had felt easy to drive when I started off, was something that demanded the highest amount of respect while driving now.
All of this was still all right on the straight road. Show the Lamborghini the corners and it pounces upon them with the same alacrity that a kid shows when he sees a candy; the only difference being that the kid does it innocently, while the Lamborghini does it with a wild aggression. However, thanks to the Pirellis, there is enough grip and, contrary to one’s expectations, the car doesn’t get handful. Things do become a little diffi cult, though, with this car in particular when the road surface is wet, because it is a rear-wheel drive one, unlike all the Gallardos until now. Over a decade ago, when Lamborghini stopped manufacturing the Diablo, they decided to go for a four-wheel drive system on all their cars. Since so much power is produced, it only makes sense to make the car a four-wheel drive one for best traction. The LP550-2 is an exception, for it was born of a special-edition car that Lamborghini had dedicated to Valentino Balboni: the test driver who served the company for 40 long years and who loved rear-wheel drive cars.
My stint behind the Lamborghini wheel didn’t last very long. When it’s the Gallardo, I don’t think one would get enough of driving it. It’s nothing short of a riot of power, excellence of engineering and an epitome of fun. It is a rich boy’s toy that demands immense respect, for, if mistreated, it can bite very hard indeed. But treat it well and it can give you the adrenaline rush that few other cars can. It might not be the most powerful of the lot that we tested this month, it might not be the costliest of the lot either, but it defi nitely is the most special for me. The Lamborghini for sure lived up to all the fascination I had for it since my childhood and some more.
Imagine a car that disrespects everypurpose an ordinaryman would look for ina vehicle. Imagine acar that is wild,ruthless, rawand utterlyuntameable
When it’s the Gallardo, Idon’t think one would get enough of driving it. It’s nothing short of a riot of power, excellenceof engineeringand an epitomeof fun
NEED TO KNOW
LAMBORGHINI
GALLARDO LP550-2
PRICE Rs 3.25 crore (Approx OTR, Pune)
ENGINE 5.2-litre, 550PS, 540Nm
TRANSMISSION Six-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive
PERFORMANCE 3.9 secs 0-100km/h(Claimed), 320km/h top speed
Story: Adhish Alawani
Photography: Sanjay Raikar
