The 2007 Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 was a stunning drive, but this new LP 570-4 Superleggera is even better. Put your foot down outside Tai Po and the 5.2-litre V10 engine roars at the lights, and at green you can paddle-shift yourself into automotive orbit with a sprint to 100km/h in 3.4 seconds - or 200km/h in 10.2 seconds, if you dare.
Launched in Hong Kong at Metal Zone in Elements on June 7, the HK$3.88 million Superleggera is as 'superlight' on the road as its Italian name suggests; so easy to steer at the wheel and so eager to push, even when the law's but a couple of cars away. This latest Gallardo improves the angular muscle of its predecessor and embodies Lamborghini's latest developments in drive dynamics and fuel efficiency. It goes like the wind.
That's because the marque has stripped 70kg off its predecessor's weight to make this 1,340kg Superleggera the lightest road-going Lamborghini yet. Many of the new car's parts have been made in carbon fibre, which Lamborghini first incorporated into its Countach in the 1980s. The rear windshield, side and engine-display windows are made from polycarbonate, while the rear spoiler, sills, diffuser, underbody panelling parts and mirror casings are carbon fibre.
The Superleggera has also lightened its interior load with a flashy, striped centre tunnel cover, door panels and sports seats' shells in carbon fibre, with upholstery and dash in lightweight black Alcantara instead of leather. Lamborghini's Centro Stile has maintained the Gallardo's luxury, but improved its aerodynamics with new sill elements under the aluminium body shell, lighter 19-inch wheels and a redesigned diffuser incorporating four large tailpipes. Large trapezoidal air intakes on the front bumper improve cooling and downforce.
Such developments enable the Superleggera to reduce the previous Gallardo's fuel consumption by 20.5 per cent (at 20.4 litres per 100km in town) and cut in-town carbon dioxide emissions from the LP 560-4's 330g/km to the test car's 319g/km. The 570-horsepower Superleggera has 10 more horses than its predecessor and can bang you to 325km/h, in theory. Hit the gas and you feel the whine and then the roar of the V10 behind you as it works up to 540Nm of torque and then sends butterflies around your stomach at unprintable speeds.
The test car is more stable than expected, and cornering below Lion Rock is easy with four-wheel drive and a front/rear weight distribution of 43/57 per cent. The brakes are brutally sharp.