Lamborghini Urus
The new Lamborghini SUV is a sight to behold.
New Breed
Despite the necessary shackles of an SUV design, the Lamborghini Urus does still manage to display fleeting glimpses of what makes Lamborghini supercars such spectacular eye candy. The aggressive, crouching stance is there, as well as the sloping headlights and grill pattern of uneven hexagons.
It is a departure from the standard smooth and gently streamlined lines of luxury SUVs like Porsche’s Cayenne. Instead, the Urus carries over the aggressive styling and angular accents that we see on the brand’s mainstream models like the Aventador.
Lamborghini Urus Engine
With a 4-litre V8 engine that produces 850 Nm of torque and 650hp of raw power, there is no doubting that Lamborghini has not forgotten its pedigree.
The Urus will take you from a standing start to 62 mph in 3.6 seconds, faster than a Chevy Corvette. Its speedometer tops out at a blistering 304kph (189 mph), outpacing the Bentayga by a sliver.
All-wheel drive and an automatic eight-speed gearbox give the driver excellent control of the vehicle. In case you want to surrender part of that control, the Urus also features Level 2 Driver Assistance with ANIMA (Adaptive Network Intelligent MAnagement).
Ther are four driving modes – Strada (street), Corsa (race), Terra (off-road), Neve (snow), Sabbia (sand) and Sport (Italiano for ‘sport’).
Inside the Urus
Who would have imagined 600 litres of boot space in a Lamborghini? Yet, here it is. Kudos to the designers for not making that overwhelmingly obvious from its exterior styling.
The irregular hexagon element of design continues inside and is prevalent on the dashboard which comes with two screens. The upper one is for managing the Lamborghini Infotainment System (LIS), vehicle settings, navigation and media.
The lower screen is handwriting-compatible and functions as input control. It allows you to set the fully-electric 12-way adjustable heated seats and the climate control.
Bang & Olufsen provides the 1,700-watt audio system with 3D sound.
How much is Lamborghini Urus
The Lamborghini Urus price erases any doubts as to which stable it belongs.
Prices for the SUV start at £131,500 (US$180,000), just under what you would shell out for a Gallardo or Huracan Spyder.
Rawkus TV Explores the Lamborghini Urus
The Urus is named after an extinct breed of massive cattle that weighed up to 1.5 tons, almost twice that of modern species. It is a poetic allusion to the rise up the weight class upon which Lamborghini has embarked.
I would have loved to say that it was a bold move by Lamborghini but that is definitely not the case. Porsche, Bentley and Mercedes Benz are just some of the many premium brands that have drifted into the lucrative luxury SUV market.
No doubt, internal research revealed that owners of cars sporting those prestigious badges also have a much less impractical SUV parked in the garage. The luxury SUV market is aimed squarely at the purists who cry out to no longer suffer the ignominy of a non-supercar badge in their palatial homes.
However, Lamborghini's foray away from supercars is not entirely new ground; rather, it is a return to heritage - Ferruccio Lamborghini established Lamborghini Trattori in 1948 to manufacture tractors, 15 years before entering the world of speed with Lamborghini Automobili.
The appetite for the Urus seems to be strong. I think Lamborghini has been careful not to create a true supercar-SUV hybrid that would ultimately serve only to cannibalise sales from the traditional Lamborghini range (which seems to be the case with the Bentley Bentayga).
The Urus just might be for the future of the super-SUV market what the Porsche Cayenne was for its origins.