Lamborghini Huracan Performante: A more sophisticated and effective breed of raging bull

With no shortage of desirable, fast and viscerally styled cars to its name since it was founded in 1963, the recently launched Lamborghini Huracan Performante is among the very best produced by the hallowed Italian supercar maker. The fastest, most focused and ferociously powerful in the Huracan model range, the Performante is however more than just a wild eye-catching design, but significantly improves on the base Huracan and adds new lightweight technology, revised chassis and drive-line set-ups, more power, and advanced active aerodynamics and aero vectoring technology as its crowning achievement.

An altogether different interpretation of the Huracan, the Performante instead distils, hone and thoroughly improves on the standard four-wheel-drive Huracan LP610-4, rather than the LP580-2 that reimagines the Huracan driving dynamic as a more old-school and pared-down rear-driver. In terms of design, the Huracan Performante may not be as rare, exclusive or ultimately powerful as some of the Raging Bull manufacturer’s wilder special edition cars, but it is a more evocative and sexy design that harmonises and incorporates its aerodynamic technology into a better looking design, not to mention being one of Lamborghinis most effective cars.

Intense aesthetic

Built using lightweight aluminium and carbon-fibre construction, the  Huracan Performante is — at 1382kg — 40kg lighter than the standard Huracan owing to the use of innovative forged composite carbon-fibre components. Allowing for more complex shapes and finished in naked gloss for interior panels and its razor sharp low front splitter, dramatically high rear wing, bonnet, rear bumper and some structural components, the Performante’s forged composite carbon-fibre uses resin-hardened, chopped carbon-fibres. Contrasting with the driven model’s matt orange finish, this adds to the Performante’s visceral, hard-edged aesthetic.

An athletic tautly skinned cabin-forward, mid-engine design with lithe, low and wide proportions, jutting lines and pinched waistline, the Performante is dramatic, predatory and oozes tension from every angle. A more intense take on the Huracan design, the Performante front fascia is redesigned with sharper more overtly aggressive shapes and open ducts to direct air through the front and underneath. Black side sills and high-set big bore exhausts complement its moody disposition, but it  is the Performante’s rear wing, which takes centre stage both aesthetically and technically.

Seductive and sophisticated

In addition to open rear fascia vents, the Performante’s Aerodynamica Lamborghini Attiva active aerodynamic system features rear ducts above the engine bay, which channel air through to its huge rear wing. Controlled with electric motors and flaps, the Performante’s active aerodynamics reduce drag for acceleration, or when closed, increase downforce by 750 per cent over the standard Huracan. Through corners, the Huracan’s rear wing however becomes an aero vectoring system, with its active flaps developing downforce on the inner rear wheel to provide more tenacious road-holding and tidier, more focused handling agility. 

One of the last naturally-aspirated supercars, the Huracan’s seductive sounding 5.2-litre V10 engine receives a 30BHP power hike for service in the lighter Performante. Mid-mounted for ideal, though slightly rear-biased weighting, the Performante’s 10-pot powerhouse pulls hard from tickover through and to its high-strung redline, in one vicious fell sweep. Developing 442lb/ft torque at 6500rpm and 631BHP at a peaky and intense 8000rpm, the rev-happy Performante launches off the line with immediacy and sure-footed four-wheel-drive traction, allowing it to blast through the 0-100km/h and 0-200km/h benchmarks in just 2.9-seconds and 8.9-seconds respectively, and attain a 325km/h top speed. 

Vicious versatility

More than a high rev hero, the Performante’s revised air intake system yields improved responsiveness and confidently willing mid-range flexibility, with 70 per cent torque available by just 1000rpm. Razor-sharp responses and throttle control allow one to dial in exact power increments, while torque and power accumulate with vicious urgency. With its soundtrack coalescing from mechanical staccato to resonant metallic snarl and hardening to a wailing howl, the Performante takes on a searing intensity as it climbs past 6000rpm. Meanwhile, a 7-speed dual-clutch gearbox with manual mode fixed paddle-shifters, dispatches cog shifts with decisive precision and concision. 

So effective are the Performante’s active aerodynamics and power hike that it even clinched the world’s fastest production car Nurburgring Nordschleife lap time — at 6:52.01-minutes — from the Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid hypercar. Designed for road and track, the Performante is remarkably connected and committed on road, with rear-biased four-wheel-drive and limited-slip rear differential allocating power rear-to-front and left and right on the rear axle, to most effectively put power down to tarmac. Intuitive yet flattering, the Performante’s aero vectoring witchcraft and balanced dynamic keep it composed, sharp and engaging through corners.

Reassuring and rewarding

In its element on winding hill climbs, the Performante is stable, smooth, settled and pushed tight into the road surface, it carries cornering speed in its stride. Meanwhile, with stiffer suspension with improved vertical and roll control, and optional adaptive magnetic dampers, one can tailor ride quality, and steering, throttle, engine, gearbox response modes. Inside, one feels at the centre of the action, with quick, meaty and precise steering feel and good front visibility complementing its reassuring, rewarding and adjustable chassis.

Roomier and more ergonomic inside than its predecessor — not as much as its slightly longer and taller Audi R8 cousin — the Performante is distinctly sporty inside. Stepping in through up-swinging doors, the Performante’s cabin employs exotic materials and design, and features a guarded missile launcher-like starter button, chunky steering wheel, and body-hugging sports seats to keep up with its enormous cornering ability and g-force, by keeping the driver firmly but comfortably in place.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Engine: 5.2-litre, mid-mounted, dry sump, V10-cylinders
• Bore x stroke: 84.5 x 92.8mm
• Compression ratio: 12.7:1
• Valve-train: 40-valve, DOHC, direct injection
• Gearbox: 7-speed automated dual clutch
• Driveline: Four-wheel-drive, multi-plate clutch, limited-slip rear differential
• Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 631 (640) [470] @8000rpm
• Specific power: 121.3BHP/litre
• Power-to-weight: 456.5BHP/tonne
• Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 442 (600) @6500rpm
• Specific torque: 115.3Nm/litre
• Torque-to-weight: 434.1Nm/tonne
• 0-100km/h: 2.9-seconds
• 0-200km/h: 8.9-seconds
• Top speed: 325km/h
• Fuel consumption, urban / extra-urban / combined: 19.6- / 10.3- / 13.7-litres/100km 
• CO2 emissions, combined: 314g/km
• Fuel capacity: 83-litres
• Length: 4506mm
• Width: 1924mm
• Height: 1165mm
• Wheelbase: 2620mm
• Track, F/R: 1668 / 1620mm
• Dry weight: 1382kg
• Weight distribution, F/R: 43% / 57%
• Cargo volume: 100-litres
• Steering: Electric-assisted rack & pinion
• Turning circle: 11.5-meters
• Suspension: Double wishbones, optional adaptive magnetic dampers
• Brakes, F/R: Ventilated, perforated carbon-ceramic discs 380 x 38mm / 356 x 32mm
• Brake calipers, F/R: 6-/4-piston calipers
• Braking distance, 100-0km/h: 31-meters
• Tyres: 245/30R20 / 305/30R20