Aventador [Official] Lamborghini Aventador S
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The Lamborghini Aventador is a mid-engine, two-seater sports car manufactured by Lamborghini. Predecessor: Lamborghini Murciélago. Successor: Lamborghini Revuelto. Production: 2011-2022.
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http://www.evo.co.uk/lamborghini/aventador/18742/lamborghini-aventador-s-review-does-the-big-lambo-now-have-the-chassis
its mighty V12?
STEVE SUTCLIFFE
23 JAN 2017
Image 1 of18
Image 1 of18
VERDICT:
Can new technology, rear-wheel steering and more power transform the Aventador?
EVO RATING:
PRICE:
from £271,146
FOR
Improved feel over standard car and a far more engaging chassis
AGAINST
Gearbox can't compete with the best modern transmissions
When it was unleashed upon the world in 2011, the Lamborghini Aventador was at the cutting edge technically. And, of course, it looked a million dollars. But since then it’s been side-swiped by a tide of hybrid hypercars – to a point where it was feeling, if not looking, a bit sorry for itself by the end of 2016.
So Lamborghini’s reaction to this gentle collapsing of its V12 range-topper is the car you see here: the refreshingly straight-named Aventador S.
Technical highlights
The big news technically about the S is its new electronic four-wheel-steering system. But as you can see, there have been numerous design changes as well, including a delightful new treatment around the rear wheelarches that is an unashamed nod to the Countach.
In its new clothes the Aventador S also flows much more cleanly through the air. Thanks in part to a new active electronic rear wing, Lamborghini claims the S develops 130 per cent more downforce than before, and that it’s 50 per cent more efficient aerodynamically overall.
> Click here to read our review of the Lamborghini Aventador SV
And development of the car doesn't stop there. The electronic dampers and suspension have been comprehensively re-engineered so that they respond in accordance with the new 4WS system. There’s a bespoke new Pirelli tyre that’s been developed because the dynamics of a car with rear steering alter completely the demands placed on the rubber. And the dynamic drive programme has been rewritten to include a fourth setting called Ego.
Image 13 of18
Image 13 of18
Forget the narcissistic connotations of the name (if you can) because in practice the Ego setting finally allows a driver to alter the parameters of the steering, powertrain and suspension separately from one another, which is a minor eureka moment for the Aventador. No longer do you have to put up with the thump-in-the-back upshifts that occur in Corsa mode just because you want max response from the steering and dampers.
And the final key change technically is the fitment of one single ECU to control ALL the car’s dynamic functions. Why, and what are the advantages of doing this? Because, says Lamborghini’s technical overlord Maurizio Reggiani, this has enabled his engineers to develop a harmony of response that you simply can't achieve when separate ECUs control separate dynamic functions. By having one big brain to control the whole shebang, the S, says Reggiani, has a consistency of reaction to a driver’s inputs ‘that we have never been able to achieve before, and you can feel this as soon as you start driving the car, at any speed, so not just when you are going fast.’
Engine and 0-60mph time
The V12 engine of the S has also been tickled so that it develops a fulsome 730bhp at 8400rpm – a rise of 40bhp – with an unchanged 509lb ft of torque at 5500rpm, and yet the car weighs no more than before: 1575kg dry. So while the headline statistics might not quite be up there with those of the fastest hypercars, 0- 62mph is still close at 2.9sec while 0-124mph (200kph) is suitably brisk at just 8.8sec. The top speed of 217mph also means the S is rarely going to get spanked by anything, at any price, on top end.
What’s it like to drive?
Reggiani’s also dead right about the new clarity of response to your inputs. On the move the first thing you notice about the S is how much less steering input is required, how direct this makes the front end feel, and how much more feel, proper feel, there is through the rim.
Then you notice how much cleaner the throttle response is. Every millimetre of travel on the pedal makes a difference this time, and you instantly feel more in control of the car as a result. You drive it rather than the other way round. Lamborghini, it seems, has finally got what this driving thing is all about.
And the key word is ‘detail’. The old car never lacked much when it came to generating headline numbers, nor was it short on pure brute force or aural drama. From the outside looking in, it seemed to have everything going for it.
But from behind the wheel it was a clumsy car to drive in some respects, with brake pedal responses that didn't match those of the throttle, steering that always felt detached from the rear axle somehow, and a chassis setup that was nothing if not determined in its desire to provide safe but endless amounts of understeer.
Image 5 of18
Image 5 of18
With the S, though, all that has changed, and mostly it’s the four-wheel-steering system that’s responsible for the leap forwards. How does it work? In simple terms it turns the rear wheels in the opposite direction to the fronts up to a maximum of 3.0 degrees at low speeds, while at higher speeds it turns them in the same direction by up to 1.5 degrees. The switching ‘window’ is between approximately 78 and 84mph, depending on how much yaw is detected at the time, but in practice the transition is seamless. All you’re aware of from behind the wheel is much sharper front-end bite with maybe a hint of neutral oversteer that never develops into full-blown oversteer on turn in – a massive step in the right direction for the Aventador. And then at high speed it feels pretty much glued at both ends, with far less steering input required to get it to turn-in, plus a lovely sense of control on the throttle mid-corner.
And because the car is so much better balanced under power across all speeds, this has allowed the engineers to send much more torque to the rear axle at any given time. Which has the effect of making the S feel like a rear-wheel-drive car most of the time, and a very well set up rear-wheel-drive car at that.
I did lots of laps in it at the Valencia Moto GP circuit, in all sorts of conditions: in the soaking wet, as it was drying and eventually in the bone dry. Which is when the S properly blew me away.
The engine remains a thing of rare loveliness and its longevity, says Lamborghini CEO Stefano Domenicali, is guaranteed for a good long time yet. In the S it pulls a bit harder in the mid-range and revs for another 150rpm before its limiter intrudes at 8500rpm. And it sounds even more incredible in this installation, if such a thing could be possible. Thank the lighter new exhaust system for that.
The single-clutch paddleshift gearbox works much as before, which means it’s OK but not brilliant compared with the best of the best. And the carbon-ceramic brakes now deliver a lot more feel through the pedal, which gives you a lot more confidence to really lean on them. All of which represent small but significant improvements.
Image 9 of18
Image 9 of18
But the chassis, which has probably been the Aventador’s weak spot since day one, well, it’s something else. Seemingly out of nowhere Reggiani and his team have turned their big V12 monster from a not especially well sorted wild animal into a genuine track weapon; one that turns in properly, is quite beautifully balanced mid corner, has mind-boggling traction on the way out of bends and which can be driven – and relished – right up near to the edge without scaring you half to death.
And it’s the harmony of response that Reggiani talks about that lies at the core of the car’s appeal. Everything in the Aventador S works ‘as one’ now, and it feels lighter on its feet, more agile and far better sorted as a result.
Oh yes, and on the road it also rides less uncomfortably than before when in Strada mode thanks to new damper settings, and it benefits from a smoother-shifting auto mode within the gearbox. Plus a slightly more intuitive digitised instrument display that alters in design as you scroll up through the various drive programmes.
Just a better supercar, full stop. A much better supercar, truth be told.
Price and rivals
The Aventador S costs from £271,146, if you’re in the market for a mid-engined V12 supercar then you’re going to struggle to find anything similar for that sort of money. The Pagani Huayra is perhaps closest, it produces similar power to the Lamborghini, but costs over £1million.
Ferrari’s F12 may not be mid-engined, and may not have quite the same presence as the Lamborghini, but it shouldn’t be dismissed as just a GT car. The F12’s engine revs in such a spectacular fashion that we’ve declared it has one of the best drivetrains of any car on sale. It’s also blessed with a capable and extremely agile chassis, which certainly makes it a worthy rival to the Aventador S.
its mighty V12?
STEVE SUTCLIFFE
23 JAN 2017
Image 1 of18
Image 1 of18
VERDICT:
Can new technology, rear-wheel steering and more power transform the Aventador?
EVO RATING:
PRICE:
from £271,146
FOR
Improved feel over standard car and a far more engaging chassis
AGAINST
Gearbox can't compete with the best modern transmissions
When it was unleashed upon the world in 2011, the Lamborghini Aventador was at the cutting edge technically. And, of course, it looked a million dollars. But since then it’s been side-swiped by a tide of hybrid hypercars – to a point where it was feeling, if not looking, a bit sorry for itself by the end of 2016.
So Lamborghini’s reaction to this gentle collapsing of its V12 range-topper is the car you see here: the refreshingly straight-named Aventador S.
Technical highlights
The big news technically about the S is its new electronic four-wheel-steering system. But as you can see, there have been numerous design changes as well, including a delightful new treatment around the rear wheelarches that is an unashamed nod to the Countach.
In its new clothes the Aventador S also flows much more cleanly through the air. Thanks in part to a new active electronic rear wing, Lamborghini claims the S develops 130 per cent more downforce than before, and that it’s 50 per cent more efficient aerodynamically overall.
> Click here to read our review of the Lamborghini Aventador SV
And development of the car doesn't stop there. The electronic dampers and suspension have been comprehensively re-engineered so that they respond in accordance with the new 4WS system. There’s a bespoke new Pirelli tyre that’s been developed because the dynamics of a car with rear steering alter completely the demands placed on the rubber. And the dynamic drive programme has been rewritten to include a fourth setting called Ego.
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Image 13 of18
Image 13 of18
Forget the narcissistic connotations of the name (if you can) because in practice the Ego setting finally allows a driver to alter the parameters of the steering, powertrain and suspension separately from one another, which is a minor eureka moment for the Aventador. No longer do you have to put up with the thump-in-the-back upshifts that occur in Corsa mode just because you want max response from the steering and dampers.
And the final key change technically is the fitment of one single ECU to control ALL the car’s dynamic functions. Why, and what are the advantages of doing this? Because, says Lamborghini’s technical overlord Maurizio Reggiani, this has enabled his engineers to develop a harmony of response that you simply can't achieve when separate ECUs control separate dynamic functions. By having one big brain to control the whole shebang, the S, says Reggiani, has a consistency of reaction to a driver’s inputs ‘that we have never been able to achieve before, and you can feel this as soon as you start driving the car, at any speed, so not just when you are going fast.’
Engine and 0-60mph time
The V12 engine of the S has also been tickled so that it develops a fulsome 730bhp at 8400rpm – a rise of 40bhp – with an unchanged 509lb ft of torque at 5500rpm, and yet the car weighs no more than before: 1575kg dry. So while the headline statistics might not quite be up there with those of the fastest hypercars, 0- 62mph is still close at 2.9sec while 0-124mph (200kph) is suitably brisk at just 8.8sec. The top speed of 217mph also means the S is rarely going to get spanked by anything, at any price, on top end.
What’s it like to drive?
Reggiani’s also dead right about the new clarity of response to your inputs. On the move the first thing you notice about the S is how much less steering input is required, how direct this makes the front end feel, and how much more feel, proper feel, there is through the rim.
Then you notice how much cleaner the throttle response is. Every millimetre of travel on the pedal makes a difference this time, and you instantly feel more in control of the car as a result. You drive it rather than the other way round. Lamborghini, it seems, has finally got what this driving thing is all about.
And the key word is ‘detail’. The old car never lacked much when it came to generating headline numbers, nor was it short on pure brute force or aural drama. From the outside looking in, it seemed to have everything going for it.
But from behind the wheel it was a clumsy car to drive in some respects, with brake pedal responses that didn't match those of the throttle, steering that always felt detached from the rear axle somehow, and a chassis setup that was nothing if not determined in its desire to provide safe but endless amounts of understeer.
Image 5 of18
Image 5 of18
With the S, though, all that has changed, and mostly it’s the four-wheel-steering system that’s responsible for the leap forwards. How does it work? In simple terms it turns the rear wheels in the opposite direction to the fronts up to a maximum of 3.0 degrees at low speeds, while at higher speeds it turns them in the same direction by up to 1.5 degrees. The switching ‘window’ is between approximately 78 and 84mph, depending on how much yaw is detected at the time, but in practice the transition is seamless. All you’re aware of from behind the wheel is much sharper front-end bite with maybe a hint of neutral oversteer that never develops into full-blown oversteer on turn in – a massive step in the right direction for the Aventador. And then at high speed it feels pretty much glued at both ends, with far less steering input required to get it to turn-in, plus a lovely sense of control on the throttle mid-corner.
And because the car is so much better balanced under power across all speeds, this has allowed the engineers to send much more torque to the rear axle at any given time. Which has the effect of making the S feel like a rear-wheel-drive car most of the time, and a very well set up rear-wheel-drive car at that.
I did lots of laps in it at the Valencia Moto GP circuit, in all sorts of conditions: in the soaking wet, as it was drying and eventually in the bone dry. Which is when the S properly blew me away.
The engine remains a thing of rare loveliness and its longevity, says Lamborghini CEO Stefano Domenicali, is guaranteed for a good long time yet. In the S it pulls a bit harder in the mid-range and revs for another 150rpm before its limiter intrudes at 8500rpm. And it sounds even more incredible in this installation, if such a thing could be possible. Thank the lighter new exhaust system for that.
The single-clutch paddleshift gearbox works much as before, which means it’s OK but not brilliant compared with the best of the best. And the carbon-ceramic brakes now deliver a lot more feel through the pedal, which gives you a lot more confidence to really lean on them. All of which represent small but significant improvements.
Image 9 of18
Image 9 of18
But the chassis, which has probably been the Aventador’s weak spot since day one, well, it’s something else. Seemingly out of nowhere Reggiani and his team have turned their big V12 monster from a not especially well sorted wild animal into a genuine track weapon; one that turns in properly, is quite beautifully balanced mid corner, has mind-boggling traction on the way out of bends and which can be driven – and relished – right up near to the edge without scaring you half to death.
And it’s the harmony of response that Reggiani talks about that lies at the core of the car’s appeal. Everything in the Aventador S works ‘as one’ now, and it feels lighter on its feet, more agile and far better sorted as a result.
Oh yes, and on the road it also rides less uncomfortably than before when in Strada mode thanks to new damper settings, and it benefits from a smoother-shifting auto mode within the gearbox. Plus a slightly more intuitive digitised instrument display that alters in design as you scroll up through the various drive programmes.
Just a better supercar, full stop. A much better supercar, truth be told.
Price and rivals
The Aventador S costs from £271,146, if you’re in the market for a mid-engined V12 supercar then you’re going to struggle to find anything similar for that sort of money. The Pagani Huayra is perhaps closest, it produces similar power to the Lamborghini, but costs over £1million.
Ferrari’s F12 may not be mid-engined, and may not have quite the same presence as the Lamborghini, but it shouldn’t be dismissed as just a GT car. The F12’s engine revs in such a spectacular fashion that we’ve declared it has one of the best drivetrains of any car on sale. It’s also blessed with a capable and extremely agile chassis, which certainly makes it a worthy rival to the Aventador S.
kingjr9000
Das Beste Enthusiast
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- 1,763
Lamborghini Confirms Aventador Successor Will Still Feature V12
by Gabe Beita Kiser
32,940 reads
Unlike Ferrari's future V12s, this one won't be mated to a hybrid drivetrain.
We were a bit sad to learn that the Volkswagen Group’s announcement of the
reasonably priced Audi R8 Spyder meant that sales of the drop-top Lamborghini Huracan could be in jeopardy. Not only is the R8 based off of the same platform, but its performance and new looks offer a serious argument against buying the Huracan for those on the fence about a Lambo because of the price. Fortunately, Lamborghini boss Stefano Domenicali told Car Advice that the brand has a secret weapon up its sleeve.
Its only task would be to differentiate future Lambos from the rest of the VW group’s offerings. That secret weapon is no nuke, but it may be as rare as a plutonium-grade weapon in the future thanks to fuel economy regulations. No more beating around the bush, the armory Domenicali is talking about is the V12 engine. Automakers once thought too stubborn to turn to turbochargers (looking at you Ferrari) have begun either axing these motors or supplementing them with turbochargers and hybrid systems. Lamborghini may use the same tactic as its competitors, but only out of necessity as in the case of the Urus SUV. For the rest of the lineup, displacement will rule.
“I think that the V12 is still alive, to be extended, because it is such an important part of our tradition and heritage. The future of the V12 is still important,” Domenicali said. Sure, that plan of action is not sustainable in the long term (although it’s lifespan may be extended by president Trump’s deregulation of the auto industry), but the company’s more immediate future looks good for the V12. “Emissions are important of course, and our goal is always to improve the efficiency of the engine, but with our numbers we don’t see realistic issues in the short term,” added Domenicali. Technology like the Aventador’s cylinder deactivation feature have something to do with preserving the power plant.
However the main reason behind the decision is that the Bull wants to set itself apart from the rest of the Volkswagen lineup (not that anyone will ever mistake it for a Golf or a Chiron). The takeaway from this is that you shouldn’t feel bad if your startup or lottery addiction hasn't yielded an Aventador-sized check just yet because there’s still time to cash in on both the V12 fury and the Aventador craze. “The Aventador has more than five or six more years to run and the next platform also has a V12 at the center of the project,” says Domenicali. “There is still space for us to extend the life of this iconic car for us,” he said. “We know that one element we can’t ignore is the speed with which we are on the market with the right product.
This is the right answer for the future of the Aventador.” Sleep tight without fear that the V12 will leave the company anytime soon. You’ll need the rest if you want to work for an Aventador.
by Gabe Beita Kiser
32,940 reads
Unlike Ferrari's future V12s, this one won't be mated to a hybrid drivetrain.
We were a bit sad to learn that the Volkswagen Group’s announcement of the
reasonably priced Audi R8 Spyder meant that sales of the drop-top Lamborghini Huracan could be in jeopardy. Not only is the R8 based off of the same platform, but its performance and new looks offer a serious argument against buying the Huracan for those on the fence about a Lambo because of the price. Fortunately, Lamborghini boss Stefano Domenicali told Car Advice that the brand has a secret weapon up its sleeve.
Its only task would be to differentiate future Lambos from the rest of the VW group’s offerings. That secret weapon is no nuke, but it may be as rare as a plutonium-grade weapon in the future thanks to fuel economy regulations. No more beating around the bush, the armory Domenicali is talking about is the V12 engine. Automakers once thought too stubborn to turn to turbochargers (looking at you Ferrari) have begun either axing these motors or supplementing them with turbochargers and hybrid systems. Lamborghini may use the same tactic as its competitors, but only out of necessity as in the case of the Urus SUV. For the rest of the lineup, displacement will rule.
“I think that the V12 is still alive, to be extended, because it is such an important part of our tradition and heritage. The future of the V12 is still important,” Domenicali said. Sure, that plan of action is not sustainable in the long term (although it’s lifespan may be extended by president Trump’s deregulation of the auto industry), but the company’s more immediate future looks good for the V12. “Emissions are important of course, and our goal is always to improve the efficiency of the engine, but with our numbers we don’t see realistic issues in the short term,” added Domenicali. Technology like the Aventador’s cylinder deactivation feature have something to do with preserving the power plant.
However the main reason behind the decision is that the Bull wants to set itself apart from the rest of the Volkswagen lineup (not that anyone will ever mistake it for a Golf or a Chiron). The takeaway from this is that you shouldn’t feel bad if your startup or lottery addiction hasn't yielded an Aventador-sized check just yet because there’s still time to cash in on both the V12 fury and the Aventador craze. “The Aventador has more than five or six more years to run and the next platform also has a V12 at the center of the project,” says Domenicali. “There is still space for us to extend the life of this iconic car for us,” he said. “We know that one element we can’t ignore is the speed with which we are on the market with the right product.
This is the right answer for the future of the Aventador.” Sleep tight without fear that the V12 will leave the company anytime soon. You’ll need the rest if you want to work for an Aventador.
TopspeedPT
Track Technician
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kingjr9000
Das Beste Enthusiast
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2018 LAMBORGHINI AVENTADOR S FIRST DRIVE
Viva La Rivoluzione
Scott Evans' Words, Manufacturer PhotosJanuary 26, 2017
A funny thing happened in 2015: Lamborghini suddenly got serious about making its big, 12-cylinder flagship go around a corner, not a traditional strength of such models.
Yes, the Aventador has had racy inboard, pushrod suspension from day one, but like so many previous V-12 Lamborghinis, it was still far better at going fast in a straight line than a curved one. That changed with the Aventador SV and was quickly followed by the Aventador-based Centenario. My fervent hope was that this would be a permanent change in philosophy, and having now experienced the Aventador S, I can happily report the revolution lives.
The Aventador S’ improved handling is primarily a result of a rear steering system that can turn the rear wheels up to 1.5 degrees in-phase with the front wheels for better high-speed cornering or up to three degrees opposite the front wheels for better low-speed cornering. Lamborghini claims this has the same effect as lengthening the wheelbase 28.6 inches at high speeds for better stability or shortening it 19.7 inches at low speeds to improve the turning circle. In either direction, the wheels adjust in 5 milliseconds, so quickly as to be completely imperceptible. The system works at all speeds right up to the car’s 218-plus mph drag-limited top speed.
To show off the improvement, Lamborghini arranged a simple slalom test pitting the outgoing Aventador against the new Aventador S. The difference is palpable. With rear steer and a quicker steering ratio, the S changes direction much more willingly and with less effort. The effect is most greatly felt in the rear end, which feels heavy and intractable on the old car. On the new car, the weight behind the driver transfers much more quickly, It feels like the rear end is working with the front rather than being dragged along around the corner. On the whole, the system has the effect of making the rear end feel hundreds of pounds lighter, despite the fact it weighs exactly the same. The roughly 13 pounds added by the rear steer hardware has been canceled by a new exhaust system that saves roughly the same amount of weight and sounds better. A standard, U.S.-spec Aventador weighs about 4,100 pounds.
Other improvements to the car’s behavior come from a revised aerodynamic package, which features a more aggressive front splitter, better control of airflow around the sides and beneath the car, and an active rear wing with three positions. In total, they improve downforce by a claimed 130 percent. Lamborghini also says it has improved the trade-off between drag and downforce by 50 percent. Also on the docket: an extra 40 horsepower for a total of 730 hp on the American scale with all of it on the top end, magnetorheological dampers with new software, new rear tires with stiffer sidewalls designed to withstand the additional forces generated by the rear steer, new all-wheel-drive calibration software, and new software for the seven-speed, single-clutch, automated manual transmission,. There’s also an EGO (yes, seriously) driving mode, which gives you the long overdue ability to make individual changes to the steering, dampers, and powertrain rather than stick to the three preset modes of Strada (street), Sport, and Corsa (race).
With ugly weather looming near the Ricardo Tormo race track west of Valencia, Spain, Lamborghini sent us straight onto the track first thing with only a briefing about the track rules. Being on a track, the Corsa setting was the natural choice of driving mode, but I was never comfortable with it. The car felt tightly wound and was always responding to my inputs with greater outputs than I had intended. The flashing of the stability control light was a constant fixture of corner exits. Then I remembered how much Randy Pobst had preferred Sport mode to Corsa in the old Aventador.
What a difference. In Corsa, the steering is heavy and only loads up more as cornering forces build. Sport steering is lighter, so you don’t have to muscle the car around. The throttle, far too touchy in Corsa, becomes progressive and linear in Sport and allows for far better control exiting corners. Suddenly, the stability control light didn’t show its face. Going a step further, I set EGO mode to my preferred calibrations and found the car a surprisingly willing track companion.
I do wish you could set the stability control system to its Corsa mode independent of driving mode. If you’re not in Corsa driving mode, your only stability control options are on, Sport, or off. Sport is a bit more aggressive than Corsa.
Thankfully, it’s a small point to belabor. The Aventador S is remarkably stable for a big, heavy, mid-engine car. With stability control off, it’s a little bit of a handful and demands a certain driving style, but it’s hardly the bucking bronco you’d expect it to be. Most importantly, it does not like to be trail-braked. Doing so will take too much weight off the rear end and cause it to dance around. If you’ve introduced even a little too much steering, that big V-12 will attempt to pass you in the corner. I’m pleasantly surprised to find the rear end steps out predictably and not all that quickly, allowing you to easily catch it with quick hands. Likewise on corner exit, a lead foot will kick the back end out, but it’s predictable and easily controlled, unusually so for a mid-engine car.
In general, though, its default cornering balance is mid-late corner understeer. If you finish your braking in a straight line and turn in smoothly at just the right speed, the S will sail through the corner and allow the all-wheel drive to pull it out of the exit. Ask a little too much of it, and it’s mild to moderate understeer all the way through. With stability control on, your only option is to stay off the throttle and wait it out. With it off, a well-timed stab of the throttle will loosen the rear end and put the car into a small four-wheel drift, which if done correctly will point the car out of the corner. Precisely how it will react depends on your driving mode, as each has a different front/rear torque bias, with Strada set to 40/60 percent front/rear, Sport at 10/90, and Corsa at 20/80.
Should you choose to keep stability control switched on so as not to ball-up your $421,350 car (before options and customization), you’ll find it’s very polite about correcting you. It doesn’t grab angrily at the brakes or shut the throttle off. Rather, it brakes just enough to keep the car straight and restricts the throttle only enough to prevent oversteer. This eliminates the option to correct understeer with the throttle, so you’ll just have to drive better on the way into the corner.
The Aventador S is also remarkably composed over bumps and curbing. The upgrade to magnetorheological shocks is a welcome one because even in Corsa mode they soak up bumps nicely and keep the chassis settled and planted to the ground.
The weak point remains with the transmission. As refined as Lamborghini has been able to get it, the compromise inherent to a single-clutch automated manual remains. Shifts are comparatively slow and clunky, exacerbated by the incredible acceleration g’s before and after the shift. The new software is an improvement, but it’s still nothing like a Huracan or any dual-clutch-equipped competitor (Lamborghini says there simply isn’t enough room to package a dual-clutch transmission with the engine pointed backwards and the transmission between the seats). As a result, upshifts still induce a big shunt, though it’s no longer the shovel to the back of the head it used to be. Upshifting while exiting a corner feels as though it could unbalance the car, though it never did. Coming completely off the throttle at high RPM also introduces a shunt as it would in a high-powered manual transmission car, though it’s been mitigated somewhat by transferring engine torque forward to reduce dive.
Processing all these nuances at once requires practice. The Aventador S remains a wickedly quick car. The accelerative capability of that screaming V-12, which sounds as good as ever and spits fire constantly from the tailpipes under full throttle, is enough to make even power-jaded supercar drivers widen their eyes. Corners arrive in an instant, and with the car firmly against trail braking, getting your braking point right is critical. The big carbon-ceramics seem to lose their initial bite as they heat up, and the pedal gets a little longer. That being said total braking force doesn’t diminish, and the pedal is easy to modulate. The weight transfer also takes a little getting used to. It happens quickly and can fool you into thinking the car’s going to get loose when it actually has plenty of grip left. Once in the corner, it’s best to have adopted a race car-like reclined seating position because the low windshield header can make looking through some corners difficult if you sit upright.
It’s no exaggeration to say the Aventador S is much better on the track than the original Aventador. As you might expect, it’s not as capable or easy to drive at race speeds as the hardcore Aventador SV, but it’s a big step in the right direction. What’s it like on the street, though? It’s largely improved there as well.
You’ll find a much nicer car to live with day to day. The adaptive magnetorheological shocks are a godsend, enormously improving ride quality and reducing interior noise. The transmission shifts more smoothly than before, though it’s still with a frustrating shunt. It’s slow, lazy, and left to its own devices in Strada mode, so I’d recommend flicking those wonderful paddles at your fingertips or at least setting it to Sport. The quicker front ratio and rear steering help the big car feel much more nimble, though no smaller, on a tight canyon road. Again, seating position matters because it can be difficult to look through corners, and the seat’s lowest vertical position isn’t that low. Lay it back.
Unfortunately, I cannot give a full account of the Aventador S’ on-road performance capability because it began to rain just as we set off on our road drive. Despite Pirelli’s assurance that wet weather performance is improved on these specially designed PZero tires, even moderately aggressive driving on wet roads would induce understeer or oversteer and bring on the stability control.
I do have one request, though, and that’s to ditch the rear wing position light on the dash. It flashes every time the wing changes position, which is almost constantly on a track or windy road as you speed up and slow down. It’s very distracting, and it’s useless information, anyway. Aside from an updated digital instrument cluster without the frames around the gauges, the interior is largely the same, though only the older-model, Audi-sourced infotainment system is showing its age.
Since the introduction of the Gallardo, Lamborghini has seemed content to focus its handling refinements on the smaller, lighter supercar and let the Murcielago and now Aventador stick to straight line shock and awe. Thankfully, those days are done. The Aventador S is the latest example of a refreshing new trend in building more rounded, capable, 12-cylinder Lamborghinis. As good as the Huracan is, there remains an allure to the big, angry, no-quarter Aventador, and we can’t help but smile a little broader as it strikes more blows against the laws of physics.
Viva La Rivoluzione
Scott Evans' Words, Manufacturer PhotosJanuary 26, 2017
A funny thing happened in 2015: Lamborghini suddenly got serious about making its big, 12-cylinder flagship go around a corner, not a traditional strength of such models.
Yes, the Aventador has had racy inboard, pushrod suspension from day one, but like so many previous V-12 Lamborghinis, it was still far better at going fast in a straight line than a curved one. That changed with the Aventador SV and was quickly followed by the Aventador-based Centenario. My fervent hope was that this would be a permanent change in philosophy, and having now experienced the Aventador S, I can happily report the revolution lives.
The Aventador S’ improved handling is primarily a result of a rear steering system that can turn the rear wheels up to 1.5 degrees in-phase with the front wheels for better high-speed cornering or up to three degrees opposite the front wheels for better low-speed cornering. Lamborghini claims this has the same effect as lengthening the wheelbase 28.6 inches at high speeds for better stability or shortening it 19.7 inches at low speeds to improve the turning circle. In either direction, the wheels adjust in 5 milliseconds, so quickly as to be completely imperceptible. The system works at all speeds right up to the car’s 218-plus mph drag-limited top speed.
To show off the improvement, Lamborghini arranged a simple slalom test pitting the outgoing Aventador against the new Aventador S. The difference is palpable. With rear steer and a quicker steering ratio, the S changes direction much more willingly and with less effort. The effect is most greatly felt in the rear end, which feels heavy and intractable on the old car. On the new car, the weight behind the driver transfers much more quickly, It feels like the rear end is working with the front rather than being dragged along around the corner. On the whole, the system has the effect of making the rear end feel hundreds of pounds lighter, despite the fact it weighs exactly the same. The roughly 13 pounds added by the rear steer hardware has been canceled by a new exhaust system that saves roughly the same amount of weight and sounds better. A standard, U.S.-spec Aventador weighs about 4,100 pounds.
Other improvements to the car’s behavior come from a revised aerodynamic package, which features a more aggressive front splitter, better control of airflow around the sides and beneath the car, and an active rear wing with three positions. In total, they improve downforce by a claimed 130 percent. Lamborghini also says it has improved the trade-off between drag and downforce by 50 percent. Also on the docket: an extra 40 horsepower for a total of 730 hp on the American scale with all of it on the top end, magnetorheological dampers with new software, new rear tires with stiffer sidewalls designed to withstand the additional forces generated by the rear steer, new all-wheel-drive calibration software, and new software for the seven-speed, single-clutch, automated manual transmission,. There’s also an EGO (yes, seriously) driving mode, which gives you the long overdue ability to make individual changes to the steering, dampers, and powertrain rather than stick to the three preset modes of Strada (street), Sport, and Corsa (race).
With ugly weather looming near the Ricardo Tormo race track west of Valencia, Spain, Lamborghini sent us straight onto the track first thing with only a briefing about the track rules. Being on a track, the Corsa setting was the natural choice of driving mode, but I was never comfortable with it. The car felt tightly wound and was always responding to my inputs with greater outputs than I had intended. The flashing of the stability control light was a constant fixture of corner exits. Then I remembered how much Randy Pobst had preferred Sport mode to Corsa in the old Aventador.
What a difference. In Corsa, the steering is heavy and only loads up more as cornering forces build. Sport steering is lighter, so you don’t have to muscle the car around. The throttle, far too touchy in Corsa, becomes progressive and linear in Sport and allows for far better control exiting corners. Suddenly, the stability control light didn’t show its face. Going a step further, I set EGO mode to my preferred calibrations and found the car a surprisingly willing track companion.
I do wish you could set the stability control system to its Corsa mode independent of driving mode. If you’re not in Corsa driving mode, your only stability control options are on, Sport, or off. Sport is a bit more aggressive than Corsa.
Thankfully, it’s a small point to belabor. The Aventador S is remarkably stable for a big, heavy, mid-engine car. With stability control off, it’s a little bit of a handful and demands a certain driving style, but it’s hardly the bucking bronco you’d expect it to be. Most importantly, it does not like to be trail-braked. Doing so will take too much weight off the rear end and cause it to dance around. If you’ve introduced even a little too much steering, that big V-12 will attempt to pass you in the corner. I’m pleasantly surprised to find the rear end steps out predictably and not all that quickly, allowing you to easily catch it with quick hands. Likewise on corner exit, a lead foot will kick the back end out, but it’s predictable and easily controlled, unusually so for a mid-engine car.
In general, though, its default cornering balance is mid-late corner understeer. If you finish your braking in a straight line and turn in smoothly at just the right speed, the S will sail through the corner and allow the all-wheel drive to pull it out of the exit. Ask a little too much of it, and it’s mild to moderate understeer all the way through. With stability control on, your only option is to stay off the throttle and wait it out. With it off, a well-timed stab of the throttle will loosen the rear end and put the car into a small four-wheel drift, which if done correctly will point the car out of the corner. Precisely how it will react depends on your driving mode, as each has a different front/rear torque bias, with Strada set to 40/60 percent front/rear, Sport at 10/90, and Corsa at 20/80.
Should you choose to keep stability control switched on so as not to ball-up your $421,350 car (before options and customization), you’ll find it’s very polite about correcting you. It doesn’t grab angrily at the brakes or shut the throttle off. Rather, it brakes just enough to keep the car straight and restricts the throttle only enough to prevent oversteer. This eliminates the option to correct understeer with the throttle, so you’ll just have to drive better on the way into the corner.
The Aventador S is also remarkably composed over bumps and curbing. The upgrade to magnetorheological shocks is a welcome one because even in Corsa mode they soak up bumps nicely and keep the chassis settled and planted to the ground.
The weak point remains with the transmission. As refined as Lamborghini has been able to get it, the compromise inherent to a single-clutch automated manual remains. Shifts are comparatively slow and clunky, exacerbated by the incredible acceleration g’s before and after the shift. The new software is an improvement, but it’s still nothing like a Huracan or any dual-clutch-equipped competitor (Lamborghini says there simply isn’t enough room to package a dual-clutch transmission with the engine pointed backwards and the transmission between the seats). As a result, upshifts still induce a big shunt, though it’s no longer the shovel to the back of the head it used to be. Upshifting while exiting a corner feels as though it could unbalance the car, though it never did. Coming completely off the throttle at high RPM also introduces a shunt as it would in a high-powered manual transmission car, though it’s been mitigated somewhat by transferring engine torque forward to reduce dive.
Processing all these nuances at once requires practice. The Aventador S remains a wickedly quick car. The accelerative capability of that screaming V-12, which sounds as good as ever and spits fire constantly from the tailpipes under full throttle, is enough to make even power-jaded supercar drivers widen their eyes. Corners arrive in an instant, and with the car firmly against trail braking, getting your braking point right is critical. The big carbon-ceramics seem to lose their initial bite as they heat up, and the pedal gets a little longer. That being said total braking force doesn’t diminish, and the pedal is easy to modulate. The weight transfer also takes a little getting used to. It happens quickly and can fool you into thinking the car’s going to get loose when it actually has plenty of grip left. Once in the corner, it’s best to have adopted a race car-like reclined seating position because the low windshield header can make looking through some corners difficult if you sit upright.
It’s no exaggeration to say the Aventador S is much better on the track than the original Aventador. As you might expect, it’s not as capable or easy to drive at race speeds as the hardcore Aventador SV, but it’s a big step in the right direction. What’s it like on the street, though? It’s largely improved there as well.
You’ll find a much nicer car to live with day to day. The adaptive magnetorheological shocks are a godsend, enormously improving ride quality and reducing interior noise. The transmission shifts more smoothly than before, though it’s still with a frustrating shunt. It’s slow, lazy, and left to its own devices in Strada mode, so I’d recommend flicking those wonderful paddles at your fingertips or at least setting it to Sport. The quicker front ratio and rear steering help the big car feel much more nimble, though no smaller, on a tight canyon road. Again, seating position matters because it can be difficult to look through corners, and the seat’s lowest vertical position isn’t that low. Lay it back.
Unfortunately, I cannot give a full account of the Aventador S’ on-road performance capability because it began to rain just as we set off on our road drive. Despite Pirelli’s assurance that wet weather performance is improved on these specially designed PZero tires, even moderately aggressive driving on wet roads would induce understeer or oversteer and bring on the stability control.
I do have one request, though, and that’s to ditch the rear wing position light on the dash. It flashes every time the wing changes position, which is almost constantly on a track or windy road as you speed up and slow down. It’s very distracting, and it’s useless information, anyway. Aside from an updated digital instrument cluster without the frames around the gauges, the interior is largely the same, though only the older-model, Audi-sourced infotainment system is showing its age.
Since the introduction of the Gallardo, Lamborghini has seemed content to focus its handling refinements on the smaller, lighter supercar and let the Murcielago and now Aventador stick to straight line shock and awe. Thankfully, those days are done. The Aventador S is the latest example of a refreshing new trend in building more rounded, capable, 12-cylinder Lamborghinis. As good as the Huracan is, there remains an allure to the big, angry, no-quarter Aventador, and we can’t help but smile a little broader as it strikes more blows against the laws of physics.
sako97
Autotechnik Ace
- Messages
- 5,634
Aventador S unveiling in NYC. I must say the visual changes work well in the flesh. Balloon white is still my favorite non-pearlescent white
Enough change to attract perspective clientele who may not have an Aventador or have owned a pre-FL in the past and not too radical of a change to diminish SV values.
I'm still a F12 person in this category.
Enough change to attract perspective clientele who may not have an Aventador or have owned a pre-FL in the past and not too radical of a change to diminish SV values.
I'm still a F12 person in this category.
A.P.
High-Rev Hero
- Messages
- 2,122
I personally think that the new Ford GT (Even though its "limited") is a better comparison to the Aventador S than an F12. I don`t think that F12 customers think about the Aventador and vice versa when they buy them. They are made for completely different people. One is a higher end front engine Super GT, while the other is a fully fledged higher end Mid-engine Supercar.
sako97
Autotechnik Ace
- Messages
- 5,634
I'm sure there are tons of posers that will upgrade and start a backyard barbeque rehearsal for 2017
#supercarsoflondon #londonholiday #sloanestreet
The last couple summers I've found that only thing worse than poseurs reving their supercars in 5mph traffic in Côté d'azur and London are all the spotters who camp out on the streets and walk behind the cars as they rev further slowing traffic.
Fortunately it's not like 2008-2012, where it was comparatively lawless - the folks on holiday were constantly reving exotics with straight pipes, racing down the streets in the early mornings, and illegally parking when they arrived at their destination.
TopspeedPT
Track Technician
- Messages
- 3,746
kingjr9000
Das Beste Enthusiast
- Messages
- 1,763
That didn't take long.
Lamborghini Aventador spy photos suggest hotter version is en route
Aventador Performante, is that you?
It was only a few months ago when Lamborghini spruced up the Aventador range by introducing the S version to serve as a mid-cycle refresh for the V12 supercar and already work is well underway at something new. It’s too early to tell whether we’re looking at a prototype of the flagship SV facelift or if this is some sort of a new member to be positioned between the S and the sold-out Superveloce. That being said, we can’t imagine the SV being dethroned by this or any other version for that matter, so our money is on a mid-range model.
Check out the front end of all three cars (S, SV, prototype) in the photo comparison below.
For what it’s worth, the car is already exhibiting some change over the two existing members of the Aventador family. There’s something going on with the front bumper as it seems to be a work in progress at this point and it also has some black duct tape to hide something. The biggest change is noticeable at the back where the prototype had a pair of exhaust tips in the same vein as those of the recently introduced Huracan Performante.
As a matter of fact, you can see the Aventador was being accompanied by the new Lord of the Nürburgring. Ignore the hexagonal exhaust borrowed from the regular Aventador as that one only had a decorative purpose, with the fully functional exhaust tips being mounted higher and flanking the missing license plate.
You can easily spot the rear differences between the Aventador S, the SV, and the prototype in the photo comparison below.
It remains to be seen what will become of this, either a new entry in the Aventador’s lineup or the refreshed SV. Whatever it will be, expect the Huracan Performante’s active aero tech dubbed “Aerodinamica Lamborghini Attiva” to find its way in Sant’Agata Bolognese’s crown jewel. The signs are already there.
Taking into account the Aventador S was introduced in December 2016, don’t expect this new version to come out anytime soon. A best-case scenario would have to be the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, but we wouldn’t hold our breath. When it will arrive, it might be able to trump the 6:52:01 'Ring lap time achieved by the Huracan Performante, which would consequently be a massive improvement over the Aventador SV's 6:59:73 lap.
Photos: CarPix
http://www.motor1.com/news/138900/lamborghini-aventador-performante-spy-photos/
Lamborghini Aventador spy photos suggest hotter version is en route
Aventador Performante, is that you?
It was only a few months ago when Lamborghini spruced up the Aventador range by introducing the S version to serve as a mid-cycle refresh for the V12 supercar and already work is well underway at something new. It’s too early to tell whether we’re looking at a prototype of the flagship SV facelift or if this is some sort of a new member to be positioned between the S and the sold-out Superveloce. That being said, we can’t imagine the SV being dethroned by this or any other version for that matter, so our money is on a mid-range model.
Check out the front end of all three cars (S, SV, prototype) in the photo comparison below.
For what it’s worth, the car is already exhibiting some change over the two existing members of the Aventador family. There’s something going on with the front bumper as it seems to be a work in progress at this point and it also has some black duct tape to hide something. The biggest change is noticeable at the back where the prototype had a pair of exhaust tips in the same vein as those of the recently introduced Huracan Performante.
As a matter of fact, you can see the Aventador was being accompanied by the new Lord of the Nürburgring. Ignore the hexagonal exhaust borrowed from the regular Aventador as that one only had a decorative purpose, with the fully functional exhaust tips being mounted higher and flanking the missing license plate.
You can easily spot the rear differences between the Aventador S, the SV, and the prototype in the photo comparison below.
It remains to be seen what will become of this, either a new entry in the Aventador’s lineup or the refreshed SV. Whatever it will be, expect the Huracan Performante’s active aero tech dubbed “Aerodinamica Lamborghini Attiva” to find its way in Sant’Agata Bolognese’s crown jewel. The signs are already there.
Taking into account the Aventador S was introduced in December 2016, don’t expect this new version to come out anytime soon. A best-case scenario would have to be the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, but we wouldn’t hold our breath. When it will arrive, it might be able to trump the 6:52:01 'Ring lap time achieved by the Huracan Performante, which would consequently be a massive improvement over the Aventador SV's 6:59:73 lap.
Photos: CarPix
http://www.motor1.com/news/138900/lamborghini-aventador-performante-spy-photos/
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Lamborghini
Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of luxury sports
cars and SUVs based in Sant'Agata Bolognese. It was founded in 1963 by Ferruccio
Lamborghini (1916-1993) to compete with Ferrari. The company is owned by the
Volkswagen Group through its subsidiary Audi.
Official website: Lamborghini
Official website: Lamborghini
