Recently, Lamborghini announced the official discontinuation of its top supercar Aventador (Aventador) and the last model, the Aventador LP 780-4 Ultimae, will be auctioned through RM Sotheby's on April 19. At this point, Aventador, who had served for 11 years, officially withdrew from the stage of history.
As a world-famous supercar brand, the four words "Lamborghini" have a pivotal position in any occasion, and the flagship models of previous generations are regarded as the jewels in the crown of Lamborghini, that is, the "big bull" in everyone's mouth. From Muira in 1966 to Aventador in 2022, lamborghini bulls that have been developing for more than 50 years have been leading the progress of supercars in the world, and what are the glories of each generation of models in their own eras, let us pull the time to the 60s of the last century and feel the charm of Lamborghini's flagship supercar together.
#开创先河 – Miura (1966–1972)
The Muira wasn't the lamborghini's first sports car, but it was the first lamborghini to be powered by a V12 engine. At the same time, as a classic in the history of world sports cars, the Lamborghini Miura also pioneered the mid-engine two-seater sports car and became the world's first mass-produced road supercar. Of course, miura also laid the standard for the subsequent Lamborghini bulls - the mid-layout + V12 engine.
It is worth mentioning that the "LP" in the lamborghini model name is the Italian abbreviation of "Longitudinale Posteriore", which is used to mean that "the engine is placed in the engine compartment behind the crew compartment in portrait".
From the appearance point of view, the design of the Lamborghini Muira seems to be different from the wild bull we remember, although it is a mid-engine layout, but the silhouette of its long front and short tail GT sports car is closer to the Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona of the same period, and the front and rear reverse opening hatch is a highlight, but the lack of scissor doors is less flavorful.
The first Miura P400 model is equipped with a 4.0-liter V12 engine with a maximum power of 350 hp and a peak torque of 378 Nm, matching a 5-speed manual transmission with a maximum speed of 277 km/h and a 0-100 km/h acceleration time of 6.7 seconds, using rear-wheel drive.
Later Lamborghini also introduced an upgraded version of the Miura P400 S and the more powerful Miura P400 SV, which reached a maximum power of 385 hp, a peak torque of 399 Nm and a top speed of more than 290 km/h. It should be noted that this is the origin of the "SV" model in the Lamborghini Big Bull product line: SV is an abbreviation for "SuperVeloce" in Italian, which literally translates as "super fast".
#传世经典 – Countach (1974–1990)
Many people seem to prefer Countach to Miura as the originator of Lamborghini's bulls.
In fact, the Counterach LP 500 prototype was already publicly unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in 1971, and the cool shape created by the young designer Gandini was crazy in that era, even if it was a bit risky, but the completely unconventional idea also made the Counterach design epoch-making.
Although the LP 500 did not meet the mass production requirements, the later Countach production version , countach LP 400 , still followed the overall design of the prototype car, and the details did not prevent it from being like the fantasy of the alien version, the classic wedge body is still used today, and The Countach also added Lamborghini's iconic "scissor door". In terms of power, the Countach LP 400 is equipped with a 4.0-liter naturally aspirated V12 engine with a maximum power of 375 hp, a peak torque of 361 Nm, a top speed of 309 km/h, and an acceleration time of 0-100 km/h of 5.4 seconds.
In 1978, Lamborghini introduced the upgraded Countach LP 400 S, which incorporated a large aerodynamic kit, which was significantly more aggressive in visuals and very combative. Unfortunately, the Countach LP 400 S's power has been reduced from 375 hp to 355 hp. Fortunately, the 1982 Lamborghini launched the Countach LP 500 S to make up for this regret, the LP 500 S V12 engine displacement increased from 4.0 liters to 4.8 liters, the maximum power is the same as the LP 400 is 375 horsepower, and the peak torque is increased to 410 Nm.
The Countach upgrade was not over, and three years later, in 1985, Lamborghini released a model called the Countach LP 5000 QV, which was once again increased to 5.2 liters of engine displacement, with a maximum power of 455 horsepower and a peak torque of 500 Nm, creating the ultimate version of the Countach.
Interestingly, it is precisely because The Countach is so classic that Lamborghini released the all-new Countach LPI 800-4 model in 2021 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Launch of the Countach. This new-age supercar incorporates iconic elements of Countach from decades ago in appearance, recreating the glory of Countach in that era. Oh yes, the new Countach LPI 800-4 is limited to 112 vehicles, which echoes the internal code name of "LP112" when the classic Countach was developed, full of emotion.
#极速风流 – Diablo (1990–2001)
Three years after Chrysler took over the Lamborghini (1990), Countach's successor, Diablo, was introduced. It is clear that lamborghini Diablo has become much more restrained compared to Countach's whimsy, and there is no doubt that this must have a lot to do with the designer Gandini leaving Lamborghini.
Of course, "convergence" is relative, in the 90s, such a smooth and slender body still makes Diablo have a fascinating posture, sharp scissor doors and extremely low-lying shape is not easy to look at. It is worth mentioning that when Diablo was last remodeled, the classic jump lights that did not comply with the safety regulations of the time were changed to fixed headlights.
Compared to the eye-catching appearance, Diablo's slightly mediocre interior design is a bit unsightly, obviously not in line with its top supercar status. However, when lamborghini big bulls developed into the Diablo generation, the interior of the car was already very rich, such as four-way adjustable steering wheel, power windows, stereo and steering power system.
In terms of power, lamborghini Diablo is equipped with a 5.7L V12 engine, which applies advanced technologies such as dual overhead camshafts and multi-point fuel injection, with a maximum power of 492 horsepower and a peak torque of 580 Nm, still matching a 5-speed manual transmission, with a maximum speed of 325km/h, 0-100km/ With an acceleration time of 4.1 seconds, the powerful data made the Diablo the fastest production car in the world at that time, and of course its price of $240,000 was quite high.
In the years that followed, Lamborghini created a wide range of editions based on Diablo. The Diablo VT is equipped with an all-wheel drive system and equipped with Koni electronic damping adjustable shocks; the Diablo VT Roadster joins the detachable roof; the Diablo SE30 commemorates lamborghini's 30th anniversary; and the Diablo SV brings the name "Super Veloce" back to everyone's vision.
In 2000, the Volkswagen Group took over the Lamborghini and launched the last two Diablo series models – the Diablo VT 6.0 and VT 6.0 SE. The Diablo VT 6.0 is powered by a 6.0-litre V12 naturally aspirated engine, and through a series of improvements, the car achieves a maximum power of 550 hp and a peak torque of 620 Nm, reaching a top speed of 330 km/h, and after producing 260 units, the Lamborghini Diablo series came to an end.
#暗夜蝙蝠 – Murcielago (2001–2010)
Entering the new millennium, The designer of Diablo VT 6.0, Luc Donk Volcker, has created a new era supercar - Murcielago. This Lamborghini, translated as "bat", established the first impression of Lamborghini in many people's minds, recall the wall calendar on the wall of your house when you were a child, and there is a high probability that it will be there.
Compared with previous generations, the appearance of Murcielago is full of modern industrial flavor, and there is no strong sense of age. I vaguely remember that the Murcielago engine compartment side with automatic opening and closing air intakes, open the moment it looks like a spaceship about to take off, quite sci-fi.
Even though the Murcielago's carriage is doped with some Audi flavor, its powerful performance does not affect its identity in the slightest. The new 6.2-liter V12 naturally aspirated engine has a maximum power of 579 hp and a peak torque of 650 Nm, matching Lamborghini's first 6-speed manual transmission, with a top speed of 330 km/h and an acceleration time of 3.85 seconds from 0-100 km/h, and the addition of full-time four-wheel drive also makes the Murcielago bull easier to tame.
In 2006, the Murcielago LP 640 was introduced, which is also the name of the new car in the form of Lamborghini's "LP+ number" again since Miura and Countach. At the same time, the V12 naturally aspirated engine had a displacement increased to 6.5 litres, the cylinder head and intake system redesigned, and the crankshaft, camshaft and exhaust system were optimized, thus allowing the Murcielago LP 640 to achieve a maximum power of 640 hp and a peak torque of 660 Nm, and the drivetrain offered a 6-speed manual transmission and a 6-speed E-Gear transmission with a top speed of 340 km/h and an acceleration time of 0-100 km/h to 3.4 seconds.
Three years later (2009), a new king was born. With the use of a large number of carbon fiber materials and the addition of a large size rear spoiler, the Lamborghini Murcielago LP 670-4 SV was officially unveiled, and as can be seen from the name, the maximum power of the car rose to 670 horsepower, but the peak torque of 660 Nm remained unchanged. In addition, Lamborghini also launched the LP 670-4 SV China Limited Edition at the 2010 Beijing Motor Show, which is limited to 10 units, the unique body puller and the price of 7.68 million yuan make it a rare collection, and in line with Chinese tradition, Lamborghini's special number for the car skips the number "4", which is numbered 00/10 to 10/10.
Oh yes, at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show, Lamborghini unveiled a limited edition model called the Reventon, which was based on the Murcielago LP 640 and was inspired by the F-22 Raptor fighter. Reventon is priced at 15 million yuan, limited to 21 vehicles worldwide (1 of which is stored in museums, only one in China), and it is this unusually sharp "fighter" that successfully heralds the arrival of the next generation of big cattle.
#历久弥新 – Aventador (2011-2022)
On November 5, 2010, the last Murcielage LP 670-4 Superveloce rolled off the production line, and on March 1 of the following year, Lamborghini's new flagship model, the Aventador LP 700-4, was officially unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show.
The god-like Lamborghini Reventon has captivated car fans all over the world, and I didn't expect Lamborghini to mass-produce this amazing supercar - yes, the Aventador LP 700-4 is simply a mass-produced Reventon. The sharp cutting design and the superposition of polygonal elements give Aventador the ability to cut through time and space, the Y-shaped daytime running lights and fishbone taillights are super recognizable, and the gorgeous LCD dashboard in the car further stimulates the desire to drive. I have to say that from the perspective of 2022, the design of this Aventador is still ahead of its time and still fascinating.
In addition to the shape, the core of the Aventador is equally aggressive. It uses a monocoque cockpit made of all-carbon fiber composite material, with an aluminum alloy frame, and equipped with a horizontal suspension of the front and rear lateral pushrods and a hydraulic suspension lifting system, in terms of power, the Aventador LP 700-4 is equipped with a 6.5-liter V12 naturally aspirated engine, with a maximum power of 700 horsepower and a peak torque of 690 Nm, matching a 7-speed ISR sequential transmission with a maximum speed of 350 km/h and an acceleration time of only 2.9 seconds from 0-100 km/h. And in economy mode, the V12 engine shuts down 6 cylinders, taking into account fuel economy.
In the following years, Lamborghini also created a number of crazy works based on Aventador, and the Aventador J, which produced a limited edition of 1 unit worldwide, paid tribute to Miura Jota and sold it for 2.1 million euros; the Veneno, like a space battleship, sold in a limited edition of 3 units, priced at nearly 30 million yuan, refreshing people's understanding of Lamborghini again and again.
Of course, the story behind may be familiar to everyone. The Lamborghini Aventador SV boosted its maximum power to 750 horsepower, followed by the Aventador SVJ further squeezing power to 770 horsepower and introducing the Aventador SVJ 63 Special Edition, which is limited to 63 units. At the 2021 Goodwood Racing Festival, the final version of Aventador - Lamborghini Aventador LP780-4 Ultimae was officially unveiled, the ultimate model of 780 horsepower launched both the convertible version and the hardtop version of the body form, limited to 350 units and 250 units respectively, unfortunately, this car did not have access to the Chinese market.
Conclusion: When it was founded decades ago, Lamborghini's main business was the manufacture of tractors, fuel generators and air conditioning systems, and with continuous efforts, Lamborghini even became the largest manufacturer of agricultural machinery at that time. Today, in 2022, Lamborghini has become synonymous with "supercar", its lofty status is recognized by the world, and owning a Lamborghini has become the ultimate dream of many people.
In today's era of small displacement and turbocharging, and even the involvement of electric motors, it is rare for a Lamborghini to insist on the natural suction of a large displacement V12. From Muira to Aventador, looking back at the development process of Lamborghini's "big bull" in the past few decades, it has changed into a carriage with more and more sharp shapes and continuous improvement of scientific and technological equipment, and what has not changed is the supreme belief of the mid-layout + V12 engine, and the absolute strength of the king at that time. Although Aventador has come to an end, the stubborn wild bull will always exist, so let us look forward to the next generation of Lamborghini bulls to open a new era!