Lamborghini confirms Veneno roadster

Published Oct 21, 2013

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This year marks the 50th anniversary of Ferrucio Lamborghini's legendary argument with Il Commendatore - the autocratic Enzo Ferrari himself - which ended with Ferrari telling the young tractor maker that if he thought he could build a better sports car he should go away and do so.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

But even five decades later, the Audi suits who run Lamborghini never lose an opportunity to show the aristocrats of Italian motoring a single raised digit - and this one, we think, is going to sting the Maranello Mafia right where it hurts - in their pride.

It's the highlight of Lamborghini's 50th anniversary celebrations, the roadster version of the Aventador-based Veneno coupé we drooled over at this year's Geneva motor show. And no more than nine examples will be made in 2014, at an eye-watering €3.3 million (R44.4 million) each ex works.

Don't kid yourself, this is a racing car.

There's no roof, just a rollover bar, and the design is focused on slippery aerodynamics and stability through fast corners, but it's fully street-legal - even in Brussels.

Its 6.5-litre, naturally-aspirated V12, driving all four wheels through one of the world's fastest-shifting automated gearboxes, is rated at 552kW - good enough to take this 1490kg supercar from 0-100km/h in 2.9 seconds and on to 355km/h flat out.

And it sits just about in the middle of a genuine racing chassis with pushrod suspension and horizontal spring/damper units. The body is designed - not styled - for optimum down force, using its arrow-shaped nose as a large wing, while a smooth underbody and separate rear fenders help channel air under the nose and through the rear diffuser.

THE LIGHT STUFF

Even the design of the special forged-alloy rims includes a carbon-fibre trim ring that channels extra cooling air to the carbon-ceramic brake discs.

It's all built on a carbon-fibre monocoque tub, with all the body panels and, indeed, most of the cockpit trim also made from the Light Stuff. The two lightweight bucket seats are made from Lamborghini's patented forged composite, and even the upholstery fabric is Carbonskin, a very finely woven carbon-fibre matting flexible enough to stretch tightly over any shape.

340kW PER TON

All of which helps towards a power-to-weight ratio of 340kW per ton, a number more commonly associated with superbikes than with a street-legal sports car boasting airbags and a full suite of active safety systems.

The official Veneno colour is the deep metallic red you see in the pictures above but, if you're lucky enough to get your name on one of the nine 'customer cars' the nice guys at Sant'Agata Bolognese will paint it any colour you want at no extra cost.

Mind you, if we could afford spend an amount equal to the gross national product of a small country on a carbon-fibre car, we'd want it finished in clear lacquer so everybody could see what it was made of.\

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