Frankfurt Motor Show - This is probably going to be the most extreme Gallardo ever offered to the public, as well as the last hurrah for Lamborghini's long-lived and extraordinarily successful V10 engine.
Launched amid much fanfare at a Volkswagen preview the night before the opening of the show, the Lamborghini Gallardo LP 570-4 Squadra Corse is, quite literally, a race car for the road, derived directly from the Gallardo Super Trofeo, weapon of choice for the one-make Blancpain Super Trofeo series.
The name refers to the recently-founded competition department at Lamborghini, which manages all motorsport activities from the Super Trofeo to GT3 racing at world level, but the Gallardo Squadra Corse will be a limited-edition production model, priced at €191 100 (R2.53 million) ex works, excluding taxes.
INSTANTLY RECOGNISABLE SOUNDTRACK
For that you get the same V10 engine as the race car - instantly recognisable because it has a different firing order to the road version - tuned for 419kW at 8000rpm and driving all four wheel through an automated, six-speed paddle-shift transmission.
Extensive use of carbon-fibre for body panels and trim has sliced another 70kg off the weight of the new Gallardo, bringing it down to 1340kg ready to go and giving it a power-to-weight ratio of 312kW per ton - good enough to launch it from a standstill to 100km/h in 3.4 seconds, to 200km/h in 10.4 seconds and on to 320km/h flat out.
The Squadra Corse also has the same carbon-fibre rear wing as the racer, producing three times as much downforce as the less flamboyant airfoil of the Gallardo LP 560-4, as well as its quick-release, removable carbon-fibre engine cover and bonnet, and its carbon-ceramic brake system.
LOOKING THE PART
The Squadra Corse's racing heritage is reflected in green, white and red-striped graphics down the sides, matte-black rear wing and glossy black paint on the bonnet, front air intakes, rear diffuser and 19” forged-alloy rims, while the cabin is trimmed almost entirely in carbon fibre and alcantara.
In an ironic reversal of normal supercar practice, carbon-fibre racing bucket seats are standard issue; 'ordinary' Gallardo seats are an optional extra.