Gallardo: Balboni or Superleggera?

Gallardo: Balboni or Superleggera?

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Discussion

AdvocatusD

Original Poster:

2,277 posts

230 months

Thursday 7th August 2014
quotequote all
This is more of a ponder at the moment than a serious question before a purchase, but when I release the Stradale I will probably consider giving Lamborghini ownership a go next.

Having owned TVRs, GT3s and Stradale, my preference is for a more "focused" model within a range.

So, it really comes down to the Balboni or the Superlegerra as the only models that I think could really claim to be "special" in the Gallardo range.

Does anyone have any thoughts as to which is more fun to drive? Any further thoughts on which of the two may come to be considered the "best" Gallardo of them all?

If it's the Superleggera, which version?

Look forward to that discussion.

sardis

305 posts

175 months

Friday 8th August 2014
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Hi Advocatus,

Great question and hopefully you will get lots of different opinions. My experience is limited to ownership of a 520 spider and 570SL plus a reasonable amount of miles in the LP560 as loan cars etc.
The 570SL would be a fantastic choice if you prefer a more focused car, the exact reason I chose it. I'm sure you have done the research into the differences in suspension, engine mapping etc., but driving it is a real pleasure, it is certainly much firmer than the LP560 but I found it also extremely comfortable. The Pirelli Corsas definitely help with response and grip. Many critics at the time commented on the CF bucket seats but I found them really supportive and often spent most of the day and several hundred miles driving the car with no ill effects, having said that I am of average height and build.
Engine noise and response is simply fantastic and the V10 seems to have a unique characteristic even compared to Ferrari V8's and the R8 V8 which I also had in the past, I love the way it changes from a deep bellow to a proper scream at redline, best aural sex I've had...
Sitting in the car is also a deeply satisfying experience with the contrast stitched alcantara, plenty of well executed CF, and nice touches like the main gauges being in Italian rather than English. I have to say every time I sat in the car I took a few seconds just to enjoy my surroundings before turning the key.
I did over 8,000 miles in the car in about a year and it never put a foot wrong. I also bought a set of Pirelli Sottozeros so I could enjoy the colder, damper winter months and they were well worth the money.
The outside execution is neatly done too, the front scoops do add down force as of course does the rear spoiler and the CF add ons are beautifully finished including the rear diffuser assembly. I chose one of the citrus colours, bright yellow, but they all look really good in the metal, especially the black.
As always with these type of debates it will come down to personal preference and I would definitely strongly recommend that you include the SL on your list of test drives. Funnily enough it was the CS that actually got me thinking about the SL in the first place after I saw one in JCT's at Leeds and previously owning a 360.
I will say that the SL always offered a sense of occasion and never failed to deliver a satisfying driving experience, Sport was my preferred driving mode, but occasional periods of Corsa, especially when entertaining passengers is fun too. Motorway stints are well served by Strada of course.
As you can probably tell I am a fan boy, it was by far the best car I've ever owned, and I only sold it because work has taken me out of the UK. Feel free to pm if you want more details.

What a great first world problem to grapple with!

Cheers,

Sardis

Edited by sardis on Friday 8th August 02:24

AdvocatusD

Original Poster:

2,277 posts

230 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
Hi Sardis, that's a great post - thank you. I've always been attracted to the SL, but need to consider the Balboni as well.

This is very interesting! I didn't realise that the Superleggera came in a manual? This would be about my perfect spec for a Superleggera. I've been leaning towards the Balboni because of of the manual box and the two wheel drive, but it's hard to ignore a SL with a manual.

http://www.lamborghinihouston.com/web/new/Lamborgh...



Edited by AdvocatusD on Friday 8th August 10:30

gt500nick

960 posts

137 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
Hi i was in this exact position a few months back. I was after either a gen 1 sl or a balboni having just sold my cs. I couldnt find a decent sl so bought a balboni. I have lusted over the gallardo for quite a while and was eager to scratch that itch.

Few months along in ownership and the car is fantastic. The pros i will deal with first, the power is much more noticeable. When i floored it in the cs it felt fast but lacking, with the lambo it makes up for what the cs lacked in that department. The feel on the road is great, very planted and at high speed feels at home even way past 150 in the turns of the motorway stretches (ask me how i know). The suspension is firm in corsa but this is where the car comes alive. It looks fantastic especially with that stripe, mine is black with white stripe and gold edge. The lp550-2 benefits from the new nose shape, exhaust tips and rear lights giving it a much more modern up to date look to the dated gen 1 SL.

The cons, noise is not as loud as you are used to with the cs in race. Interior is all leather and missing the alcantara you get in the cs and sl. And the brakes are not carbon ceramics like a cs but still do a great job.

So its what prefer really, i love the rwd option and think when i do sell it sill be replaced by another rwd car. If you have any questions i am happy to answer if i can, still early days in my lambo ownership

GRBF430F1

4,843 posts

169 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
I toyed with the idea of a 2 WD manual thinking it would be great fun and highly collectable in the future but then reality kicked in and I found that 4 WD and e-gear was better for me personally. Given our weather conditions and my modest driving skills I can definitely extract a lot more performance from the car safely than I ever would have confidence for in a 2 WD manual.

Went out for a A and B road blast with a mate ( probably better driver than me )the other day and he struggled to keep up with me in his 997 Gen II GT3 RS manual

StuLawton

400 posts

180 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
Definitely go LP570. Absolutely the best all-weather weapon Lambo have yet built.

The Balboni is lovely, and does have more subtlety than 4WD, but in 98% of real-world use, the 570 would leave it for dust.

And it looks bonkers from every angle.

Hey Sardis - is that you Steve?! How you doing?!

andrew

9,954 posts

191 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
great play was made of the balboni being a manual, when in reality all gallardo variants have been available as manuals, and manual take-up on the balboni was hardly any higher than on any other gallardo in recent years

likewise, very few people bought 2wd cars new

ps : mark one superleggera is the noisiest and most exciting thumbup

Edited by andrew on Friday 8th August 17:50

sardis

305 posts

175 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
Hi Advocatus, you're welcome. A couple of additional points have been made which are very valid. Traction in the car was superb, the Corsas in the dry are immense and decent in the wet, but break away is a bit more exciting. The Sottozeros were fun, a bit squirmy and slidy but very predictable and ideal for autumn through the winter months.

Stu you may or may not know has a long history with Lamborghini sales and has probably driven most of their models so his opinion is worth listening to, hi Stu yes it's me.

As a few have mentioned 4WD has great advantages for all year round and all conditions maximum enjoyment plus greater confidence, again worth considering as part of your decision making. I found the transition from manual RWD (360) to e gear 4WD (520) quite a revelation even though it took me a while to get used to it. Now I wouldn't go back. Look forward to the rest of the debate...

Cheers,

Sardis

70proof

6,045 posts

154 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
AdvocatusD said:
my preference is for a more "focused" model within a range.

So, it really comes down to the Balboni or the Superlegerra as the only models that I think could really claim to be "special" in the Gallardo range.

Does anyone have any thoughts as to which is more fun to drive? Any further thoughts on which of the two may come to be considered the "best" Gallardo of them all?

If it's the Superleggera, which version?
the best car of them all is the 560-2 anniversary as it has the best of them both and is the lightest with best power to weight ratio gallardo bar maybe the squadra corsa..... and they are rare and all sold.....

get on yoube and watch the journo reviews, very interesting.....

a lot comes down to what you want...... for a daily driver, the LP models have a much better sorted gearbox and transmission, that is fact....hard on it, i doubt there is much differnce between a gen 1 sl and the others......

now, for pure driving involvement, has to be a 2wd manual.... might not be the fastest, but the purest in terms of involvement..... the 2wd is more tactile, i've had both, and plenty fast enough for our roads.... that is my point, the 4wd is so accomplished, by the time you are having fun, the speeds are criminal.... and in the wet, 4wd means didly squat in real terms, you still have to feather the throttle as the tyres are summer tyres

the interior of the sl's with all the alcantara is sooo nice.....

so.....

best ... 560-2 anniversary ... 2wd, alacantara, all uk cars egear
second.. balboni if it is 'feel' you are after, some manual ones, 550-2 =no stripe
third... sl.... gen II if daily driver, as gearbox happy around town, gen I for sunday toy.... sure all uk cars are e gear

hth

Edited by 70proof on Friday 8th August 19:59

70proof

6,045 posts

154 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
try to find on youtube.....

chris harris on the lp570 sl
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=chris...

jethro bovingdon on the 550-2 manual
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=jethr...

autocar drive of the balboni and lp570
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=autoc...

also, for me, looks defo better with the lp cars...... i prefer the facelift, and i also like the rear spoiler of the sl cars..... anni again ticks alls the boxes.

Edited by 70proof on Friday 8th August 19:50

70proof

6,045 posts

154 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
btw was in this exact position several months ago and was lucky to get an anni.... not sure what i'd have got otherwise.... probably a non balboni 550-2

jeremyc

23,336 posts

283 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
AdvocatusD said:
Having owned TVRs, GT3s and Stradale, my preference is for a more "focused" model within a range.
I too have owned all of that list excepting the Stradale.

I'm now in an LP550-2 (manual) which is an absolutely fantastic experience: do yourself the favour of driving one and I defy you not to grin from ear to ear. biggrin

70proof

6,045 posts

154 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VWJQt3doBXA

Last 40s of this.... He wants an anni too... Awesome

jeremyc

23,336 posts

283 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
I'll just leave this here. whistle





Fantuzzi

3,297 posts

145 months

Friday 8th August 2014
quotequote all
jeremyc said:
I'll just leave this here. whistle

The Gallardo was really pretty from the rear, just looked perfectly short and focussed with the rear diffuser.

Lovely stuff.

Craigwww

853 posts

168 months

Saturday 9th August 2014
quotequote all
Nice.. but for looks it's the LP570 SL that takes it everytime.. Manual is good, but doesn't suit the dynamics of the Gallardo very well. Lamborghini's Egear system has been refined over the last 10years and is very impressive on later cars. Top choice would have to be the SL. All that beautiful carbon fiber inside and out makes it a very special car to be around.

Here's mine I picked up a few months back. I adore this machine!






wessexrfc

4,326 posts

185 months

Saturday 9th August 2014
quotequote all
Craigwww said:
Nice.. but for looks it's the LP570 SL that takes it everytime.. Manual is good, but doesn't suit the dynamics of the Gallardo very well. Lamborghini's Egear system has been refined over the last 10years and is very impressive on later cars. Top choice would have to be the SL. All that beautiful carbon fiber inside and out makes it a very special car to be around.

Here's mine I picked up a few months back. I adore this machine!


Oooooo like very much, if I could fit in one, I'd have one. Took a lad around Brands in his Fathers Performante, great bit of kit, but with a helmet on, my arse was hanging over the edge of the seat to get low enough!! What a lovely decision to have to make!!!!!!! smile

sardis

305 posts

175 months

Saturday 9th August 2014
quotequote all
One from Sporting Bears and another rather gratuitously to show that any lambo is worthy of a good pic!




AdvocatusD

Original Poster:

2,277 posts

230 months

Saturday 9th August 2014
quotequote all
Guys, thanks a lot for this. Some really helpful stuff here.

Could I be impose a little more? I'm finding it a little difficult to fully get a grasp on all the different variants! Could someone give me an idiots guide focusing on the more "special" versions?

I've never come across the LP 560 -2 version before for example...

Going to see if I can dig up some more videos!

AdvocatusD

Original Poster:

2,277 posts

230 months

Saturday 9th August 2014
quotequote all
70proof said:
best ... 560-2 anniversary ... 2wd, alacantara, all uk cars egear
second.. balboni if it is 'feel' you are after, some manual ones, 550-2 =no stripe
third... sl.... gen II if daily driver, as gearbox happy around town, gen I for sunday toy.... sure all uk cars are e gear
Fab post!

Guys, thanks a lot for this. Some really helpful stuff here.

Could I be impose a little more? I'm finding it a little difficult to fully get a grasp on all the different variants! Could someone give me an idiots guide focusing on the more "special" versions?

I've never come across the LP 560 -2 version before for example...

Going to see if I can dig up some more videos!

This Supertrofeo Stardale version looks interesting too: http://www.topgear.com/uk/photos/lamborghini-galla... . EUR 179,000 though! http://www.autoscout24.com/Details.aspx?id=2557822...

Annivesario firmly priced too! http://www.autoscout24.com/Details.aspx?id=2506939...

Every single review seems to refer to how "dated" it has/is become/becoming. Is that really a real world issue for people like me? I mean, my Stradale is based on a 1999 car...

Also, a lot of reviews for the specials just end saying "just buy the base model". Certainly. not the case with equivalent Ferraris?

Edited by AdvocatusD on Saturday 9th August 11:56


Edited by AdvocatusD on Saturday 9th August 12:04