Lamborghini launches Huracan EVO RWD

Rear-drive variant of Lamborghini's supercar delivers 610hp exclusively to the God's own axle - for less

Lamborghini has promised to put the 'driver at the centre of the driving experience' with a new rear-wheel-drive variant of the Huracan EVO. You do wonder where it was putting the driver up to now - but let's not start nit-picking; the arrival of a new right-drive Huracan is a terrific reason to be cheerful. The brand has very recent form here, of course: numerous editions of the Gallardo LP 550-2 were introduced, most notably the Valentino Balboni model named for Lamborghini's test driver, and in 2016 it launched the LP 580-2 as an entry-level variant of the first generation Huracan.

The latest car, dubbed EVO RWD, has not fallen far from the tree. Power is now up to 610hp and 413lb ft of torque - still 30hp/30lb ft shy of the all-wheel-drive EVO - and the starting price is said to be £137,000 minus VAT. That's a healthy price rise versus the old LP 580-2, but still offers buyers a significant saving over the conventional model. And given the RWD is still said to capable of 0-62mph in 3.3 seconds, and will canter on to 201mph, there isn't much sacrifice in raw performance either.

Still, Lamborghini is keen for you to think of the car differently. "The Huracán EVO rear-wheel drive puts the car in the driver's hands: the driving experience is delivered by the hardware," says Stefano Domenicali, Chairman and CEO. "This car reminds the driver of Lamborghini's pure engineering origins: the driver is at the center of the Huracán EVO RWD's performance, with unfiltered feedback and an emotive and more engaging driving experience controlled by the pilot."

This goes on. The subtext of all this 'harmony between man and machine' USP nonsense is that Domenicali and Lamborghini are well aware that for every customer it entices with its AWD lineup, it loses three more buyers who prefer their supercars done the old-fashioned way. Like its predecessors, the implication that the latest Huracan delivers 'sublime driving fun' is all about hoovering up newcomers to the brand.

Be that as it may, previous rear-drive versions have not always lived up to their billing. This time round the firm is unequivocal: "The new Performance Traction Control System (P-TCS) is calibrated specifically for the rear-wheel drive Huracan EVO, delivering torque even during the phase where the car is realigning following drifting or side-slipping." So the shackles have come off. Or they've been loosened at any rate - in 'Corsa', Lamborghini claims to smoothed the systems intervention by 30 per cent, which has apparently enhanced oversteer by 30 per cent.

Going sideways a third better than the LP 580-2 managed (without risking the farm) is not a bad starting place. Ditto a fresh round of styling revisions, which might be subtle - think new splitter, large intakes and revised diffuser - but at least indicate that the manufacturer is serious about differentiating the RWD from its pricier stablemates.

Elsewhere the model has lost a modest amount of weight - Lamborghini claims a dry weight of 1389kg, which makes it around 30kg lighter than the AWD EVO - and portions it 40/60 front to back. As standard, the RWD comes on the Huracan's passive double wishbone suspension with 19-inch wheels, although both the 'MagneRide' adaptive setup and several 20-inch alternatives are on the option list. The steering receives a model-specific retune, said to focus on 'maximum feedback'.

If this is all starting to sound like your sort of jam, then make haste to Lamborghini's UK site where the configurator is already up and running. If you get really carried away, expect delivery in the spring.

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