23 years ago, the Lamborghini Gallardo was unleashed onto the world stage just one year after the return of the big V12 flagship in the Murcielago. The second part of Audi’s 2-pronged revival was designed as a “volume” seller that could be produced faster and at a cheaper price than Lamborghinis of old. However, Audi made sure to keep out of the styling and engineering department until the car’s design had been finalised. Once the specifics were settled, Audi’s expertise in production came to the fore, giving Lamborghini a substantial leg up in the finance department. It turned the fortunes of the brand around, and the “baby” Lambo became a household name. Here’s why the Gallardo is still a fine supercar 23 years after it’s birth.
If you search Lamborghini Gallardo, chances are a car identical to this one will show up. Yep, that’s right – this is the “press spec” car that Lamborghini chose to showcase the brand new model. I actually have one of those press photos on my computer so seeing it in real life was like a dream come true. I cannot recall being in the prescence of such a clean example at any other point in time. I genuinely felt like the photographer who captured this stunning car for the first time. And stunning it is. The lines are sharp and defined, the overall shape is unmistakably exotic and the wheels are far from generic. Designer Luc Donkerwolke knew exactly what he was doing when he penned this beauty.
Now one point of difference on this versus the press car is the steering wheel position, which is mounted on the right hand side to comply with Australian law. Most Gallardos were left hand drive, so this right-hook example is very rare indeed. However one thing all original Gallardos had was a 5 litre V10 engine producing 520 glorious naturally-aspirated horsepower. No, that’s not an error because the 5.2 didn’t come in until the facelifted LP-560 version was released. Such a power unit was in keeping with the typical drama associated with a Lamborghini, complimenting the striking looks to a tee. It might not have had the showy scissor doors but everything else was on point for this firecracker.
You’ll be pleased to know that this car wasn’t all show and no go. The 4WD system gave the car exceptional traction and the tight chassis allowed for hard, flat cornering at speed. Due to the Audi build quality, things didn’t rattle around constantly and you could genuinely use it for more than a few minutes. Some may opine that such quirks made the old Lamborghinis more characterful, but in all honesty, would you want to put up with that discomfort? I think you should be able to enjoy a supercar in all it’s glory as often as possible.
The Lamborghini Gallardo nails the supercar recipe both in and out, entertaining you and the onlookers like all of them should. Who cares about the power figure? Who cares if it doesn’t produce 900 combined horsepower like the Temerario? A young child would just see a cool yellow car that sits lower and wider than ordinary traffic. It’s sure to leave a lasting impression that will excite you for the rest of your life. Why do you think I’m here talking about it now? Numbers and technology is cool and all but the human mind doesn’t need a bunch of numbers to decide what captures the heart. That is why the Gallardo is still a fine supercar.
DevMacCars 