Lamborghini Aventador Pirelli

The Aventador arrived in 2011 as the replacement for the Murciélago, and it is the car that moved Lamborghini's V12 flagship into the carbon-fibre era. Its structure is a carbon-fibre monocoque with aluminium subframes bolted to each end, and behind the cabin sits an all-new 6.5-litre naturally aspirated V12 rather than a further enlargement of the engine Sant'Agata had used since 1963. In LP 700-4 specification it is rated at 700 CV (515 kW) and drives all four wheels through a seven-speed single-clutch ISR gearbox and a Haldex centre coupling.

The Pirelli Edition is a special-series trim introduced to mark Pirelli's long-standing role as Lamborghini's original-equipment tyre supplier. It is identified by contrasting bodywork detailing and its own badging rather than by any change to the drivetrain, and Lamborghini never published a production total for it, which is why the specification table below leaves that line open instead of quoting a figure. As a Roadster, the car uses two removable carbon-fibre roof panels that stow in the luggage compartment under the nose.

Why the naturally aspirated V12 still matters

The engineering worth studying here is not the peak power number but how it is produced and carried. The V12 is dry-sumped and mounted longitudinally ahead of the rear axle with the gearbox alongside it, which keeps the heaviest masses low and close to the centre of the car, and the suspension uses inboard springs and dampers actuated by pushrods, a layout taken from racing practice and rare on a road car of this size. Nothing fills in the mid-range for the driver, so throttle response and the climb towards the top of the rev band are the whole character of the car. The SV, SVJ and Ultimae derivatives that followed this LP 700-4 are covered separately in our technical reference.

In the Batman Garage collection the Aventador is the link between the older mid-engined Lamborghinis and the hybrid flagships that came after it. The thinking behind it runs back through the Countach 5000 QV, continues in the limited-run specials gathered in every Lamborghini SV built so far, and carries into the Revuelto SV, which keeps the same V12 architecture and adds electric drive to it.