SANT-AGATA'S STING (some text hidden) --NONE--

By Jonathan Crouch

Lamborghini's Revuelto signs off the Sant-Agata brand's long-running line of V12 supercars in style. Jonathan Crouch takes a look.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 50

With the Revuelto, Lamborghini brings us its most ambitious supercar yet, a V12 Plug-in Hybrid with over 1,000bhp. It also looks stunning, has a classy cabin and for a short time after start-up, you can even cruise around silently in it. Apart from the price, there's so much to like.

Backgroundword count: 150

Lamborghini's history is fundamentally linked with V12 power. But not this kind of V12 power. Welcome to the new era of the Revuelto. It builds on a long Sant-Agata production line V12 heritage - the Miura of 1966, the Countach of 1971, the Diablo VT 1993, the Murcielago of 2001 and, most recently, the Aventador of 2011. None of these cars had to worry about restrictive emissions regulations, but with the Revuelto, Lamborghini does, which is why this is the marque's first Plug-in Hybrid. You might worry about weight implications of that in a lightweight supercar. Or that it signals a sea-change in Sant-Agata's performance priorities. Don't worry, it doesn't. Sure, the PHEV system brings down the CO2 figures, but the brand says it's primarily there for performance. And any worries about weight are brushed aside by an astonishing jump in power - to 1,001bhp. Let's take a closer look.

Driving Experienceword count: 305

The Revuelto gets a proper Lamborghini V12 - with 6.5-litres, natural aspiration, 813bhp and a rev counter that doesn't red line until the heady heights of 9,500rpm, at which point you can only imagine the glorious cacophony of sound that would be generated from just behind you. The engine has been spun around 180-degrees from its siting in the old Aventador (apparently to improve the centre of gravity) and this time is paired with electrification. Two 110kW oil-cooled axial flux electric motors at the front (one for each wheel) combine with another motor mounted on top of the 8-speed dual clutch gearbox provide for all-electric all-wheel drive and fill in with extra power while the V12 spools up. Together, these motors provide an extra 188bhp, creating an astonishing total output of 1,001bhp. 62mph is dispatched in just 2.5s, 124mph flashes by in 7.0s and top speed is 217mph. A Ferrari SF90 is fractionally faster if you're interested; not much else is. And not much else sounds like a Lamborghini V12, though you won't have to listen to it at all when you start up and the car runs only on its 3.8kWh battery and electric motors - though it'll only do that for 6 miles. This electrified powertrain works with three modes, 'Recharge', 'Hybrid' and 'Performance'. These are separate to the various settings on the drive mode selector, the most focused of which are 'Track' and Sport'; 'Corsa' is the lap time mode. The drivetrain sees the Revuelto weigh in at over 300kg more than its Aventador predecessor - it's a worrying sign of the times when a Lamborghini sports car weighs 1.9-tonnes. But this one handles its weight well, helped by a carbon fibre chassis that's 25% more torsionally rigid. The giant 345-section Bridgestone rubber is designed to offer simply endless reserves of grip.

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