Lamborghini Gallardo Coupe

Gallardo Coupe Review

Lamborghini Gallardo, a model that crossed over 10,000 units within the first seven years of production, is a supercar that has a sports appeal and Audi’s build along with a chassis that’s cut for the racing and a performance oriented V10 engine. Like most Lamborghini productions, the Gallardo is named after a famous breed of fighting bulls, maybe because of the powerful engines that they have under their hoods. As for the Gallardo LP 550-2, LP stands for Longitudinal Posteriore which basically indicates the mid – engine that is built longitudinally in front of the rear axle. The number 550 stand for the power output and the single number 2 signifies the rear wheel drive. Coming back to the Gallardo Coupe or the LP 550-2, the supercar is a rear wheel drive and can be customised as per the requirements and choice. It has a structural aluminium space frame that is based on aluminium extruded parts welded to case aluminium joint elements and is powered by a 6-speed and reverse manual gearbox along with an optional robotised sequential system with actuation by paddles on the steering column. In terms of engine, the supercar is powered by a V10 DOHC which has a displacement of 5204cc and has a capability of churning out 550bhp at 8000 revs and produces a torque of 540Nm at 6500 rpm. The city mileage for Gallardo Coupe is about 4 kmpl and 6.4 kmpl on the highways . The rear wheel drive Gallardo LP 550-2 is said to have taken the suspension from the Valentino Balboni edition. This suspension is stiff, soaking up the bumps pretty well. However, at the lower speeds, the supercar is somewhat a disappointment.The car has it all, from a supercar appeal along with a performance oriented V10 engine but somewhere it does lack in terms of a comfortable experience behind the wheel. The driving position for the car is a little scratchy but at the same time the power supply is plenty. At the same time, the supercar is brilliant at high speeds and has a good grip even while cornering. The car is, more or less everything that one expects.

Exteriors

Lamborghini Gallardo Coupe delivers through an aerodynamic design that adds up to the driving dynamics. This design helps distributing the forces and as a result helps in keeping the necessary numbers related to performance decently high. This particular 'Lambo' is a little smaller in comparison, though it still works well as a centre of attention. The Aventador series, on the other hand demand far more attention than the Gallardo Coupe but then, that’s probably because Gallardo has been present in some or the other form for about a decade. Alloy wheels, striking colours, 6 rim options along with the front wing in body colour and a few more other tweaks are available for those who want to personalise their supercar.

Interiors

The interiors of the Gallardo Coupe LP 550-2 are of high quality and one can strike a chord with Audi quite easily. The cabin is neat and is pretty simple with lesser number of switches and complicated buttons here and there. The leather seats, sports front seats, front console with storage along with dual zone climate controls, leather trims on the shift knob and steering wheel etc. all make the supercar maximise on the cabin appeal. One can customise the interiors in terms of colours, seat material along with some packages, which range from removing certain decorative inserts to carbon fibre packages etc. One can also get branding inside the cabin as a part of the customisation.

Engine and Performance

What defines a supercar is what lies under the hood. Gallardo Coupe has the V10 DOHC common pin crankshaft engine that has a displacement of 5204cc . The mill churns out a power of 550bhp at 800 rpm and produces a torque of 540Nm at 6500 revolutions per minute. The top speed for Gallardo Coupe 550-2 is 320 kmph and it can zip from 0 – 100 kmph in about 3.9 seconds . The car gets a 6-speed single clutch e-gear automatic transmission . The engine is fairly silent and shifts are very smooth. The ferocious power that Gallardo coupe delivers makes it quite a devil and the fantastic engine rev sounds add to the entire experience. The rear wheel drive along with 6-speed reverse manual and optional robotised sequential system (e-gear) adds to the peppiness of the engine and pleasure of driving.  

Braking and Handling

The steering and handling for Lamborghini Gallardo Coupe is pretty good; in fact the drive is, at times very stiff. This is the first series production with rear wheel drive by Lamborghini, after the Diablo SV and the driving capability of the older model can be seen in the Gallardo coupe LP 550-2 as well. The steering grip is good as well, however one wouldn’t want to take the supercar for granted. The suspension system, solid built and efficient brake system makes the LP 550-2 pretty rooted on the road .

Comfort Features

Apart from the comforts of a sports car, Gallardo Coupe flaunts the luxuries of a supercar as well. There are the dual zone climate controls for driver and passenger, leather trims on doors, on shift knob and on steering wheel as well apart from the other things. The comfortable 295/30R Z tyres give a very comfortable drive by balancing the vehicle well . The aluminium double wishbone front and rear suspension, anti-roll bar, anti-dive and anti-squat suspension system is present to further add pleasure to the drive. The car looks to be a pretty low rider, but the ground clearance is not that bad.

Safety Features

The supercar has front dual stage drive and passenger airbags along with side head-thorax airbags for the safety of the passengers. Coming to the braking system, Gallardo Coupe is equipped with the power vacuum aluminium alloy callipers with 8-cylinder callipers at the front and 4-cylinder rear callipers. The ventilated discs give it a pretty strong braking system overall. There is also the full ESP system with ABS, ASR and ABD that helps the powerful machine remain under control.

Pros 

Better balance because of the rear wheel drive, cheaper than the competing Ferrari.

Cons 

Not very comfortable to drive, steering is a little stiff at the lower speeds.