THE 2021 Lamborghini Urus V8. Intimidating, above all else. Its shape, the angles and sharp lines, and that incredible Verde Mantis paint. The super sport SUV connects the Italian car maker to a whole other market.
It’s a space filled with things like the Bentley Bentayga, Maserati Levante, and the impending arrival of Ferrari’s own ultra-sporty SUV. For want of a better description, it feels like a supercar, that just happens to fit five people comfortably.
You really feel at one with the Urus very quickly too. The seats suck you in, the dash has so much information to take on, and that glorious 4.0-litre twin turbo V8, offering 478kW of power and 850Nm or torque, is insane. It’s mated to an 8-speed auto transmission.
It weighs 2,200kg, has a top speed of 305km/h and sprints to 100km/h in 3.6 seconds. What’s not to love, quite frankly. And that custom exterior colour adds a whole level of colour-matched goodness throughout the car.
On the road, the 2021 Lamborghini Urus offers a real driving experience, one that we’ll look back on in the future era of hybrids, EVs and fuel cell technology, and wonder if we left something behind.
Acceleration is literally hair raising. The crackles and pops as you downshift in Corsa mode is mega, and straight line speed is simply astounding. If there is a downside to all of that noise, it’s that it’s a damn hard car to hide in, especially in this colour.
But it’s the practicalities of its SUV shape, with a 616-litre boot space, that demonstrates just how versatile the Urus is. There’s plenty of room for luggage on long trips or family holidays, or you can simply load up with whatever takes your fancy.
The front and rear seating areas of the cockpit, and we’ll call it that, because it’s like being in a jet fighter, are spacious, with generous head and leg room. The seats are so comfortable that you really could drive for days non-stop, except for the need for fuel.
And need fuel you will, with a 75-litre fuel tank and average fuel economy of 12.7-litres/100km. Keep it in Corsa mode though, and you’ll burn through the juice much faster than that.
Now back to that amazing interior, which features five seats, each of them sporting contrast stitching in Verde Fauns (green), with ventilation and massage for the front seats, which are covered in a Q-citura patterned leather.
Connectivity to your phone is quite simple, with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto making life super simple. Clarity during calls is great too (I had some explaining to do when my boss could hear a roaring V8 on the call). The 10.25-inch touchscreen is very intuitive.
You’ll also find loads of space for water bottles and other items in the door. The optional panoramic glass roof also brings the outside in, without the noise. Reverse parking is easy thanks to the generous display and the clarity of the camera.
In actual fact, the quality and attention to detail throughout the whole interior simply blows you away. The infotainment system is first class, with more data than you’ll know what to do with, the switches are sturdy, and there’s carbon fibre inlays everywhere.
There’s an abundance of nice touches. But they come at a price.
Embroidered logos, colour matched floor mats, a Bang & Olufsen advanced 3D sound system, Lamborghini door lights, an ambient lighting package and a hands free tailgate all feature as part of more than $100,000 worth of optional extras that made up our test car.
It explains the $497,803 plus on-roads ticket price, while highlighting that this isn’t your average motor vehicle, and nor does it cost the same. The custom build process is truly part of what makes this car what it is, it’s like building a house – it’s truly yours.
On the road, vision from inside the car is very good, even with the seat down as low as possible (bloody race car driver’s like yours truly like it that way). Pillar positioning means you can enter roundabouts and intersections with ease too.
Most importantly, it’s truly a car you could live with every day.
On the outside, the carbon brakes make you feel ultra confident at low and high speed, providing a brake feel that is utterly amazing. It’s comparable with the best this author has experienced, on road and track.
Some care needs to be taken with a carbon brake package in the wet due to the operating temperatures needed for ultimate braking performance, but that aside, it’s a magical package. The feed back from the steering wheel is sensational too.
The Lamborghini Urus is superb at directional change, and unexpectedly so, and the compliance from the suspension in the most aggressive Corsa mode was surprisingly pleasant, yet sharp, with no shortage of grip.
In manual (paddle shift) mode, the transmission and engine offer a true wow factor, and it’s easy to hit the 7,000rpm rev cut when you upshift. That simply means it’s mighty quick, and the head-up display will tell you so as you focus on the road.
The powerplant is pure class, with no turbo lag at all, and while it does have economy focused driving modes, the Corsa and manual options are where it’s at, because, well, just because you can.
It’s honestly hard to fault the 2021 Lamborghini Urus V8. It ticks a lot of boxes, especially if you’re the driver. That said, it’s great for passengers too. Yours truly just needs to figure out how to buy one.
The colour scheme on this one is thanks to Centro Stile, but there’s also three Pearl Capsule edition options, and a standard colour range that includes a further seven options, as well as four different rim choices, and four brake calliper colours.
Lamborghini offers a 3-year unlimited kilometre warranty.
Our test vehicle was provided by Lamborghini of Sydney. To find out more about the 2021 Lamborghini Urus V8, contact your local Lamborghini dealer.
Beautiful car, at 2200 3.6s to 100km / h wow!