It’s 2017, and Lamborghini is ready to sell you an SUV. Enter the highly anticipated Lamborghini Urus, an electric-hybrid SUV designed to blow your mind.
Forget everything you’ve ever associated with electric vehicles. This SUV is quite simply, like nothing else you’ve ever seen before. Not that we haven’t seen mouth-watering, ground-obliterating performance SUV’s from traditional supercar manufacturers before.. of course we have. We just haven’t seen an SUV from Lamborghini (unless you count the LM002.. which we don’t), and now that we have, things won’t ever be the same.
Not to be outdone by Porsche (and just about everyone else), Lamborghini is ready to get into the in the performance SUV game. It’s not entirely earth-shattering news seeing as there’s dozens of crazy-fast SUV’s at this point, but it certainly takes a second getting used to seeing the Lamborghini logo on anything other than a scintillating supercar. Lamborghini wants a slice of the off-road pie, and the Urus is their first entry in the high-end performance SUV market.
Porsche changed the game when they successfully introduced the Cayenne in 2002, and has dominated the segment ever since. Of course both Porsche has evolved well beyond the Cayenne, and after seeing the Cayenne’s success, they introduced the Macan and Macan Turbo. Considering Volkswagen owns both Porsche and Lamborghini (that face still blows my mind on a regular basis), it shouldn’t really come as too much of a surprise that we’re now seeing the first Lambo SUV in the history of the brand.
There’s plenty of performance SUV’s to choose from nowadays – the Audi Q7S, Bentley Bentayga, BMW X6M, Lexus RX 350 F-Sport, Mercedes GLE63 AMG, Maserati Levante, supercharged Range Rover, hell even Jaguar decided to follow suit with the F-Pace. You get it – there’s no shortage of insanely powerful 4-door luxury SUV’s to choose from.
If you wanted to be truly inclusive, you might even throw the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT and Dodge Durango SRT’s in the lower rung of performance SUV’s. You know, for the horsepower hungry soccer mom that has a firm budget of under $70,000, and a burning desire to buy American.
First off – why did Lamborghini make an SUV?
Lamborghini isn’t shy about the fact that they want to sell more vehicles. When choosing between buying a home, or financing an Aventador, most people will end up with a 30-year mortgage. Lamborghini has clearly seen the light when it comes to rounding out their brand, and a performance SUV makes sense on many levels.
In a February press release, Lamborghini announced they’d be hiring more than 320 employees to work on the Urus project, and weren’t shy about the reasons why. In 2015, Lamborghini sold 3,245 vehicles.. which doesn’t sound like a whole lot, but represented an all-time record for the brand. Automobili Lamborghini’s President and CEO Stephan Winkelmann talked about how the Urus is expected to assist in doubling their production and sales volume. Translated in English – they expect the Urus to immediately become Lamborghini’s best-selling vehicle of all time, and outsell all of the other models combined.
You can be sure there were some brand loyalists that felt some outrage to see Lamborghini branching outside of their staple – outrageously expensive supercars – but this is the right move (if not a reactionary one) for long-term success, and an instant boost to their bottom line.
Evaluating the Design
The Urus looks mean from just about every angle, with sharp edges and an aggressive stance. Of course you’d expect that the company made famous by manufacturing the Diablo and Countach.
From the rear, you might see some design resemblance to the recent year versions of the Range Rover Evoque. Maybe I’m the only one that sees the Evoque styling in any part of the Lamborghini SUV? Regardless, the Urus still definitely feels very distinctive and unique with the overall design.
Of course there is one pressing question that we must know. Do the Urus’ doors open vertically, in signature Lamborghini fashion? Another thing on my mind.. what’s with the name? Urus just seems like an odd choice. Are we pronouncing it “Yer-Us”, “Er-Us”, or “Your-Is” Lamborghini?
What about the interior?
You’ll be pleasantly surprised when you see what the Urus looks like on the inside.
Classic Lamborghini styling all the way around. Modern, sleek, and aggressive. A dream cockpit, really.
I’ve never wanted to sit in the backseat of any vehicle more than the Lamborghini Urus.
Technical Specs – What’s under the hood?
Have a need for speed? Lamborghini won’t disappoint you, or the kids with the engine. The 5 liter V8 engine produces 610 horsepower and 580 lb-ft of torque. Similar to the Porsche Cayenne lineup, it wouldn’t be out of the question to see a macho version, and a hybrid as well. Oh, and Lamborghini’s stated the SUV will be capable of hitting speeds of 205 mph, because, Lamborghini.
When can I get one?
You should be able to get a 2018 Lamborghini Urus at some point in 2017. When they do become available for sale in North America, we’ll let you know. Nothing officially announced from Lamborghini yet.
They’ll be affordable, right? How much?
Lamborghini hasn’t officially announced the price, but word is you’re looking at anywhere between $150,000-$300,000. Which isn’t all that surprising, considering you’re buying a rocket ship SUV that’s capable of doing 205 mph. At which point you’re probably questioning everything.
If there was ever a golden age of performance SUV’s, we’re certainly entering it now. People with too much money will continue to face a difficult decision when confronted with the multitude of European SUV’s packing 500+ horsepower.
Your move, Ferrari.
