2008 Lamborghini Murcielago Performance Review
Not Yet Ranked
Lamborghini Murcielago Performance Review
Performance - NA
Critics are blown away by the Murciélago's supercar performance and handling dynamics. "Hold your foot down, and eventually, Lamborghini claims, you'll find yourself on the north side of 211 mph -- outrunning the Ferrari 599 and even most light aircraft," writes Motor Trend. "Whether you come back down to earth is up to you."
Acceleration and Power
The 2008 Lamborghini Murciélago LP640 is powered by a 6.5-liter V12 engine that makes 631 horsepower at 8,000 rpm and 487 pound-feet of torque at 6,000 rpm. While Motor Trend describes the Murciélago's heart as "a whopper" that's so powerful it's "Ferrari-sneering," Road and Track calls it "monstrous," explaining that it operates like a "wrecking ball that gulps air and fuel and generates equal parts thrust, music and awe."
According to Lamborghini, the LP640 coupe can reach a top speed of 211 mph, while the roadster peaks at 205 mph. Both reportedly accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in only 3.4 seconds -- which leaves critics universally impressed. "In road tests and reviews, we found the Lamborghini Murciélago drives every bit like the supercar that it is," writes Edmunds, adding "You can feel the accelerative Gs weighting your very fingertips, the scenery exploding through the wide-screen windshield." The Los Angeles Times writes, "The car stuffed us back in the seat with a violent lunge and the engine emitted a great whacking snarl to make the angels weep." Motor Trend explains: "Peak power occurs at an apocalyptic 8000 rpm, the exact figure when a rev limiter of Draconian severity arrives to protect this V-12 mechanism from self destruction. Which makes it all but impossible to hit peak power without the stutter of the limiter. And because you never quite manage that, you never feel you've got the best from this engine. It remains your master. Because this is a Murciélago."
The LP640 comes equipped with a standard six-speed manual transmission. "Shove hard, time the clutch right, and it works with you, giving perfectly smooth shifts whether you're easing it in traffic or snapping it through as you blaze into a highland S-bend," says Motor Trend. "But mistime it and it'll bite your arm off." An automatic transmission is available as an option. According to Motor Trend, the e-gear robotized gear shifting automatic transmission "is better mannered than most, shifting gently with no bucking at part throttle; banging out hard, race-car-style shifts in sport mode and orchestrating symphonic, rev-matched downshifts."
The Environmental Protection Agency rates the manual Murciélago's city/highway fuel economy at 8/13 miles per gallon (mpg). Those equipped with an automatic transmission, however, are rated at 9/14 mpg.
Handling and Braking
Not only do critics find the Murciélago to be a powerful straight-line performer, but an impressive handler as well. "Induction noise and physical acceleration are the instant ramifications of a punted throttle pedal," writes Automobile Magazine. "The nose rises slightly even from three-figure speeds, but the driver needn't worry, because above all other supercars, the LP640 is supremely stable at high speeds."
Motor Trend describes the Murciélago's power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering as "flat-out wonderful. Heavy, yes, but so precise and full of information you'll forgive it anything." The review continues, "To get it turned into a curve, it demands that you swing the wheel with definite emphasis. It's just making sure: 'You want a curve? Then I'll give you a curve.'"
The Murciélago features an independent front and rear double wishbone suspension with anti-roll bars, as well as anti-dive and anti-squat technology. Though Motor Trend reports that its springs "are punishingly hard in broken city streets," Edmunds finds that overall handling "is still quite impressive." Though the Murciélago roadster adds a self-adjusting shock absorber system and additional structural reinforcement, a writer for Road and Track insists, "You won't notice the extra weight. Trust me."
The LP640's brake system is composed of four ventilated discs, as well as alloy calipers and an Anti-lock Brake System (ABS) -- which, according to a Car and Driver test drive, "brought its 4100-pound girth to a halt from 70 mph in just 150 feet and pulled more than 1.00 g on the skidpad." While carbon ceramic brakes are optional, Motor Trend remarks that they're "as impervious to fade as Dick Clark." Forbes explains they're "designed to reduce brake face, where the brakes become less effective as the discs overheat from severe use, such as on a racetrack."
Also standard on the Murciélago is Brake Assist (BA), which increases braking pressure in emergency situations, and Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD), a system that alters the amount of force applied to each wheel's brakes based on such factors as road conditions and speed.
All-wheel Drive
The Murciélago features a permanent four-wheel drive system that helps maintain its composure during high-speed driving. Forbes explains the system "is essential to tame this high-powered monster. Under normal conditions, 70 percent of the engine's power is sent to the rear wheels. During intense driving, up to 100 percent of the drive force can be sent to either the front or rear axles." While most critics find the LP640's all-wheel drive system to be satisfying, Motor Trend says "it feels rear-biased, and a bit slow to do its juggling act. You're best to work on the assumption the car is a rear-drive, then the extra help from the front is a bonus."
Increasing the Murciélago's overall grip is an electronic traction control system -- which many auto writers assert is necessary. "The damping is fluid, the steering is accurate, the noise is addictive -- and the traction control should ideally be left on," writes Automobile Magazine. The review continues: "Cranking the output beyond 600 hp has left it feeling more like a rear-driven car than one with four-wheel drive. It's a simple case of torque overload: any excess now heads to the rear axle. And that means slithering." When switched on, traction control helps to eliminate this problem.
