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The Lamborghini Urus is a Raging Bull set free

In a world teeming with luxury off-road vehicles, Lamborghini knew it had to go all-out for its second attempt at joining the segment. The long-awaited Urus has been dubbed the world’s first ‘super sports utility vehicle’ by its creator, filling a niche no one really knew existed until now…

If at first, you don’t succeed, try, try again. That’s the mantra Lamborghini has taken with the new Urus. The Sant’Agata marque’s first SUV, the LM002, was a commercial flop in the 1980s, but it was ahead of its time. In a rather different automotive landscape, Lamborghini is giving it another crack.

Second-time lucky 

Aesthetically, the car looks as you would expect a slightly taller Lamborghini to look, pushing the brand’s design language to its extremes and, pleasingly, making several low-key nods to its distant forebear, the LM002 (hexagonal wheel arches, anyone?). Okay, so there’s some obvious design influence from Audi, but is that really such a bad thing? We think it’s quite a handsome car and certainly better proportioned than some of the other luxury SUVs. And the interior, a melee of leather, carbon fibre, and Alcantara, is similarly impressive.

All weather, all terrain 

Beneath the bulging bonnet, there’s a new 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 that develops 650hp and 850Nm of torque, shifting the 2,200kg car from 0 to 62mph in 3.6 seconds. A V8, so says Lamborghini, is the only engine that offers high levels of torque at low revs, which is ideal for off-roading. It’s nice to know the company believes that its clients will get their Uruses muddy — we certainly don’t. There’s a raft of electronic systems promising all-weather, all-terrain versatility, including active torque vectoring, the rear-wheel steering from the Aventador S, and ‘snow’, ‘off-road’, and ‘sand’ driving modes.

Priced at 171,429 euros, exclusive of local taxes, the Urus is certainly not the most affordable car in the segment. But this is a Lamborghini — what did you expect? We’re sure they won’t be able to build them quick enough. First adopters will take delivery of their 2.4-tonne super SUVs in the spring.

Photos: Lamborghini

You can find over 100 classic and modern Lamborghinis listed for sale in the Classic Driver Market.