“Power is somehow cheap now,” says Stefano Cossalter, product line director for the Lamborghini Urus. “Our number-one priority was driving dynamics. That’s the core of the Performante: suspension, brakes and calibration software.”
Not that Lamborghini’s latest ‘super-SUV’ is either underpowered or inexpensive, you understand. Its twin-turbocharged V8 and hybrid system dish up a combined 812hp and 738lb ft of torque. And the entry cost of £226,680 is almost £20,000 more than a regular 800hp Urus SE.
Worth it? That’s what I’m at Vairano, an automotive proving ground near Milan, to find out. Used regularly by Lamborghini engineers, its facilities include a skidpan, handling course and tightly coiled, two-lane circuit that resembles the best B-road you’ve ever driven. If anywhere can put the Performante’s dynamic chops to the test, it’s here.
A brief history of Performante
‘Performante’ has become one of Sant’Agata’s most revered suffixes – second only to ‘Super Veloce’, perhaps. It first appeared on the 2017 Huracan Performante, a car that developed just 30hp more than a standard Huracan LP610-4, yet took 36 fewer seconds to circumnavigate the 12.9 miles and 73 corners of the Nurburgring. Indeed, the hardcore Huracan’s lap time of 6min 52.01sec was an outright production car record until the Porsche 911 GT2 RS shaved off another few seconds.
The first generation Urus Performante followed in 2022. With 666 devilish horsepower, an Akrapovic exhaust system, a wider track and optional Pirelli Trofeo R tyres, it undoubtedly met the brief for heightened track performance, but Cossalter concedes there were compromises elsewhere. “Customers told us the old Performante wasn’t comfortable enough, especially in the back. We have solved that problem by using air suspension, rather than steel springs.”
The ‘SE’ part of the new car’s name is also important. It denotes the plug-in hybrid hardware – a 25.9kWh battery and rear e-motor – that contributes an extra 192hp. This makes this Performante appreciably more powerful than its predecessor, and better at the multi-tasking demanded of an SUV. Along with scorching to 62mph in 3.3 seconds and a top speed of 194mph, it can travel up to 40 miles using battery power alone. On paper at least, you can have your panettone and eat it,
Engineered for extroverts
In the metal, any thoughts of this being a sensible family SUV quickly evaporate – especially if your Performante is finished in the highlighter-pen yellow seen here, officially known as Giallo Crius. It looks like a car that guzzles raw eggs for breakfast, a Huel smoothie for lunch and a bloodied steak for dinner, washed down with several cans of Monster. Haters are gonna hate, but ever since the Miura defined the supercar in 1966, Lamborghinis have never blended into the background. Introverts need not apply.
You can tell the Performante apart from a common-or-garden Urus SE by its twin front S-ducts, which resemble 911 GT3-style nostrils. Look closer and you’ll also spot wider air intakes, a new splitter, angular wheelarch extensions and a second rear spoiler. Many of the exterior panels are made from carbon fibre, including the bonnet, sill covers and rear bumper/diffuser. Indeed, Lamborghini claims this is ‘the SUV with the widest use of carbon fibre in the world’.
That may be so, but a total weight loss of 32kg – by the time you factor in a new titanium exhaust system (saving 10kg) and lighter Corsa Tex upholstery (2.7kg) – is pretty inconsequential in a vehicle that tips the scales at 2,473kg. The old, non-hybrid Urus Performante was more than 300kg lighter.
In more positive news, the new Performante is actually three percent more aerodynamic than its standard SE sibling, while also delivering a 23 percent increase in maximum downforce. It rides on 22-inch wheels, which can be wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza Race tyres (fitted here), just in case you fancy attempting a Nurburgring record of your own. Larger 23-inch rims with road-focused Pirelli rubber are on the options list
Inside the Urus SE Performante
If you do plan a weekend away at the Nordschleife, of course, you can take the kids and cocker spaniel along for the ride. The Performante might be at the extreme end of the SUV spectrum, but it’s no less practical than any Urus SE, with five seats and 414 litres of luggage space (down from 616 litres in the original car, due to the hybrid batteries beneath the boot floor).
The cabin looks almost as angular as the exterior, with an abundance of Lamborghini’s signature hexagons and the bulky ‘Tamburo’ drive mode selector atop the centre console. New for the SE Performante is a Rally mode – perhaps inspired by the brilliant Huracan Sterrato – which is designed for driving fast on dirt or gravel roads. The usual Strada, Sport and Corsa settings are present and correct, too.
A 12.3-inch central touchscreen handles the infotainment, including wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, with a separate screen for the heating and ventilation controls underneath. Thankfully, there are also plenty of tactile physical switches, while quality is as good as you’d hope for a car that takes on the Aston Martin DBX S and Bentley Bentayga Speed.
The fastest SUV, but only just
Lamborghini says the ultra-Urus is the ‘fastest SUV in the world’, although it depends on your definition of the F-word. Yes, its 194mph top speed beats the Aston Martin, Bentley and Ferrari Purosangue by a small-but-significant 1mph. However, another SUV from the Volkswagen Group stable, the new Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric, is much quicker off the mark – hitting 62mph in just 2.5 seconds.
Still, no-one will clamber out of an Urus SE Performante thinking it feels a bit lethargic. The combination of instant battery torque, four-wheel drive and those sticky Bridgestones makes a launch-control start feel gut-wrenching, then the big-lunged V8 piles on speed relentlessly. On Vairano’s two-kilometre straight, it will blast beyond 150mph with ease.
It makes noises that no EV can match, too. The Akrapovic exhaust sounds less explosive than you might expect, despite Lamborghini’s promise of ‘more backfire sounds’. No doubt many owners will fit aftermarket pipes. However, the twin-turbo engine bellows like Brian Blessed, its tone fuller and more resonant than the flat-plane V8 in the Temerario. If your experience of hybrids thus far is limited to Uber rides in a Toyota Prius, prepare to have your preconceptions blown apart.
Take it to the track
Equally, if you’re used to driving a not-so-super SUV, the way the Urus goes around corners may frazzle your brain. In addition to ‘Aura’ dual-chamber air suspension, Lamborghini has introduced a 6D dynamic sensor – first seen on the Fenomeno and Revuelto SV – along with eight accelerometers positioned around the chassis. These predict the car’s movements and allow the dynamic systems to respond proactively – smoothing your progress and minimising your mistakes.
Full-on Corsa mode is targeted at lap times, so it prevents the Urus from getting too wayward around Vairano’s tight second- and third-gear corners. If you simply want to have fun, though, Sport mode permits more lateral movement, so you can steer with the throttle, coaxing the car into short, easily controlled slides. Top tip: it really helps if Lamborghini is picking up the bill for new tyres, too.
As for ride quality, the Achilles’ heel of the first Urus Performante, it seems to be much improved. Granted, driving exclusively on-track isn’t a representative test, but the way the Urus rode the lumpy kerbs when I was clipping apexes, combined with how it shrugged off potholes on an unsurfaced access road, was very impressive. There’s certainly more bandwidth here than before.
Verdict: Lamborghini Urus SE Performante
Sadly, there was no Alpine forest or frozen lake nearby to test the new Rally mode, but we did have a large patch of concrete soaked by sprinklers. And I’m pleased to report that, yes, if you wind on some lock then stomp your right foot, the Urus SE Performante will go wildly sideways. With the systems off it gains momentum very quickly, though, and you will need fast hands to gather it up. Think twice before trying this in Sainsbury’s car park.
Much like the Huracan, the Urus has lived a long life – it debuted in late 2017 – but a process of continuous improvement has kept it firmly in contention. For those who already thought Lamborghini’s SUV too outrageous and ostentatious, the modifications made here won’t change their minds. But Sant’Agata clearly knows its customers, and the Performante dials up the drama without removing everyday usability.
Stefano Cossalter predicts that around half of SE buyers will spend the extra 10 percent or thereabouts to upgrade to a Performante. Those that do will be getting the best Urus yet.
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