AIMS: Lamborghini Aventador from $754,000

LAMBORGHINI officially announced its all-new Aventador LP700-4 flagship will be priced from $754,600 (plus on-roads costs) in Australia at the Melbourne motor show – $400 less than its Murcielago LP640 predecessor.

Compared with the expected $790,000 ticket, the $35,000 lower price leaves the lucky few Australian Aventador buyers with enough change to purchase an A1 hatchback from Lamborghini’s parent company Audi – or indulge in a few items from the options list.

The Australian debut of the latest Raging Bull was always going to draw the crowds and Lamborghini Australia managing director Andrew Smith told GoAuto the reaction had so far been positive.

One car had already been sold at the event over the weekend in addition to about a dozen Australia-bound cars already spoken for sight unseen.

“We have been overwhelmed by the unprecedented level of enquiry we have received,” said Mr Smith.

Below: Lamborghini Australia managing director Andrew Smith.



“The Aventador has generated more interest than any other model launched by Lamborghini in Australia.”

He expressed surprise that rivals Ferrari and Aston Martin were not represented at the show, suggesting they had missed an opportunity.

“It’s the school holidays in Melbourne, I think the show standard is good, the quality is there. You can’t turn Melbourne into Shanghai or Geneva but I believe people were there in numbers and willing to spend the money to go.”

Mr Smith told GoAuto the price had been decided “about a month ago” and explained that Lamborghini, which defines the Australian price from its Italian headquarters, had originally suggested a $790,000 price for the car as part of the company’s policy of incrementally increasing prices over superseded models.

He said the local price was negotiated down to “what we think is a fair price in the market” by the Australian team.

Like many sports and luxury cars sold in Australia, even with the Aventador’s $209,243 Luxury Car Tax liability subtracted, it remains $244,287 more expensive in Australia than in the similarly right-hand drive UK market.

Even so, there are few cars on the Australian market that compete with the Lambo on price.

At $625,000, Ferrari’s similarly all-wheel drive FF coupe looks like a relative bargain, especially as it is $73,000 less expensive than the 612 Scaglietti it replaces.

Then there is the $700,000 Lexus LFA, the first Australian-delivered example also drawing the crowds at the Melbourne show, but all ten destined for Australia are already sold.

In line with Lamborghini tradition, the Aventador is named after a fighting bull, with the LP700-4 suffix stating its 700 horsepower engine output (equivalent to 515kW) is delivered to all four wheels.

At 2.9 seconds, the Aventador has one of the fastest 0-100km/h acceleration times. However, at 100km/h the wedge-like, jet fighter-inspired Lambo is far from raising a sweat, with a further 250km/h in reserve before it hits v-max.

The all-new mid-mounted V12 engine delivers more power than that fitted to the Murcielago yet returns better fuel economy and lower emissions.

Keeping the power under control are carbon-ceramic brakes, a lightweight carbon-fibre monocoque chassis and racecar-style pushrod suspension.

Like the Murcielago, Diablo and Countach before it, entry to the Aventador is via dramatic scissor doors. Inside, a stylised and updated version of the Audi multi-media interface (MMI) enables access to vehicle, entertainment and communication settings.