It’s official: the much-awaited successor to the Lamborghini Murcielago (named either Aventador or Jota, depending on who you ask), will be unveiled at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show in early March. As well as officially confirming the supercar's show debut, Lamborghini also revealed details on the suspension.
The Murcielago's replacement will come with an F1-inspired pushrod spring and damper concept, tuned to "meet the needs of a high-performance road-going vehicle." Mores specifically, Lamborghini said that instead of linking to the wheel mounts, the spring/damper elements are connected to the body shell structure, in a transverse position. Pushrods and relay levers/rockers transmit the forces from the wheel mounts to the spring/damper elements, offering a series of benefits.
Because of this setup, wheel control and damper are separate units, improving handling and the reaction of the springs/dampers. This allowed engineers to use less stiff springs, increasing comfort. Last but not least, the shock absorbers are equipped with a hydraulic lifting system, capable of raising the front end of the car by 4 centimeters (1.57 inches) at the push of a button. Thus, small obstacles can be negotiated without causing damage to the front bumper.
All suspension parts are made from a forged aluminum alloy.
As previously reported, the Lambo is motivated by a newly developed 700HP 6.5-liter V12 engine, while stopping power comes from 400mm 6-pot caliper ventilated front and 380mm 4-pot caliper rear carbon ceramic brakes. The LP700-4 runs on 19-inch front and 20-inch rear wheels, shod in 255/35 and 335/30 tires respectively.
The steering system is hydraulic with three different servotronic settings, ranging from the hardcore “corsa” racetrack mode to less demanding setups.
There’s no official information on pricing yet, but one German dealer has already listed the car as the “Aventador LP700-4” for €309,900 (US$423,757) with 19% tax.
By Csaba Daradics
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