A Brief History of Lambo’s V12 Supercars | Part 6: Lamborghini Aventador (2011-2022)

January 30, 2023

JC Landry

A Brief History of Lamborghini’s V12 Supercars:

Part 1: The Birth of the Beast
Part 2: Lamborghini Miura (1966-1973)
Part 3: Lamborghini Countach (1974-1990)
Part 4: Lamborghini Diablo (1990-2001)
Part 5: Lamborghini Murciélago (2001-2010)
Part 6: Lamborghini Aventador (2011-2022)

In the sixth and final part (at least for now) of the Lamborghini V12 series, we look at the mighty Aventador, a car many consider Lamborghini’s first modern flagship. First launched in 2011, the Aventador quickly became the best-selling Lamborghini V12 supercar in the brand’s history, posting better sales figures than all its predecessors combined.

As you would expect from Lamborghini, the Aventador was no different than the other “poster cars” we discussed earlier in the series, and rightly so. The Murciélago’s sharp lines, along with the ability to turn heads, were only accentuated in the new model. Still, for the first time in decades, Lamborghini developed a completely new V12 powerplant after saying goodbye to the Bizzarrini unit that was in use on all flagship V12 supercars until then.

Background

Lamborghini unveiled the Aventador on February 28th, 2011, at the Geneva International Motor Show, but a clue as to what the car would look like was presented a few years before. In 2007, while the Murciélago was still in production, the Audi Group carmaker made a unique limited edition V12 supercar called the Reventón. Only 21 coupes and 15 roadsters were ever made, and all were sold to long-term customers for a ridiculously high price.

You don’t need a Master’s degree in automobile design to realize the Aventador bears a striking resemblance to the Reventón mentioned above in terms of the modernity of its design. The car ended up garnering extensive support from the Lamborghini community, and as a result, several design cues made it to the upcoming Aventador.

By now, everyone is well aware that Lamborghini doesn’t launch a new flagship supercar unless the old one has been around for a decade, at the very least. This may not sound like a problem, but this is the 21st century we’re talking about. Technology now progresses faster than the speed of sound and turns yesterday’s cutting-edge into today’s obsolete. And it applies to every aspect of the car, which makes coming up with an entirely new vehicle all the more difficult.

Thankfully though, Lamborghini seemed well equipped to handle the task at hand, especially considering its access to the VW Group’s parts bin. That would mean high-quality parts, better electronics, and increased reliability, or in other words, all the right ingredients to go with a fire-breathing V12 engine. Furthermore, unlike the Murciélago, there was newfound stability at Lambo’s top management when the Aventador was being developed, allowing engineers to do their job right. And right, they did!

Lamborghini Aventador (2011-2022)

Lamborghini pulled the covers off the Aventador in February 2011. However, the car made regular appearances at the Nürburgring, donning a cheeky black camouflage livery. The carmaker then invited some journalists to drive it around the Nardó testing facility in Italy, a 7.5-mile-long circuit best suited to put the new car through its paces. Needless to say, the Aventador didn’t fail to impress with its extensive use of F1 tech (more on that later).

For now, let’s get our basics out of the way. As is protocol with Lamborghini, the Aventador got its name from a valiant Spanish fighting bull from 1993. We know very little about the Spanish bullfighting industry, but Lamborghini has to run out of new names for their cars soon, right?

In addition to the name, the Aventador also inherited other iconic Lamborghini design cues like the classic wedge-shaped body, and a screaming V12 in the middle. Many people believed Lamborghini’s inclusion under the VW Group’s umbrella would make its cars tamer or, in other words, the exact opposite of everything the brand stands for. The Aventador put all those fears to rest with razor-sharp edges and an aggressive design.

However, that’s not to say Lamborghini didn’t use VW’s extensive parts stash. And it was just what Lambo needed to turn its reputation from “exciting but unreliable” to “exciting and good to go.” It was the perfect combination of Italian extravaganza and reliable German engineering and technology.

Base Aventador

Back in 2011, Lamborghini unveiled the first Aventador model, a normal (if you can call it that) two-door coupé. For the first time after the early 1960s, Lamborghini designed an entirely new V12 engine from the ground up. Previous flagships like the Murciélago, Diablo and even the Countach used tweaked versions of the original Bizzarrini V12 powerplant. Even the Reventón offered a slightly upgraded version of the same engine used in the Murciélago.

The scale of Lamborghini’s efforts shows just how serious the brand was about coming up with a successor for the Murciélago, a successor worthy of bearing the raging bull crest at the front. At the time of launch, the base Aventador would make a $380,000-sized hole in your pocket, representing a whopping 100k increase over the Murciélago. The Aventador was internally codenamed LB834, while the post-launch code for it was LP 700-4. As usual, the LP stood for “Longitudinale Posteriore” or, in simple terms, Longitudinal Posterior, which specifies the engine’s placement and orientation. Lastly, the last digit (4) stands for the car’s four-wheel drive powertrain, another Lamborghini flagship staple.

For the first time in a flagship Lamborghini, the drivers could choose from three driving modes by simply flicking a switch: Strada, Sport, and Corsa. Strada (Italian for Street) was for everyday driving around town, Sport was to be used when you come across a nice bit of winding mountain road, while Corsa (Italian for Race) was meant for track driving. Just like driving modes in all other sportscars, the suspension gets stiffer, and the throttle response becomes sharper as you progress toward the sportier settings.

A little over two years later, a Roadster variant was introduced with two removable roof panels made out of carbon fiber (or some other shiny black material if you didn’t tick a specific box on the options list). The new car was 110 lbs (50 kg) heavier than the coupe due to additional reinforcement required to retain chassis rigidity. At nearly $450,000, the Roadster variant took the Aventador’s price from expensive to outright stupid. With that being said, we have always believed most cars look worse in convertible form than they do as a coupe, but the Aventador is one of the very few supercars that doesn’t subscribe to that theory.

Under the skin

As mentioned before, Lamborghini went through the trouble of developing a brand-new V12 for this car. The marque’s first generation V12 was developed in the 1960s and remained in use until the last Murciélago left the factory sometime in the 2010s. Of course, the iconic V12 was upgraded over time with newer and better technology, but there came a point when developing a new one was going to be easier than tinkering with the first-gen unit. Besides, Audi’s ownership meant there was no shortage of funds for the project.

The new Lambo V12 featured advanced technologies like multi-point fuel injection and electronically controlled valve timings. The bore and stroke were enlarged to 95 mm and 76.4 mm, respectively. As a result, displacement increased to 6.5 liters (6,498.48 ccs), but despite that, the powerplant was nearly 20 kg (44 lbs.) lighter than its predecessor. The engine churned out an impressive 690 hp and 507 lb-ft (690 Nm) of torque, an impressive feat in 2011. All this power and torque was delivered to all four wheels using a single-clutch semi-automatic transmission.

For the first time, Lamborghini used a monocoque chassis made from carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) weighing less than 350 lbs (160 kg). The chassis only made up the cockpit and had two aluminum subassemblies connected to it on either end that supported both axles and other body panels. Lamborghini proudly made the monocoque in-house using complex and advanced manufacturing techniques and stuck with very close tolerances to maintain the highest quality standards.

The new car could complete the 0-60 mph sprint in a mere 2.9 seconds, and if you keep your right foot planted long enough, the number 217 would eventually appear on the dash. On the other hand, the Roadster variant would take 3 seconds to reach 60 mph from a standing start. Remember that additional structural reinforcement to compensate for a removable roof panel meant the Roadster gained over 100 lbs (45 kg) over the standard car.

Critics of the Aventador often targeted the gearbox, calling it clunky and an absolute neck-breaker when on the limit. But that was only true towards the end of the car’s life as lightning-fast double-clutch boxes got increasingly common. One can even argue that the Aventador’s gearbox gave it some much-needed character and made it ever so slightly “undrivable,” a trait purists believe makes any vehicle more appealing. And, in a few decades, this trait will probably make it more desirable than any dual-clutch supercar of its era. With classic cars, it’s a character that sells, not engineering.

We may be being hard on the single-clutch unit. It was developed by Graziano Transmissioni, an Italian company specializing in gearboxes and mechatronic components, and was quite remarkable despite having just one clutch. Gear changes could be completed in as little as 50 milliseconds, but not a single one would go unnoticed.

In addition to the new engine, the Aventador also made headlines for its cutting-edge suspension setup. The new car featured magnetic pushrod suspension straight out of Formula One. The innovative design improved handling and rigidity in the Aventador, both directly and indirectly.

Directly by providing better damping & rigidity and indirectly by allowing engineers to mount the system closer to the ground and lower the center of mass. Most owners may disagree with it, but the boffins at Sant’Agata Bolognese also made an effort to make the suspension suitable for leisure drives. Still, at least, they gave it a hydraulic suspension nose lift to prevent the front from scraping against bigger bumps or ramps.

Styling features

The most appropriate description for the Aventador is a ‘fighter jet with four wheels.’ While that was also true for past flagship Lamborghini models, the Italian brand took it to an entirely different level this time. It had all the basic Lamborghini design cues; doors that go up, insanely sharp edges, and the classic wedge-shaped body.

In addition, the brand continued the excessive use of the letter ‘Y,’ just like in the Reventón. Lamborghini tends to do that with its cars; models or model ranges are assigned a distinctive shape that signifies something important, and you can find examples of it all around. For instance, all Huracán models have hexagons dotted around the design, representing carbon fiber’s molecular structure, a material extensively used in the V10 supercar. However, such design cues have no fixed boundaries, and most Lamborghini cars see a fair amount of cross-contamination.

The original Aventador was designed by Filippo Perini, then head of design at the Italian marque. Perini had a Master’s degree in Automotive Design and had previously worked with Alfa Romeo and a few other exotic brands in a freelance capacity before joining Audi and eventually making his way to Sant’Agata Bolognese. Reports at the time of launch said Perini was inspired by the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor, an ultra-modern fifth-generation stealth fighter jet.

The front fascia featured two gaping intakes on each end of the bumper that fed fresh air to two small radiators located just behind. Just above, there were the LED projector headlamps, a first for any flagship Lambo. These lights had the DRL element shaped like the letter ‘Y’ and housed the main bulb between the letter’s prongs. You did get some storage space under the frunk, but it was only suitable for a couple of grocery bags and nothing more. Not that anyone was going to go grocery shopping in an Aventador.

Moving to the side, the smooth curvy lines coming from the front and onto the fenders slowly turn into sharp edges originating just before the scissor doors. Sharpness would only get more pronounced as it reaches the car’s C-pillar section. Meanwhile, just behind the doors was another pair of air intakes. These were significantly larger and could feed the fiery V12 engine with much more fresh air to turn into smoke. Amazingly, the engineers found even that wasn’t going to be enough to keep the powerplant cool when driving in anger. For this reason, the Aventador also has another actuating intake port above the rear buttress that opens up when the car’s electronic brain deems it necessary.

The supercar’s rear is much more subtle. All aggressive lines beautifully converge by sloping down onto the tail lights and completing the classic wedge shape. Once again, the rear lights also conform to overall styling with several integrated ‘Y’s. To top it all off, the exhaust is four times as wide as it is high, putting Elon Musk’s flamethrower to shame.

For those committed to the open-top driving lifestyle, Lamborghini made the Aventador Roadster. It featured a manual roof mechanism, and the removable rooftop meant certain portions of the car had to be redesigned. For example, the glass engine cover was now divided into two, and you got a separate glass window just behind the seats. The absence of a roof meant occupants could hear the V12 growl without any barriers, and when the top was up, the small glass window could be put down to let that thunderous roar in.

The interior also went through a major equipment overhaul compared to the Murciélago. Gone were the clunky mechanical tachometers and old infotainment systems — the Aventador came with digital displays all around. Every interior trim was wrapped in high-quality leather to give the occupants a sense of luxury. However, the best part of the Aventador’s cabin was the start/stop button that looked straight out of a fighter jet.

Aventador SV

A few years after unveiling the first Aventador model, Lamborghini launched a new hardcore version at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show. It was called the Super Veloce, which, when loosely translated from Italian, means ‘Super Fast’ — which it was. In essence, the SV was a raw, stripped-down version of the Aventador. Even the smallest luxuries, like Bluetooth pairing on the infotainment system, carpets, and even the glovebox, had to be sacrificed in the name of weight reduction.

Leather was now scarce in the cabin, and most components were wrapped in Alcantara instead. The doors had an exposed carbon fiber finish without rigid support for the passenger to hold onto when necessary (and you know it’s bound to happen with such a supercar). Instead, you got a small leather strap color-coded to the rest of the interior.

Apart from the monocoque, the engine cover, wing, air intakes, door panels, rear diffuser, and seats were also made from lightweight carbon fiber. As a result, the Super Veloce weighed 110 lbs (50 kg) less than the standard Aventador.

Despite the SV being meant for hardcore driving, Lamborghini also gave the world a Roadster version. You lost some structural rigidity at the cost of having that wind-in-your-hair feeling, but the car was an absolute stunner.

Lamborghini said they would do a limited run of 600 SV coupes and another 500 roadsters. The coupes were sold for nearly half a million dollars a pop, while the elusive roadster models cost around the $530,000 mark without options.

Performance modifications

The SV’s V12 engine was tuned to produce an additional fifty-something horsepower, taking the total output to 740 while torque remained unchanged. The power bump was achieved by a free-flowing exhaust, new variable valve timing, and an improved intake system. As a result, the Aventador SV was 0.1 seconds quicker to 62 mph (100 km/h).

However, the fact that the SV had more power and could accelerate faster than the Aventador wasn’t the main change; the most significant change was the new car’s handling. Unlike the first Aventador, Lamborghini used magnetorheological dampers and its own adaptive steering in the SV. These dampers were first used on the Huracan but didn’t quite dazzle reviewers. However, that is different with the Aventador, as the talented engineers back in Italy had made all the right adjustments. It is said that the magnetorheological suspension system in the SV is responsible for shaving at least 20 seconds off a lap of the Nürburgring Nordschleife, which ultimately resulted in a record lap time for a production car of 6:59:73.

While performance was significantly enhanced, so was stopping power — the SV came with carbon ceramic discs on all fours.

Aesthetic changes

The Super Veloce was an angrier and meaner Aventador regarding performance aspects, but Lamborghini had to make sure it looked the part, too. To this end, the car got redesigned front and rear bumpers, a large rear wing, and stylish ‘SV’ decals on the rear fender.

In addition, Lamborghini got rid of all the moving parts in the name of weight saving. The mechanically opening air intakes above the rear axle were now permanently open and made from carbon fiber (at an extra cost, of course). Even the wing was now fixed, although it could still be manually adjusted in four different positions.

Once inside, SV embroidery would repeatedly remind you that this was no regular Aventador. The tachometer came with refreshed graphics with carbon fiber on the surrounding trim pieces.

Aventador S

By 2016-2017, the Aventador was due for a mid-life facelift, and the pressure was on for Lamborghini to get it right because, by then, the existing models were doing great in terms of sales numbers. Mitja Borkert, the new Director of Lamborghini’s Style Center and Filippo Perini’s replacement, was tasked with the design. What he came up with can be best described as exactly what it was supposed to be — a mild refresh.

The facelifted model was named the Aventador S, and when painted green, it looked exactly like the infamous Green Pit Viper showing off its sharp fangs. We think the Aventador S lost some of the original car’s aggressive styling, and Borkert made it look more sophisticated. Even mechanically, the S felt more refined and tamed, at least until you put it in Strada and don’t upshift before 7000 RPM — maybe that’s what the boffins at Lambo HQ were going for.

In essence, the Aventador S could become what you wanted it to be and when you wanted it to be. And that’s what made it perfect for turning heads at the Hotel de Paris or posting competitive lap times at your local track day.

Regarding performance upgrades for the Aventador S, the new rear-wheel steering system stole all the attention. It was an Audi/VW-sourced system that would turn the rear wheels up to 1.5° in the opposite direction when driving at slow speeds to improve maneuverability and make the car feel less like a giant boat. On the other hand, the clever system would turn the rear wheels up to 3° in the same direction as the front axle when traveling above 80 mph to increase stability.

No surprise that the massive V12 powerplant also got a power upgrade, taking the total horsepower on tap up by 39 to 730. The Aventador S retained the 2.9-second 0-62 mph time as the original, though it was quicker at higher speeds, eventually achieving 217 mph (350 km/h).

The clunky old automated manual transmission stayed and was heavily criticized. Still, some reports suggest the Italian brand was out of options as the monocoque design wouldn’t fit a larger dual-clutch box. Additionally, magnetorheological shocks were now standard on all four corners.

Lastly, there was one more significant change — this time to the interior. In addition to the three driving modes Lamborghini previously offered on all Aventador models, the S variant came with one more. It was called ‘Ego,’ and we aren’t going to make any insinuations about what that means. Ego mode was essentially a free-for-all mode where the driver could choose every characteristic of the car. For example, you could have the steering and throttle response of Corsa mode but glide along with the suspension setup of Strada.

Design changes on the Aventador S include restyled front and rear bumpers and some other bits and bobs dotted around the car. The front bumper had two protruding fangs that could give any child nightmares, but the rear end was all business.

Base prices now start at approximately $420,000 for the coupe, while the 2017 roadster model would set you back another $40,000.

Aventador SVJ

Lamborghini wowed crowds at the 2018 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance with an all-new special edition Aventador — the Super Veloce Jota. The Jota moniker made a return on a limited-edition supercar after its last use on the Diablo. However, Lamborghini also made a one-off Aventador J (Jota), a Barchetta-style roofless and windowless roadster. That car was sold in the US for nearly $3 million.

The SVJ, on the other hand, was very different; it was meant to be the craziest, fastest, and most advanced Aventador variant yet. It extensively utilized active aerodynamics to its advantage and set a record for the fastest production car on the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 2018 with a lap time of 6:44.97, nearly 15 seconds faster than the SV model.

In addition to the enhanced aerodynamics, the SVJ builds on other parameters where the SV excelled. Thanks to titanium intake valves and a few other engine modifications, peak power now stood at 759 bhp, while torque increased slightly to 531 lb-ft (720 Nm). As a result, the Aventador SVJ reached 62 mph in 2.8 seconds and went over 217 mph (350 km/h) — impressive considering the added drag from all those wings.

Namely, among the headline improvements was the latest version of ALA or Aerodynamica Lamborghini Attiva, which is what the Italian brand calls its active aerodynamic system. ALA’s goal was to improve lap times by all means necessary.

To that end, the system could increase the downforce on one side of the car while cornering by selectively opening or closing specific flaps on the rear wing, underbody, and diffuser. The clever aerodynamic trickery ensured outstanding stability at higher speeds, with all four wheels pushed into the ground for maximum grip.

Lamborghini said it would produce 900 SVJs & another 800 roadsters. Prices for these mean machines started from $520,000 for the coupe, plus another 30-40 Grand for the Roadster.

Aventador Ultimae

In July 2021, Lamborghini announced it was the end of the road for its flagship supercar. All good things must eventually come to an end, and so did the mighty Aventador, but not without one last hurrah. The Aventador Ultimae is the final variant that Lamborghini will produce.

The recipe was still the same, but the Ultimae got a power bump to 769 hp, while most other modifications were limited to aesthetics. Some new matte paint options, new instrument cluster graphics, and unique stitching on the dash were some of the physical changes. Of course, a roadster version also followed soon after. Lamborghini made 350 coupes and 250 roadsters, the last of which left the factory in Sant’Agata in late September 2022.

The End of an Era

It’s a sad time for Aventador enthusiasts like me around the globe as just a few months ago, the last-ever unit rolled off the production line down in Sant’Agata Bolognese. What’s even sadder is that with this, Lamborghini said it would stop producing more naturally-aspirated V12 machines. Indeed, the Aventador’s successor will have some sort of electric drivetrain trickery, kinder to the polar bears. You win, tree huggers.

But look at the bright side! Motortrend recently ran a piece claiming the next flagship Lambo would not be a hybrid just for the heck of it. It would have a substantial battery pack paired with the screaming V12 in the middle. Now, this means more power, quicker acceleration, & less hate from the environmentalists, and did we mention more power?

So what if the next big Lambo won’t be naturally aspirated? It might still be the most exciting supercar in its class in true Lamborghini style.

Last Words

Over the course of its eleven-year production, Lamborghini ended up producing a total of 11,465 examples of the Aventador. We decided to stick to only the prominent series production and the most prominent limited edition models to prevent this article from being classed as a novel. The number includes series production cars, limited edition models, country or region-specific editions, and even one-offs.

Despite Lamborghini’s loose hand regarding special edition models and one-offs, the Aventador became the single most successful car in the brand’s history. Now, all that’s left is to wait and see if the replacement is a worthy successor. But one thing is for sure; we can’t wait to be back with Part 7 of this series as soon as possible.