Lamborghini Essenza SCV12 (2021) Review Car News

So although the Essenza is not a race car, the driving experience is very similar, a point Lamborghini emphasized by first letting me drive the Vallelunga track in the Huracán Super Trofeo Evo 2 slightly more. slow of the Lamborghini single-make championship. With those laps still fresh on my mind, I climb into the SCV12, which is elevated on its integrated air jacks and surrounded by mechanics. Lamborghini estimates that most owners will need three or four every time they run it.

The cockpit is much better finished than standard racing cars and the lack of a separate roll bar frees up more space, but the view forward once you’re stuck in the only seat is still limited. by vast pillars. There is a rear camera system, but it doesn’t work on this late-stage prototype.

All the main controls are integrated into the yoke-shaped steering wheel, which has a central display screen. The rotary switches on the wheel change various modes, from the level of power steering assistance to differential preload (see tester note, above). Like the Super Trofeo racer, the SCV12 also features adjustable levels of ABS and traction control. Additionally, there is a variable power level called simply “mode”, with the “1” setting limiting the engine to around 650hp and higher numbers gradually releasing more power until “5” brings full power. fury. It stays at ‘5’ throughout my time in the car.

Getting off to a decent start is difficult. While the Super Trofeo racer retains a clutch pedal to keep it rolling, the Essenza uses an automated clutch with the same gearbox for its three-pedal downpour clientele and it engages with a suddenness that transforms even a start. smoothly in the pit lane into a tire. tweet launch. There’s also a speed limiter in the pit lane, which noisily keeps the car at 60 km / h (37 mph) with a staccato spark limiter.

Once on the track and completely unleashed, the performance feels huge but never wild. As with its lesser applications, the engine lacks the brutal low-end torque common to turbocharged hypercars. Instead, the urge increases with linear progression across the wide rev range and with a dramatic exhaust note that’s close to being painfully sharp, even through the padding of a hard hat. With the track surface at 50 degrees C, there is no need to worry about warming up Pirelli slicks.