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2009 Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder makes worldwide debut at Los Angeles Auto Show
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One hydraulic pump, six hydraulic cylinders, one electric motor and two electric actuators make all the difference in a Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder. Well, that and a few yards of fabric and a frame to hang it on.
That’s the simple way—and really incomplete way—of saying that the LP 560-4 Spyder, which made its world debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show—is the new roadster version of the Lamborghini Gallardo, and all that stuff is what it takes to power the top up and down.
It’s incomplete because the Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder is more than just a ragtop. The fabric roof is fully lined and powers down out of sight under the rear deck.Here’s how it works: The rear window, set vertically behind the passenger compartment, slides down. Four cylinders raise the rear-hinged engine cover slightly for the top to fold—“gracefully,” Lamborghini tells us—into a well between the cockpit and engine compartment of the mid-engined sports car. The cover closes and then the rear window rises to its former position to function as a wind deflector. It takes just 20 seconds.
The good news? The LP 560-4 Spyder is designed to operate at top speed with the top up or top down. And in the case of the 560-horsepower LP 560-4 Spyder, that’s 201 mph. Tie down the toupee, Marvin, that’s an 8 on the Dvorak Hurricane Current Intensity Chart just inches above your head!Speaking of your head, two spring-loaded rollover bars are mounted behind the seats. If sensors detect an impending inversion, the bars deploy in 250 milliseconds and seat belt tensioners cinch down at the same time.
To accommodate the convertible top, the Spyder’s “shoulders” are slightly higher than the coupe’s. The Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder has an aluminum body shell—like the coupe—but supplements the already rigid body with “additional stiffness elements within the spaceframe” to make up for the loss of the fixed roof.
Lamborghini claims that even when the top is raised the interior is still “spacious” and that the Spyder loses none of its front or rear cargo capacity. The same interior trim options—“Ad Personam”—are still available with the Spyder as with the coupe, though of course at extra cost.
Speaking of which, the base price—if that phrase can be used with a Lamborghini—of the 2009 Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder is $221,000 and will be available at the 34 authorized Lamborghini dealerships in spring 2009. Lamborghini chose the Los Angeles Auto show to for the world debut because the U.S. accounted for thirty-nine percent of the total Lamborghini sales worldwide last year and is the largest single market for Lamborghini, with 930 Lamborghinis delivered in the United States out of 2,406 w
orldwide. And of those in the U.S., Southern California took thirty percent.
orldwide. And of those in the U.S., Southern California took thirty percent.It remains to be seen how well one hydraulic pump, six hydraulic cylinders, one electric motor and two electric actuators and, oh, the rest of a 2009 Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder will sell. It all depends on how many people still have $221,000 in disposable income—or sufficient credit—in Sothern California next spring.
| Engine | 5,4-liter DOHC 40-valve V-10 |
| Horsepower, bhp @ rpm | 560 @ 8000 |
| Torque, lb-ft @ rpm | 398 @ 6500 |
| Tires, front/rear | Pirelli Pzero 235/35ZR19/295/30ZR19 |
| Wheels, front/rear | Aluminum alloy, 8.5x10"/11x19" |
| Ventilated disc brakes, dia in., f/r | 14.37/14.0 |
| Transmission, manual/E-gear | 6-speed |
| All-wheel drive | Yes |
| Wheelbase, in. | 100.7 |
| Length, in. | 171 |
| Width, in. | 74.8 |
| Dry weight, lbs | 3,417 |
| Top speed, mph (per Lamborghini) | 201 |
| 0-62 mph, sec. | 4.0 |
| 0-124 mph | 13.1 sec |
| Fuel mileage, EPA, E-dear city/hwy | 13/20 |
| Fuel mileage, EPA,manual, city/hwy | 12/20 |
Gallery: More picture of the Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder
Illustrations: Top to bottom: Stephan Winklemann, CEO Automobili Lamborghini, introduces Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder at Los Angeles Auto Show; Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder interior; Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 seats; Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 Spyder profile; Lamborghini LP 560-4 Spyder. All photos courtesty Automobili Lamborghini.
More Los Angeles Auto Show introductions: 2010 Ford Mustang; 2009 Infiniti G37 Convertible, 2009 Nissan 370Z, 2009 Nissan Cube, Toyota CNG Camry Hybrid
If you like this, you might like: Lamborghini LP560-4 Super Trofeo readied for world's fastest one-make race; Lamborghini LP560-4 Polizia donated to Italian State Police, hits the autostrada: Driven: Car review 1974 Lamborghini Espada; Two-plus-two equals success; Driven: 1968 Lamborghini Islero, The Forgotten Lamborghini
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