We drove Lamborghini’s new track weapon, the Huracan Performante, a few weeks ago and came away impressed with the car’s poise and focus. There’s a lot more to it than just horsepower and radical styling, however: Lamborghini walked us through some of the car’s unique features and styling influences, plus some engineering details that aren’t immediately apparent. Look for these cues if you’re ever fortunate enough to see a Huracan Performante on the street or at your local Cars ‘n Coffee meetup:

Lamborghini’s “Forged Composite” has a unique flecked look, shown here on one of the dash air vents.

What’s that weird-looking carbon fiber?

Lamborghini calls it “Forged Composite,” and it’s essentially chopped up carbon fiber mixed with plastic resins. It doesn’t have the same structural strength as layered carbon fiber, but it’s lightweight and plenty strong enough for parts like the hood, spoilers and rear bumper cover — plus, it looks cool.

The Huracan Performante’s bronze intake color is reserved for special edition Lamborghini engines.

Why’s the engine that bronze color?

One dead giveaway that you’re looking at a Huracan Performante is the bronze-colored intake manifold castings on the V10 engine; the color is a throwback to earlier special-edition Lambos, including the 30th anniversary Diablo. What isn’t a throwback is the output: With 640 hp at 8,000 rpm, the Performante engine is the most powerful V10 ever produced by Lamborghini, thanks in part to a ridiculous 12.7:1 compression ratio. 

Those high-mounted exhausts are different than the standard Huracan, and meant to evoke racing motorcycles.

What’s different about the exhaust?

The most significant exterior change denoting Performante Huracans occurs out back: Enormous dual exhausts exit from high on the rear panel rather than below the fascia. Lamborghini claims it’s a touch to evoke superbike styling, but there are also practical refinements in the exhaust system to reduce backpressure. Most importantly, it develops a rich, resonant wail at full tilt that’s vastly more enjoyable than the shriek of certain V8 supercars from elsewhere in Italy.

The “Y” pattern is most obvious on the optional interior, but there are also subtle “Y” cues all over the car, from the wheels to the panel gaps.

Why are there so many ‘Y’ shapes?

Modern Lamborghinis aren’t shy about angles, and they often meet in “Y” shapes; there’s an optional Y graphic available for the Huracan Performante’s interior stitching, too. It’s not accidental: Hexagons played a large part in historical Lambo styling — just look at the lower rear fascia of the Miura or any surface on the Marzal show car — and the current Y motif is taken from where the hexagonal shapes meet on those classic Lambos.  

This view is going to cost you about $275,000…plus options.

What’s it going to cost me?

You have to ask, eh? Starting price is right at $275,000, but note that some of the things most buyers will want are options: Adaptive steering, magnetorheological dampers and, of course, a lime green Alcantara headliner. 

Andrew Stoy – Digital editor Andrew Stoy has spent the past 20 years wrenching on and writing about cars. He’s worked everywhere from dealer service bays to the headquarters of the world’s largest automakers.
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