svb

Surprised my fiance this weekend and rented a 2013 Gallardo LP-570 4 Performante. She's full Italian from Milano and this is a "normal" car for her. However I was giddy excited, and it was a dream come true and my first experience with Lamborghini. To make this post legit, let me compare it to my recently acquired Boxster Spyder, and mention my 997, and as a loyal Porschephile convey my first impression with an Italian supercar. I know these cars are in different economic segments and its like comparing apples to oranges... but lets leave cost out of this:

Ride
Lambo is downright more comfortable and more compliant than the Porsche Spyder (no PASM), but on par with my 997. Hard to believe, but we were actually cushy in this thing, even in Sport and Corsa mode. Seats, ride, just perfect. Now the Spyder seems unduly stiff.


Sound
Lambo sound...shockingly intoxicating and loud, especially in Sport or Corsa mode. I prefer it to even a PSE Porsche. I don't know how it passes Euro sound regulations, unless the US spec version is different. There is just nothing like it. Even on a downshift, its just pure sex.

Handling
Porsche Spyder here. Porsche feels nimbler, more balanced, more dialed in, and would be much harder to throw into the weeds. The Lambo had me unnerved. I was completely wired the whole time. But I was very impressed with the steering, it had Porsche-like feel and accuracy. Lambo brake feel is superior with better initial bite, equal to my 997S.

Transmission
Porsche PDK is superior to whatever flappy paddle (?Audi DSG) system was in this car. It was clunky and you needed to lift throttle between shifts to avoid whiplash. Didn't like it and expected better.

Interior
Lambo is nice, with full Alcantra interior, but honestly I wasn't completely blown away. I think I prefer the Porsche believe it or not.

Exterior
The matte black finish and styling on this car is just gorgeous. The body work with, carbon bits drips of quality. The roof works amazing well. As cool as the Spyder looks, have to go Lambo here.

Panache
No contest here. The Lambo just stops traffic dead everywhere we took it. This was a negative for me. It attracts too much attention and cameras. People yelling, screaming, walking out in front of the car at a traffic light, etc. It just makes people act stupid. I kept thinking..."sheesh its just a Gallardo." But it still pulls a crowd like a Countach. We are private people and we wanted to hide in the footwells because we had the top down. My Spyder still gets looks, but its not annoying like it was with the Lambo.

The wacky conclusion

First I have to say, at the price point that the Porsche Spyder was built with, it is an impeccable and glorious achievement and a downright bargain for what it is. From an engineering, performance, and quality standpoint the cars were very close. You are just paying a heck of a lot more for that Italian style with the Lambo. Whether that is worth the extra cost comes down to a subjective decision.

That being said, we are actually in the market for one now. Wedding gift for my soon to be wife. She can tame this thing like you wouldn't believe, and its rather arousing to see her drive it and bully it, instead of vice versa. I was so completely smitten by the experience, and as old as the Gallardo platform is now, its amazing that it still feels so fresh. The whole Italiano thing has me intoxicated (hell I'm marrying one) And My fiance told me the "Performante" edition was the one to buy a long time ago when she drove it in Italy, and I have to agree. Downsides are cost and attention, but I'm willing to make concessions.

My Porsche Spyder may be on the cutting block soon. As much as I love it, it would be redundant, and I'm running out of garage space! Keeping the 997. It is quirky, has character, and just cannot be replaced.

wc11

To be fair, a Boxster Spyder is hardly a fair comparison.
Different league altogether.
And as for sound? A V10 vs Flat 6 ??? really???
A Carrera GT would be more in the neighborhood for a comparison I would think.

svb

Yes, and I prefaced my comparison with this. The point of my post is to hint at how well I thought the humble $70K Porsche stacks up against the quarter mil Lambo.

MessyMarvin

Good read, thank you for sharing.

Fred R. C4S

As a former Ferrari owner, let me add that every modern Lambo should come with a hand grenade. In the event of an accident, you step out, pull the pin toss inside and walk away. Can you imagine how difficult and expensive it would be to repair a carbon fiber tub car? Italian cars require a bit of "suspension of disbelief". Looking good is more important that top level engineering and quality. If you think Porsche parts prices are crazy, you've got to be sitting down when even the smallest Ferrari part is priced for you by the dealer. Yes, Ive been drinking the Porsche "Kool Aid" since 1975. But it is about 10 proof compared to the 110 proof Italian brand.

911Steve

My neighbor owned a gallardo... He said hands down he would rather have the 911 convertible that the 911 is an all around car.

Jaws1

My friend has a 458 Italia Spider in black which is, as far as I'm concerned, the ultimate supercar. I've driven it on a couple of occasions and it is spectacular. There's nothing better than an Italian V8 at 9000 rpm. The attention from others does get tiresome, and other drivers will often do crazy things to get closer to the car. My only problem with driving it is how plain my car feels after the Ferrari.

Are you sure it's not your wife stopping traffic?

Chaos

Wow!

Para82

I'll bet that was a lot of fun! I'm sure the wife added to the traffic stopping.

If i've got 250,000 to burn on an Italian exotic then it's going straight to a 430 Scuderia or 458 Italia.

For me...Lamborghini's try to hard. Never really liked them enough to put the poster on the wall (or save pics to my desktop to drool over later)

Para82

Agreed. My buddy just picked up a beautiful Nero 458 Italia in London. I haven't had a chance to see it in person yet but he's currently driving it along the Mediterranean on an epic roadtrip. Yesterday he drove from Monte Carlo to Portofino - tunnels and all at 160mph+ sounded amazing (he's posting the GoPro videos to his facebook).

F430 prices are coming down nicely.....so are 360 Modenas.... and 355's at 60k!

bill8411

Great thread!

Kalashnikov

Next time wear this, and have you fiance as catwoman.

87turbo911

While at a tech inspection, I talked to a guy who owns both Ferrari and Porsche.

I discovered that, while I could afford to BUY an older Ferrari, I couldn't afford maintaining it!

Robocop305

The maintenance is the most expensive part of owning these exotics. Let's not talk about repairs! I was in the market for a 2006 Maserratti Super Sport and it was very affordable, except for their $5k clutch replacement that needs to be done quite often.

Principissimo

I had a Gallardo LP560-4 before the Turbo S.
It is a great car and I do not agree on some of the points. Gear is great, for example, according to me.

The only big issue with the Lambo is that, living in the same town of your fiance, is not that safe to use it. Everybody will look at you, you will have problem parking it outside, you can have problem with robberies.....

However the emotion given by Lambo sound is something that everybody loving cars has to try at least once in his life