Man Maths: Lamborghini Aventador

The Aventador got better and better throughout its life. The first example I drove was an LP 700-4 Roadster. Over two days in 2013 I ripped through Italy from Milan to Rome on Lamborghini’s 50th anniversary tour, along with hundreds of other Lambos of every possible kind (actually, I don’t remember seeing any Lamborghini tractors). There is a special kind of immunity that comes with driving an Italian supercar through its homeland, more so when you’re doing it in convoy with a couple of dozen other Lamborghinis. I saw numbers on the speedometer that I still won’t admit to.

I knew very early on what that car’s dynamic limitations were – on fiddly hillside roads it was difficult to properly connect with – but with the roof panels stuffed into the front boot and the 6.5-litre naturally aspirated V12 howling away at 8000rpm, those limitations didn’t seem very significant.

The Aventador LP 740-4 S that followed a few years later was better by a distance but it wasn’t until 2019 that I was really blown away by an Aventador. In just a few miles of Snowdonia mountain road, the hardcore SVJ turned me from stone cold cynic to jabbering acolyte. I remember getting out at the far end twitching with adrenaline.

I was surprised to see that even the earliest Aventadors are still listed for around £150,000. That’ll buy a 2011 LP 700-4 that’s covered around 20,000 miles. Meanwhile SVJs start at around £400,000, but you can pay half as much again for a late model Roadster. And that’s where Man Maths stumbles; where I realise I might not be a Lamborghini person after all – at no price point is the Aventador the mid-engined supercar I would choose to buy. Pity.

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