2011 Lamborghini Gallardo

Lamborghinis have long stood for sheer, menacing speed, usually courtesy of a monster engine. It’s a solid formula, but any engineer will tell you that you eventually reach a point of diminishing returns. How, then, do you make an even more insane Lamborghini? Make it lighter. Lamborghini first applied the “lighter is better” approach to the compact Gallardo back in 2007, aptly naming the special model the Superleggera, or “super-light.” Extensive use of carbon-fiber and the deletion of such frivolities as a radio and cup holders knocked more than 200 pounds off of the curb weight, allowing the stripped-down, road-legal track car to hit 62 mph in 3.8 seconds. The lack of creature comforts didn’t scare away buyers — Lamborghini moved 618 Gallardo Superleggeras during its one-year production run. Built on the success of the original and with lessons learned in the new, one-make Lamborghini Super Trofeo racing series, Lamborghini is bringing back the Superleggera, and it’s lighter and wilder than ever. The speed freaks in Sant’Agata went over the Gallardo, now in a new generation known as the LP 560-4, with a fine-tooth comb and managed to shave 38 more pounds over the first Gallardo Superleggera, dropping the curb weight to just 2954 pounds and making it the lightest Lamborghini available.