The article was originally produced on June 23, 2020, some facts and prices may have changed since then.

Lamborghini Aventador SVJ

If you think that the standard Lamborghini Aventador S with its 740 horses is too tame, the SVJ model is perfect for you.

Some believe that Lamborghini has lost its soul and stopped building super sports cars in the spirit of the devilish bull that they used to do. They are wrong. 

In the past, the cars were extremely brutal. Letting a parent-in-law with no driving experience get behind the wheel of a Countach or Diablo was unthinkable. These cars required a firm handle and a lot of practice. Even an experienced driver has a hard time exploring the borderland of grip with cars of this generation. They are simply too difficult to drive.

When Audi took over the helm and started pumping money into the Italian company in 2003, a lot happened. From standing on the precipice of ruin, the company began to show positive numbers. The first model with Audi technology was the Gallardo. It sold a whopping 14,000 copies in its lifetime and became a mega hit. The successor Huracán was also a success and has sold incredibly well. Together, these models belong to a completely new type of Lamborghini with modern German technology under the skin. Here, you can easily let an inexperienced driver enjoy the driving experience, albeit with a little delight mixed with horror.

At the same time as the Gallardo, the larger Murcielago was also built. Unlike the Gallardo with its German V10, the Murcielago had Lamborghini's own V12 engine. An engine that has lived for decades and originates as far back as the Miura that was launched in 1966. 

The Murcielago was largely developed before Audi entered the picture. Although it received some technology from the Germans, it was large, unwieldy and, compared to the Gallardo, difficult to drive for the uninitiated. The brutal bull was still alive in the Murcielago!

In 2011, the Murcielago was replaced by the Aventador. Since then, the Aventador has come in a range of designs. As with both Diablo and Murcielago, the Aventador is also available in an SV variant. SV stands for "Super Veloce" which is Italian for Superfast. The recipe for the SV models is about lower weight and more horsepower. The Aventador SV has 50 extra horses compared to the original. 

In addition to the horsepower race in the automotive industry, there is also another record that people like to argue about. We are of course talking about the fastest time around the Nürburgring in Germany. To be able to do this, a car is needed that is preferably a pure racing car. Porsche has stood at the top of the throne many times. In addition, Porsche has the absolute fastest time ever with its specially built model 919 EVO which is 5:19.546. 

But Lamborghini has also broken records a number of times. To show the world that even a primeval Italian bull can be the fastest around the ring, the Aventador SV was built with the suffix J which stands for “Jota”. Aventador SVJ thus stands for "Super Veloce Jota". In July 2018, a new record time was set with the Aventador SVJ at 6:44.97, thus taking the podium from Porsche and their 911 GT2 RS. 

My relationship with Lamborghini goes back a long way. In the eighties and nineties, I was with my father Bengt Holm at the factory several times. The reason was then a large car book project he was working on called Cars Collection. When I later chose to follow in his footsteps, it was obviously a door opener to have books from my father's time to display. This has meant a lot to me and the factory has always been very generous with lending cars for test drives. But when I received word from Sant'Agata Bolognese that an Aventador SVJ was at my disposal for a couple of days, I hardly believed it was true. 

The Aventador SVJ is even lighter, even stronger and even tougher than the Aventador SV. It's a street-legal track-prepared super sports car with a non-supercharged 770 horsepower V12 engine. There is hardly any sound insulation at all between you and the engine behind your back. Add to that Lamborghini's intelligent aerodynamic system ALA (Aerodinamica Lamborghini Attiva), which the SVJ is the first with. The system means 40 percent more downforce than the Aventador SV. In short, the Aventador SVJ is built to go insanely fast while staying glued to the road when cornering. 

To experience this unique Lamborghini, I chose a destination I had driven before: Cortina d'Ampezzo and over Passo Giau. The road is incredibly good and challenging. You can really feel the car's performance and handling. 

The Aventador SVJ is not very comfortable. Nor should it be. You sit as if in a vise in the alcantara-covered shell chairs. Instead of floor mats, the deck is bare metal with grip tape of the type you have on skateboards to prevent slipping. For reasons of weight, the carbon fiber-clad doors have no opening handles but thin straps. 

The SVJ is 50 kilos lighter than the Aventador S, which is a lot in these contexts. Especially since the SVJ has 30 horsepower more, a total of 770 horses. 

When you fold up the red flap on the center console that resembles something from a fighter jet, the red start button is exposed. One push and the V12 springs to life. And it's a life that makes you jump high if you're not used to it. A deafening hissing sound rages out through the two large round exhaust pipes in the center of the rear. Speaking of the rear, the Aventador SVJ is like nothing else. At the bottom sits a giant diffuser in carbon fiber to guide the air under the car in the best way. It is also where part of the ALA system is located. In the middle where the exhaust pipes sit, there are metal, not plastic covers. 

At the top is the newly developed wing which ensures that the rear end of the car stays on the hill when going really fast. One of the few things you can notice is that the wing obscures all rearward visibility. But on the other hand, if you haven't done something stupid in public, you should look ahead. 

Speaking of stupid things on the public road, it's quite difficult to maintain speed in a car like this. Almost impossible. The autostrada offers great opportunities to drive fast and it is up to you how you handle any interactions with the police authorities. 

But the Italians are proud of their four-wheeled bulls and stallions. They love it when you drive fast and preferably in low gears so that it makes a lot of noise. For my part, however, I'm happy when I reach the mountains and the highway turns into winding mountain roads. Here you can drive fast in a completely different way without being easy prey for the Polizia Stradale. 

On the way up to Passo Giau, I as a driver really get to show my colors. This car can be driven harder than Mike Tyson's right hook. You will not win over the car and feel that it does not measure up. If you do, you probably belong on a racing team. 

As a driver, you feel everything that is going on under the car and the power is totally inexhaustible. Personally, I enjoy Lamborghini's models very much thanks to the four-wheel drive. Unlike the Aventador S, the SVJ does not have the new four-wheel steering. The regular Aventador S is considerably nicer and easier to drive in the curves, but with a firm grip, the SVJ also takes you where you want. But it is absolutely a fight between you and the car. Even though you agree on the goal: To get through the curves in the fastest way. 

Up on the pass, I have to take a break. I'm completely exhausted. Not the car, on the other hand, it happily copes with this without the slightest sign of fatigue. The rest the car gets happens naturally when you have to stop and fill up the tank. Something that happens relatively regularly if you let the car go full attack. Then the V12 engine requires copious amounts of fuel. But that's the way it is, such a big and strong bull requires a lot of food to deliver maximum. That brings me back to what I talked about at the beginning of this article. Namely that bull with devils embrace which according to some no longer exists. The Aventador SVJ is the proof that they are wrong!