Lamborghini Revuelto Driving on Ice

The true value of Lamborghini seen on snow

A diverse lineup of Lamborghini models was prepared on the snow, including the latest super sports car, the Revuelto, as well as the Huracan Stellato and Urus SE.

After a seven-hour flight, including a layover in Beijing, I arrived in Hailar, China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. However, my final destination was on the outskirts of Yaxhi city, about an hour and a half away by car. The main reason I visited this remote place near the Russian border was to take part in a program to drive a Lamborghini across a frozen river in this region, where temperatures drop to minus 20 degrees Celsius in winter.

Why is Lamborghini holding an ice event? No other supercar brand is as deeply committed to its 4WD models as Lamborghini. And it’s clear that there’s no better stage to demonstrate their capabilities than on ice. So they hold an event called Esperienza Neve (NEVE means snow in Italian) for Lamborghini owners almost every year, and this year the venue was Yakushi. Incidentally, I also covered Esperienza Neve, which was held here in 2011, so some readers may remember it.

Lamborghini Customer Winter Driving Program

"Lamborghini Esperienza Neve" is a driving program held only during the winter season for Lamborghini customers, and this year it was held in Mongolia. — “Lamborghini Esperienza Neve” is a driving program held only during the winter season for Lamborghini customers, and this year it was held in Mongolia.

The biggest appeal of this event is the amount of time you can spend riding. You can ride for up to 12 hours over two days. What’s more, we test drove one vehicle in groups of three, so just when you thought you had a break, it was already your turn to ride again, so you could ride nonstop.

Another feature of the Yakushi venue is that the course is wide and safe to drive on. What’s more, the road surface is flat and easy to drive on, and the low temperature throughout the day means that you can continue driving in stable conditions, which is also a plus. Incidentally, there were no snowstorms during the 10-day event.

The third feature is the opportunity to test drive a wide variety of models. This time, five cars were available, including the Revuelto, Huracan Sterrato (!), Huracan Tecnica, Urus Performante, and Urus S. What’s more, each program allows you to drive at least two cars, and in some cases three, so you can compare the handling of each model and even try changing your driving style to suit the handling characteristics.

Even so, I’m embarrassed to admit that I hadn’t realized how much my driving style needed to change between rear-wheel drive and 4WD. For example, in a rear-wheel drive model like the Huracán Tecnica, the golden rule is to quickly countersteer when the tail starts to slide and to delicately control the throttle pedal.

On the other hand, in a 4WD with a strong tendency for understeer, I learned that you can suppress understeer by not applying countersteer for a while even when the tail starts to slide, and that when you need to further strengthen the tail-out attitude, you need to boldly press down on the throttle pedal or the car will run out to the outside. However, I only learned these things after receiving a thorough and detailed explanation from the instructor, and I don’t think I would have discovered them on my own.

It’s interesting to see the distinct characteristics of each model.

In addition to the Huracan Sterrato, we were also able to experience driving the Urus Performante and Urus S on snow.

The differences in characteristics between each model were also interesting. Basically, with a 4WD, even if the drift angle is quite deep, there is little risk of spinning out as long as you lightly press the throttle pedal and apply torque to the front wheels. With the Revuelto, however, the maximum output is over 1000 PS, so you need to be extremely careful with the throttle pedal or you’ll end up spinning out. However, this is likely also due to the fact that the Revuelto’s steering characteristics are set close to neutral. On the other hand, with the Urus, which has a maximum output of around 600 PS, you don’t need to be so nervous, and it rarely spun out even when you pressed the throttle pedal hard. However, this is something that should be taken into account not only in terms of maximum output, but also in terms of the basic layout, being front-engine versus mid-engine.

That said, it’s my sad nature that even if I understand it in my head, my body just doesn’t listen to me. Once I get into the rhythm, I can control both the Huracan Sterrato and the Urus exactly as I want, but once I stumble, it often takes me a while to get back on track. But the rear-wheel drive Huracan Tecnica is the only one I’ve always been able to control, so it must have been a perfect match for me. Incidentally, when I told the instructor that the Tecnica was the easiest to control, he rolled his eyes and said, “You’re the first person to say that.”

My personal best is the Huracan Tecnica

What was surprising was that the only rear-wheel drive Huracán Tecnica among the models available was the most controllable. I thoroughly enjoyed drifting.

The last time I attended an event in Yakushi, the food was not to my liking and the hotel was not of a high standard, which made me wonder if they would be able to invite VIP guests if things continued like this, but over the past 13 years, both of these issues have been completely resolved. This makes the value of shorter travel times compared to Europe and the fact that there is almost no time difference suddenly apparent.

In fact, the three Lamborghini owners who participated with me all said, “We can participate here. We want to come again next year.” In fact, this event was so well received by the participants that they are considering holding it in Yakushi for a second year in a row. Why not try driving a Lamborghini in Inner Mongolia in winter next year?

REPORT/Tatsuya OTANI

PHOTO/Lamborghini SpA

MAGAZINE/ GENROQ February 2025 issue

SPECIFICATIONS

Lamborghini Revuelto

Body size: Total length 4947, total width 2033, total height 1160mm

Wheelbase: 2779mm

Vehicle weight: 1772kg

Engine: V12 DOHC

Total displacement: 6498cc

Maximum output: 364kW (825PS) / 9250rpm

Maximum torque: 725Nm (74.4kgm) / 6750rpm

Transmission: 8-speed DCT

Drive system: AWD

Suspension type: Front and rear double wishbone

Brakes: Front and rear ventilated disc Tire

size: Front 265/35ZR20, rear 345/30ZR21

0-100km/h acceleration: 2.5 seconds

Top speed: 350km/h

Vehicle price: 64,532,406 yen