Faster than a German sports sedan, Lamborghini's Urus SUV will create a brand new segment

By Ronan Glon December 25, 2015

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Lamborghini Urus Concept front angle — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The high-end SUV segment is searing hot right now, but Lamborghini predicts its upcoming Urus will stand tall above its rivals because it will be the world’s fastest off-roader.

The Urus will be the first Lamborghini to adopt forced induction when it launches with a twin-turbocharged, 4.0-liter V8 engine. Some sources claim the eight-cylinder will be developed from scratch by Lamborghini in Sant’Agata Bolognese, while others believe it will be borrowed from parent company Audi and heavily revised. Regardless, executives have confirmed the mill will be designed exclusively for the Urus and it won’t power the car maker’s coupes.

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In its most basic configuration, the Urus will dart to 60 mph from a stop in less than four seconds. To put that figure into perspective, the fastest SUV on the market right now is the Bentley Bentayga, which performs the same task in 4.1 seconds — about on par with a Mercedes-AMG C63. Sources close to Lamborghini suggest an even quicker version of the off-roader could arrive later in the production run with a Superveloce badge.

At the other end of the spectrum, the Urus might usher in Lamborghini’s first-ever gasoline-electric model in a bid to comply with strict emissions regulations that are scheduled to come into effect globally before the end of the decade. The setup will consist of a V6 engine and at least one electric motor, hinted Maurizio Reggiani, the head of Lamborghini’s research and development department, in an interview with Motoring.

Lamborghini will shed as much weight from the Urus as possible to boost both performance and efficiency. It will likely ride on the same MLB 2 platform as the aforementioned Bentayga and the Audi Q7, but engineers will replace some of the steel components with carbon fiber bits and pieces. Additionally, the Urus could benefit from carbon-fiber body panels.

Additional information about the Lamborghini Urus will trickle out over the next couple of months, and the off-roader will greet the public for the first time at the 2018 edition of the Geneva Motor Show.

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Ronan Glon is an American automotive and tech journalist based in southern France. As a long-time contributor to Digital…

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