The latest version Gallardo to come from the Lamborghini factory has been named the Gallardo LP 550-2 Valentino Balboni after their former chief test driver who served under the Lamborghini badge for the past 40 years. Valentino Balboni has been Lamborghini’s principal test driver since 1973 and has driven every Lamborghini ever made until his retirement.

For several decades, Valentino Balboni has had a distinct influence on the character of the super sports car bearing the sign of the bull. With his fine-tuning and testing work, he has helped to shape many automotive legends, from the Lamborghini Miura of the 60s through to the current Gallardo and Murciélago models. Balboni was hired in 1967 by company founder Ferruccio Lamborghini himself. From early on, it was evident that the young Balboni had a special feel for cars, that most sensitive of all instincts that connects to the ‘life blood’ of an automobile and defines the soul of a test driver.

“A Lamborghini must always combine the precision of a race car with the reliability of a good friend,” says Balboni. Since 1973, he has sat at the wheel of every prototype built by the brand, and even most production cars have passed through his hands before being delivered to their customers. This has turned Balboni into one of the most important representatives of the brand, with an outstanding reputation and status among the brand’s fans and customers worldwide.”

Lamborghini hasn’t neglected the visual portion of the LP 550-2 package. The Balboni model is available in eight color schemes, each with a single racing stripe running down the center of the car. The stripe theme continues inside, where the black leather cockpit is interrupted by a white center stack and console.

As you may have already guessed, the “2″ means the all-wheel drive system has been ditched in favour of rear-wheel drive thus making it the only current Lamborghini that delivers its power to the road via its rear wheels alone. It has a 45% limited slip differential on the rear axle, a new stability system allowing for better drifing, new dampers, springs, and tires. The car features lightweight alloy wheels covered with specially designed tyres. The wheels feature carbon ceramic disc brakes with rotors and piston calipers.

With slightly less power than the LP 560-4 – 405kW compared to 412kW – and only two wheels to transfer power to the asphalt, the sprint from zero to 100km/h is marginally slower at 3.9 seconds with a top speed of 320km/h. Although with a dry weight of only 1,380 kilograms – compared to 1,500 kilograms for its all-paw sibling – the LP 550-2 is sure to be far more nimble around a track.

The Lamborghini Gallardo LP 550-2 Valentino Balboni price starts at 162.000 Euros in EU, at 137.900 GBP in the UK and at 219.800 USD in the United States. The Italian company will only build 250 units of the Lamborghini Gallardo LP 550-2 Valentino Balboni. The rear-wheel drive supercar comes with a 5.2-liter V10 engine.  The 550 hp unit propels the car from 0 to 100 km/h in just under four seconds, on its way to a 320 km/h.

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