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Lamborghini Reventón Roadster

Two years ago, Lamborghini wowed Frankfurters with its limited-edition, stealth-fighter-inspired, $1.4 million Reventón coupe. (Only 20 were built for public consumption; nine came to the U.S.) And although we can’t say we saw its equally stealth follow-up coming (har!), Lamborghini has chosen the 2009 Frankfurt auto show to unveil the even rarer and more expensive topless version of the Reventón. Of course, when we say even rarer, we can’t quantify by how much, because Lambo hints that “less than 20” will be built, although it also confusingly adds that 20 is a nice, round number.

Like the Murciélago-based Reventón coupe, the roadster swaps all body panels for different segments of wing and tail sections of retired F-117s. We kid, but it sure looks that way, with its aggressive, forward-thrusted air intakes up front, hungry-looking scoops on the side, and pancake-flat rear flanks featuring four spiney glass louvers offering a sweet view of the Reventón’s raucous V-12 heart. The Reventón roadster’s top is identical to the one found on the Murciélago roadster.

Powered by One of the World’s Most Powerful Naturally Aspirated Motors

For roadster duty, Lamborghini has found still more horsepower in the form of the 6.5-liter V-12 now fitted in the new Murciélago LP670-4 SuperVeloce; it produces 661 hp at 8000 rpm and 487 lb-ft of torque at 6000 rpm, and the output is distributed to all four wheels. Even with its slight structural strengthening, the Reventón roadster’s body is said to weigh only 55 pounds more than that of the coupe, so we surmise that Lamborghini’s estimate of 3.4 seconds for a 0–60 sprint—the same it reported for the coupe—isn’t far off. But the roadster won’t match the coupe’s 224-mph terminal velocity; the roofless car tops out at 205. But we’re not about to offer our scalps to find out; hair plugs are too expensive these days.

At saner speeds, the driver will be able to enjoy the Reventón’s sweet two-mode, fighter-jet-inspired instrument cluster, conveying the car’s vital signs (not those of the driver, although that wouldn’t be a bad idea given the pulse-quickening performance) via digital readouts and color-changing gauge graphics. A g-force meter is centrally located and uses the same format, Lambo says, as is used in Formula 1. Also as with the Reventón coupe, pretty much all surrounds are rendered in fuzzy Alcantara or not-so-fuzzy carbon fiber.

$1.6 Million, and Probably All Sold Out

If you want a car that looks like a $20 million fighter jet, expect to pay nearly as much. At 1.1 million euros, which is about $1.6 million at current exchange rates, the Reventón Coupe is about 10 percent pricier than the coupe. Alas, the coupe was sold out before Lamborghini ever took the silk off the thing in Frankfurt in ’07, and Lamborghini won’t need to try any harder to clear its inventory of this new version: it says demand for the roadster is even higher.

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