Watch Lamborghini's New Urus Storm Pikes Peak Before It's Even Announced
Lamborghini has managed to crack one of the world's most prestigious sporting records in a vehicle they haven't even officially unveiled yet. The upcoming Urus SUV made its way to the top of Pikes Peak, the notorious mountain named after Zebulon Pike, who first recorded it in 1806. Pike spotted the massive mountain while he was scouting the area at the request of the U.S. President at the time, Thomas Jefferson. Pike and his team attempted to reach the mountain's summit, but the Colorado winter weather forced them to abandon the task, along with the rest of their mission. The first successful summit on record wouldn't come until 16 years later, when Edwin James reached the top.
The first road to the top of the peak was built in 1887, and the first official hillclimb event took place in 1916. Spencer Penrose was the brains behind the idea, and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb Club was founded as a result. The course which competitors must wind their way up is 12.42 miles long, has 156 turns to navigate, and a total of 4,720 feet of elevation to climb. The finish line is at the mountain's cloud-piercing summit, 14,115 feet high, and it's this road that Lamborghini's new SUV managed to blast up in record time.
Lamborghini's new SUV breaks a hillclimb record
Lamborghini's new Urus had a twin-turbo V8 under the hood and Pike's Peak veteran and renowned racing driver Simone Faggioli behind the wheel. It ended up at the summit in 10:32.064, besting the current record by over 17 seconds.
"The decision to test ourselves at Pikes Peak reflects the Lamborghini spirit of 'expect the unexpected', and demonstrates the outstanding performance of the new Urus model to be presented shortly," Rouven Mohr, Lamborghini's Chief Technical Officer, said of the record-setting run. "Pikes Peak is the most famous hillclimb event in the world, as well as being extremely challenging for the car: the uneven track layout tests the chassis' balance; the significant altitude differences stress the powertrain; and the weather conditions can change very rapidly between start to finish."
Although the run was timed by the Pike's Peak International Hill Climb Club, Lambo's new SUV wasn't officially entered in the race, so the race-day record Paul Dallenbach set in 2014 will still stand. Driver Simone Faggioli currently holds the Race to the Clouds' rear-wheel drive record after setting it in 2018, and looking at the time he set in the Urus, could officially take the race day record once the vehicle makes its formal debut. The roads used for the run were closed to traffic while the event was taking place.
As for the new Urus, Lamborghini has been tight-lipped about just what to expect from the refresh to its best-selling SUV. The potent performance truck has been a sales hit for the Italian automaker, comfortably taking the most-popular spot in 2021 with over 5,000 of the total 8,405 vehicles sold consisting of the SUV.