Ultra-high-performance SUVs have never been more popular—think Aston Martin DBX (697 horsepower), Cadillac Escalade V (682 horses), Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat (710 horsepower), BMW XM Label Red (738 horses), and Ferrari Purosangue (715 horsepower), not to mention fully electric entrants such as the Rivian R1S (835 horses), Lotus Eletre R (905 horsepower), and the Tesla Model X Plaid (1020 horses). The latest addition to this elite group is the 789-hp Lamborghini Urus SE. This new plug-in-hybrid variant of the freshly facelifted Urus fuses a 612-hp twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 and a 189-hp electric motor sandwiched between it and the transmission. Maximum torque is restricted to 701 pound-feet in order to preserve the eight-speed automatic gearbox. This awesome punch of torque is spread evenly from 1750 rpm all the way to 5750 rpm.
The PHEV drivetrain is closely related to the 729-hp Porsche Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid, which costs $148,550 before options. For about $90K more, Lambo used to sell us the base 657-hp Urus S, but as of May, both the S and the even pricier, harder-core Performante will be replaced by the SE hybrid, which is expected to cost around $275,000. That’s a lot of coin, but bear in mind the V-12-engine rival from the other side of the Italian motor valley carries an even more outrageous $398,350 sticker.
We drove the PHEV Lamborghini in minus-13-degree temperatures in Lapland, where pre-heating the battery overnight was a necessity. Due to space limitations, the lithium-ion battery sandwiched between the cargo floor and the electronically controlled limited-slip rear differential delivers a Car and Driver–estimated 21.8 kilowatt-hours, which should amount to roughly 30 miles of zero-emission driving range—in normal temperatures. (In contrast, the 31.8-kWh battery in the Range Rover Sport P550e should amount to a more useful 50 miles.)
“The e-motor transforms the character of the car,” states chief project engineer Stefano Cossalter. “It speeds up the throttle response, and it provides that wow-effect immediate kick in the back we know from potent EVs.” Pumping up the action at the word go are 356 pound-feet of torque from the e-motor. A moment later, the feisty V-8 muscles in with even stronger dynamic empathy. Although the SE version carries a claimed substantial 661-pound weight burden, it can storm from zero to 62 mph in a claimed 3.4 seconds—gaining one-tenth over the Urus S but losing one-tenth to the Performante. The top speed is 194 mph.
According to the Sant’Agata grapevine, in a couple of years, we can expect an even brawnier, more aggressively tuned, and allegedly marginally lighter 900-hp Urus Superveloce. This last-hurrah version should crack the 200-mph mark and shave a couple more tenths off the acceleration time. The fully electric Urus replacement based on the group’s same components set as the 2028 Lanzador was recently pushed back to late 2029.
Since the Swedes don’t grit or salt their roads except on steep inclines, from October to April the whole country is a white and gray drifter’s paradise. Although traction control, stability control, and all-wheel drive have taken the edge off traditional lurid oversteer antics, cornering grip still is a tricky variable on winding roads glazed with black ice or dusted with fresh snow. Lock the Urus’s Tamburo drive-mode selector in EV Drive, and the e-motor integrated in the transmission will power the Urus quietly at up to 81 mph, operating both axles when required. “The SE is not a dedicated track weapon like the Performante,” says the chief technical officer, Rouven Mohr. “Instead, this vehicle is all about the flow. The smooth and seamless integration of mechanical and electric torque makes it easy to drive fast, easy to drift, and easy to control at all times.”
Out of the grand total of 789 horsepower, more than 20 percent is generated by the e-motor. Although the mix keeps changing, every step on the loud pedal summons the underlying extra e-power, which is diligently vectored side to side and front to rear, depending on the drive mode. Flick the toggle to Corsa, and the most radical of four new Electric Performance Strategies will duly light up the rear tires while diverting just enough grunt to the fronts to help straighten the line past the apex. At least that’s the theory. On the curvy test track milled onto a frozen lake near Arvidsjaur, the longest slide would invariably turn into an even longer counterslide because when stability control is sound asleep, all four 23-inch Pirelli Sottozeros are free to spin ferociously on the freshly roughened ice, while torque vectoring and the four-wheel steering are working overtime. Although we’re doing between 50 and 90 mph depending on radius, surface, and confidence, there is not a trace of angst bubbling under because the Urus SE keeps its balance with uncanny poise, panache, and precision.
Structured like a Rolodex, the Tamburo in-dash selector now offers 10 dynamic modes. The new additions are the aforementioned EV Drive, along with Hybrid, Performance, and Recharge. Active in Strada, Sports, Corsa, and Neve, the latter pumps fresh energy into the battery until it is 80 percent full. There is, however, no boost button or downshift paddle. All it takes to tack your passenger to the backrest of the bucket seat is a hard hit on the accelerator in Performance or Corsa. Trying not to grin ain’t easy, because the effect is sensationally surreal and accompanied by the quad-tailpipe monster’s bellowing roar. First, the e-torque kicks butt without warning, then the V-8 takes over, spiraling past its 6000-rpm power peak to the 7000-rpm rev cut. Paddle-shifting through the gears is a lot of fun, but for maximum effect, check out the claimed 11.4-second time-warp launch-control-to-125-mph stunt. There is no doubt about it: This highly physical electro-mechanical go-faster SUV would deserve a 10 on the emotional-climax scale if it weren’t for that spoilsport overdose of mass and momentum.
To mark the occasion, the Urus also receives its first facelift, which includes a redesigned cockpit. The most significant functional improvement concerns the addition of overdue adaptive matrix LED headlamps, which make a huge difference—we know, because Swedish winter nights stretch from 3:30 pm to 9:30 am. Also new are the power-dome hood, the available 23-inch Galanthus wheels shod with 285/35 and 325/30 Pirelli summer tires, a restyled liftgate sporting a pronounced center crease, more prominent hexagon-mesh diffusors front and rear, restyled bumpers, plenty more Y-pattern graphics, and a choice of over 100 different paint colors. “The Urus SE looks decidedly fresher and more modern,” claims chief designer Mitja Borkert, adding, “but it also is a notably more functional piece of kit. For instance, brake cooling was improved by 30 percent; bigger spoilers and air curtains increase the rear downforce by 35 percent; and the overall aerodynamic efficiency is up 15 percent.”
The dashboard looks vaguely familiar, but the layout and most of the content are actually new. The bigger 12.3-inch touchscreen is now more intuitive to use, voice control is improved, new driver-assistance systems have been added, and while parent-company Audi has virtually banned knobs and buttons, Lamborghini remains loyal to its row of prominent toggle switches and caged starter button. The enlarged climate-control tableau looks rather busy and generic, but the center stack complete with the supportive handrail that runs below the main high-resolution interface is ergonomically a step in the right direction. Still present are the multicolored instruments, the hexagonal air vents, and the omnipresent matching graphics that are more than ever part of the brand’s DNA.
Like the Revuelto and the Huracán Sterrato, which were also part of our three-day, six-car epic journey close to the Arctic Circle, the Urus SE was a hoot to drive on the slippery Scandinavian turf. It takes off like a rocket before reeling in the horizon at warp speed, is enormously powerful yet always nicely controllable, and feels reassuringly stable and commendably compliant. Against that is the hefty extra mass and the limited EV driving range. Still, we’d welcome the chance to further explore the talents of this power hybrid in normal temperatures and on normal dry or wet roads, preferably in combination with a few extra corners and gradients.
Although I was born the only son of an ornithologist and a postal clerk, it was clear from the beginning that birdwatching and stamp collecting were not my thing. Had I known that God wanted me to grow to 6’8″, I also would have ruled out anything to do with cars, which are to blame for a couple of slipped discs, a torn ligament, and that stupid stooped posture behind the wheel. While working as a keeper in the Aberdeen Zoo, smuggling cheap cigarettes from Yugoslavia to Germany, and an embarrassing interlude with an amateur drama group also failed to yield fulfillment, driving and writing about cars became a much better option. And it still is now, many years later, as I approach my 70th birthday. I love every aspect of my job except long-haul travel on lousy airlines, and I hope it shows.
Source: Reviews - aranddriver.com
