Key Points:
- An unnamed wealthy Australian collector spent $8 million to secure one of the 15 ultra-exclusive Lamborghini Fenomeno Roadsters.
- Engineers faced massive challenges modifying the Revuelto-based carbon-fiber tub for roofless driving and optimizing its aerodynamics.
- The Fenomeno Roadster features an uprated electrified V12 hybrid engine delivering 1080 CV and massive downforce.
- The 15 cars will not be sold in the United States because the altered crash structure does not meet pedestrian impact requirements.
An unnamed wealthy Australian car collector recently spent $8 million to acquire Lamborghini’s most extreme Roadster yet. The Italian automaker refuses to reveal the identity of this passionate buyer, but very few people possess the cash and connections necessary to secure such a vehicle. The company plans to build only 15 units of this spectacular supercar, making the Fenomeno Roadster one of the world’s most expensive and exclusive cars.
We recently met the team behind this incredible machine. Marco, a key figure in the development of modern Lamborghinis, proves he would make a terrible poker player. When asked if the new Roadster was simply the result of an engineer taking a blowtorch to the roof of last year’s Fenomeno coupe, his polite smile immediately turned into a massive grimace. He quickly regained his composure, but his initial reaction revealed the painful truth about the project.
Developing the fastest and most powerful Roadster in Lamborghini history became a grueling passion project that pushed designers and engineers to their absolute limits. The Fenomeno Roadster is the latest entry in a long line of the automaker’s ‘Few-Off’ creations, designed strictly for its wealthiest and most loyal customers. Like the hardtop coupe version, the Roadster is built upon the foundation of the current Revuelto, which is exactly where the problems started.
Lamborghini engineers never intended for the hybrid V12-powered Revuelto platform to go roofless. Despite the Fenomeno Roadster looking like a simple convertible version of the coupe, the engineering team had to start almost entirely from scratch. The biggest hurdle involved adapting and strengthening the carbon-fiber ‘monofuselage’ structure to handle the unique stresses of open-air motoring. This structural modification turned into a massive engineering nightmare.
To solve the chassis problem, engineers had to create brand new composite materials. They invented a completely new bonding agent and used both long and short carbon fibers in a top-secret, patented arrangement. They also had to modify the crash structures and install a massive X-brace over the engine bay. Finally, they introduced a new protective cradle behind the seats to survive side impacts. Unfortunately, this new safety bracing robbed the cabin of the space needed to install the extreme carbon-fiber bucket seats found in the coupe.
The headaches did not stop with the chassis. The monstrous, uprated, electrified V12 engine carries over largely unchanged from the Fenomeno coupe, but removing the roof destroyed the car’s aerodynamics. Without the roof scoop, the massive 6.5-liter engine overheated rapidly. When engineers hastily added a new roof scoop, the intake blasted jets of freezing air directly onto the passenger’s knee, and the resulting in-car turbulence was deafening. To fix these critical aerodynamic flaws, designers had to redesign the entire upper section of the supercar from scratch.
When you examine the car up close, you can spot the thicker windscreen rail, the new rollover hoops that double as spoilers, and an entirely redesigned rear engine cover. After achieving a 30 percent boost in downforce, massive improvements in cooling, and drop-dead gorgeous styling, Lamborghini then had to offset all the heavy bracing they added to the chassis. They stripped weight by utilizing experimental technology, including a Countach-inspired wheel design that saves 3 kilograms per corner.
The Roadster also features Lamborghini’s next-generation CCM-R carbon-ceramic brakes. These massive stoppers combine different lengths of carbon fibers embedded in a carbon matrix, coated in a special finish, and paired with organic brake pads. These brakes are incredibly expensive but offer huge weight savings and unbeatable fade-free performance. By keeping the total weight down to 1780 kilograms, Lamborghini retained the larger 7-kilowatt-hour battery from the coupe, which provides a 20-kilometer electric driving range.
This massive power unit delivers a devastating 1080 CV and a dizzying 1075 Newton-meters of torque. Lamborghini claims its roofless Fenomeno can launch from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in just 2.4 seconds and hit 200 kilometers per hour in 6.8 seconds. The hypercar will eventually top out at more than 340 kilometers per hour. The vehicle offers no weatherproofing and no space to store a roof, meaning drivers will simply get soaked if it starts to rain.
Because Lamborghini will only build 15 of these cars, owners can customize their Fenomeno with unlimited color combinations inside and out. The entire production run sold out overnight, with many Roadsters purchased by the same people who already own the Fenomeno coupe. You might wonder why Lamborghini didn’t simply make more cars to satisfy demand. The answer is the United States market. The new crash structure on the Roadster means it fails the latest American pedestrian impact regulations. While a fix is possible, the engineers simply ran out of time to implement it.
With full race-spec suspension and all the trick chassis technology from the Revuelto, the Roadster can be heavily tweaked to match the owner’s driving style. With only one Fenomeno Roadster destined to reach Australia to join two coupes already hidden away in private collections, Lamborghini understandably chose not to spend the money developing a right-hand-drive version. When asked if the immense effort was worth it for just 15 cars, Marco stated that projects like the Fenomeno are crucial. They fuel innovation and help the automaker develop advanced, ultralight technology that will eventually trickle down to faster versions of the Revuelto and Temerario.
