2010 Lamborghini Reventon Roadster
Chassis no. ZHWBE91N9ALA03997

Ultra exclusive – only 15 were built – the Reventón Roadster was unveiled at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show. As its name suggests, the newcomer was based on the not-quite-so-exclusive Reventón Coupe (21 built) that had made its debut at Frankfurt in 2007. Although the Reventón's Coupe's exterior styling had, according to Lamborghini, been inspired by 'the fastest airplanes', beneath the skin the newcomer was mechanically almost identical to the Murciélago LP640. Autocar hailed the Reventón as "The Lamborghini Murciélago re-imagined as pure art", while company CEO Stephan Winkelmann described the Roadster as "the most extreme Lamborghini in the brand's history". Amazingly, the entire production run had been sold before the model's official release in October 2009 despite an asking price of 1.1 million euros plus taxes!

Successor to the Diablo and Lamborghini's flagship model, the Murciélago 'hypercar' had been introduced in 2001 for the 2002 model year, and like its forebears was named after a famous fighting bull. The Murciélago was Lamborghini's first new design for 11 years and also the Italian company's first since its acquisition by the Volkswagen Group's Audi division in 1998.
The angular, Luc Donckerwolke-styled coupe was very low, boasting a roof height of just under 1.2 metres, and featured distinctive 'scissor' doors that swung upwards and forwards when opened. A combination of carbon fibre, steel, and aluminium was used for the chassis/body, while the suspension featured the supercar-standard double wishbones all round. The Murciélago's power unit was a longitudinally mounted 6.2-litre V12, an engine that could trace its ancestry back to the very first Lamborghini 350GT of 1964. As installed in the Murciélago, this formidable unit produced 572bhp, which was delivered to the ground via a six-speed manual gearbox and four-wheel drive, while an active rear wing and active air intakes, deployed automatically when required, helped keep the Murciélago stable it its circa 200mph top speed.

Roadster and up-rated LP640 models followed, the latter powered by a 6.5-litre version of Lamborghini's long-running Giotto Bizzarrini-designed V12 and available with 'e-Gear' semi-automatic sequential transmission. Brakes that faded after repeated high-speed decelerations had been one of the original Murciélago's weaknesses, so the LP 640 could be ordered with carbon ceramic stoppers at extra cost.

There were various limited edition variations on the theme before the ultimate Murciélago – the LP 670-4 Super Veloce (SV) – made its debut at the Geneva Motor Show in 2009. As its nomenclature suggests, the LP 670 came with 670PS (661bhp) on tap, and it was this version of Lamborghini's mighty V12 that went into the Reventón Roadster. One of the latter's many noteworthy features was its deployable roll-over hoops, which quickly extend to protect the car's occupants in the event of an inversion.

The four-wheel drive chassis remained unchanged so the Roadster came with Lamborghini's six-speed E-Gear transmission, Y-spoked alloy wheels, and carbon ceramic brakes as standard. As with the Coupe, the Roadster's rear spoiler deploys at around 130km/h (80mph), changing to a steeper angle at approximately 220km/h (136mph) for even more downforce. Lamborghini claimed a top speed of 330km/h (205mph) and a 0-100km/h (0-62mph) time of 3.4 seconds for the Reventón Roadster.

According to evo magazine: "But, as before, it's the interior that's arguably the star of the show with the cutting-edge, strike-fighter themes perhaps even more stunningly resolved than the exterior's. Instead of dials, the dash has aircraft-style multi-mode liquid crystal displays – two transreflective, one transmissive – set in a housing milled from solid aluminium billet shrouded in a carbonfibre casing. The driver can choose from three vehicle information settings and, at the press of a button, switch from a digital to a quasi-analogical display with classic circular instruments. There's even a G-force meter..."

Finished in grey with black interior, this ultra-rare piece of supercar exotica has covered only 2,410 kilometres from new and is presented in effectively 'as new' condition. The car was sold new in Switzerland via Lamborghini Porrentruy and has had only two owners; the current vendor purchased the car in 2019 and has not driven it. The Reventón was last serviced by Lamborghini Porrentruy, and comes with Swiss Carte Grise and a Lamborgini battery charger.

The Reventón, be it Coupe or Roadster, is not a car for the shy and retiring. According to Autocar: "It's a show-stopper. A normal Murciélago will stop traffic and turn heads. A Reventón will snap necks and clog city streets for hours." But for many its attention-grabbing appearance is the very essence of the Reventón's appeal. One of the most exclusive Lamborghinis ever, this gorgeous Reventón Roadster is worthy of the closest inspection.

Please note the following: VAT will be payable on the hammer price and buyer's premium at the standard rate if the car remains in Switzerland.