What better way to celebrate 2019's record bull market than with a bull stamped on the nose of a shiny 10-cylinder supercar? Certainly, Lamborghini would have introduced the 2020 Huracán Evo RWD without a six-year high from the S&P 500 or double-digit spikes in the Dow and Nasdaq indexes. But upgrading to the latest Lambo is now unavoidable. It's promising more powerslides and a brand-new body kit for a lot less money.
The Huracán Evo made its debut last January as the first mid-cycle refresh since Lamborghini's "entry level" model came out in 2014. Replacing the Performante and carrying that car's 631-hp tune, the Evo added rear-wheel steering, torque vectoring, revised aero, and a new computerized brain called LDVI that makes minute adjustments to the entire car 50 times every second. We've tried it, twice. Now subtract the front axle, the rear steering, and 29 ponies from the 5.2-liter V-10. That equals us having to get behind the wheel again.
As before, Lamborghini could care less that this 602-hp Huracán is slower on the track than the more powerful all-wheel-drive version. But the Evo RWD should be faster than the LP580-2 that's been on sale since 2016, and not simply because of a 31-hp advantage. In Sport mode, the older rear-wheel-drive Huracán softened its adaptive dampers and incorporated a trick front-braking system to ensure long-lasting, repeatable drifts.
The newest solution is the P-TCS (Performance Traction Control System), unique to the Evo RWD, which lets the car "slide and skate during acceleration." Lamborghini says that P-TCS never cuts torque abruptly. Instead, in Sport mode, it'll feed extra torque before the car gets into an epic slide and then will back off more gently. In Corsa mode, it assumes the driver is smarter and will allow the car to exit corners more quickly. A retuned steering rack helps the driver better master the slip angle. Using its proprietary fun calculator, Lamborghini says oversteer is up 30 percent versus the LP580-2, which had overloaded our expert butt sensors in 2016. This is valuable data to every Lamborghini customer.
In a parking lot, you'll notice the RWD model up front rather than behind. The front splitter has been reshaped with a simpler design connecting the outer air intakes to the nose in a single, body-color piece—much like the final Gallardo models. That's to help generate more airflow underneath the car and pass it to the revised diffuser, increasing overall downforce on the rear wheels compared to the regular Evo. While the human eye can distinguish between millions of colors, the Evo RWD wears its own shade, Giallo Belenus, along with matching leather and microsuede trim. To our eyes, it's just another hot yellow Lambo. Most compelling is the price, which at $214,366 starts at a cool 52 grand less than the all-wheel-drive Evo. Until Audi imports a de-axled 2020 R8, this Lambo will be the only new car on sale with rear-wheel drive and a V-10.
