The Lamborghini Diablo SV Is the Childhood Poster Car You’d Actually Want to Drive Today
Turns out, this ’90s Italian supercar is legitimately great fun.
If you're a car nut of a certain age, there's a pretty good chance that the wall of your childhood bedroom was decorated with a poster of the Lamborghini Diablo, going to bed every night as a young enthusiast dreaming of one day finding yourself behind the wheel. If your name is Henry Catchpole, that dream just became a reality because the British automotive journalist has reviewed a Diablo SV for the Carfection YouTube channel. Some guys get all the luck.
For the three people reading this who are unfamiliar, the Lamborghini Diablo was Lambo's V12 flagship supercar of the '90s. It was the last Lamborghini made in the pre-Audi ownership era and therefore the last one to be created primarily as a rear-wheel-drive car. The company later added all-wheel-drive to the Diablo's VT variants but this SV remained gloriously rear-driven.
Another glorious detail to note? That gated, dog-leg, five-speed manual shifter.
The Diablo SV is powered by a naturally aspirated, 5.7-liter V12 producing 510 horsepower and 428 pound-feet of torque. It'll hit 60 miles per hour in less than 4.5 seconds and reach a top speed of 202 mph.
We won't spoil the details of Catchpole's analysis but it sounds like the Diablo isn't quite as difficult, uncomfortable, or awkward to drive as one would expect a '90s Italian V12 supercar named after Beelzebub to be. Sure, it might not be as livable as a modern Aventador or Huracán what with their all-wheel-drive, automatic gearboxes, and Audi-derived electronics but as far as old, automotive heroes go, the Diablo sounds like one worth meeting.
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