Underground Racing’s twin-turbo Lamborghini Gallardo begs you to give in to temptation
Yes, it sounded like a decision born from bacteria-eroded judgment. Yet if any street-legal car could elicit such an irrational response from someone familiar with piloting an earth-bound fighter plane around Indianapolis Motor Speedway, this is the one: 1,000 hp to 1,500 hp, measured at the wheels. Output depends on the package ordered, and prices range from $35,000 to $109,000 (plus the cost of the car itself). Opt for the full “race” conversion, and you get 1,100 lb-ft of torque, 0 to 60 mph in 2.5 seconds, 60 to 130 mph in 3.5 seconds and the quarter-mile in 9.1 seconds at 169 mph. The car recently recorded a standing mile at 241.68 mph (see the run at http://tinyurl.com/y9gxxcc), and Underground says its most extreme tune will top out at 257 mph.
All of this is the work of two polite, quiet, young Southerners and their nine-man staff working in a 5,000-square-foot shop in Charlotte. K. C. Howeth, 28, and his brother Kevin, 36, seem an unlikely duo to modify Italian supercars. The Texas natives were raised on American muscle by a family of stock-car and drag racers.
They moved to Charlotte in 1989, where Kevin began to buy, tune and sell Ford Mustangs while working in the family construction business. The Howeths developed a reputation for supercharging Saleen Mustangs in their spare time before opening a shop in 2003 and expanding their résumé to include turbocharging Dodge Vipers. Eighteen months ago, a customer asked them to modify his Lamborghini, leading to Bugatti Veyron power and performance at a fraction of the price. Their work is a hit in the well-heeled enthusiast community. Lambo business now dominates their original garage, and they will soon take over an additional 6,500-square-foot facility.
Scroll down to read Graham Rahal’s take on driving the Underground Racing turbo Gallardo, or go to …
Read more: http://www.autoweek.com/article/20100104/CARREVIEWS/100109992#ixzz0bhcbUVRH
Underground Racing gives the Lamborghini Gallardo’s V10 engine a complete makeover, including new steel liners for the aluminum block.
Tags: 0 to 60 mph in 2.5 seconds, 241.68 mph, 60 to 130 mph in 3.5 seconds, AutoWeek, bacteria-eroded judgment, Gallardo, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Lamborghini, Twin-Turbo, Twin-Turbo Lamborghini Gallardo