Jet-Set Extravagance Courtesy Lamborghini Reventon

Few car makers (if any) have the reputation of Lamborghini. Since the early sixties, Lamborghini has produced exotic vehicles that inspire drool and envy - including the Miura, the Countach (which helped popularize sharp-angled sports cars) and the Diablo. And, yet, the latest Lamborghini model still manages to top its maker's reputation.

With a sleek, dark-gray (or "matte gray" as it is called) exterior, gazing at the Lamborghini Reventón is like staring into the future. Everything about the vehicle screams cool. That statement can be taken both figuratively or literally since the Reventón includes a number of unique external features designed to keep components from overheating at high speeds. Extraction fans positioned below its rear LED brake lights pull hot air from the engine, and opaque fins attached to the aluminum rims help cool the ceramic brake rotors. Other than the roof and doors (which are constructed of steel), all the body panels (and even the rim fins) are made of a carbon-fiber composite. The interior of the vehicle is no less impressive, with comfortable suede and shiny carbon fiber everywhere. But that's not the interior's most impressive component - that would be the dashboard display. Featuring three LCD screens, the driver can choose among various modes for the gauges - including a jet mode with a G-force meter.

If the jet connection seems appropriate, it goes deeper - the Reventón was intentionally designed with a jet feel in mind. Inspired by the stealth F-22 Raptor, one of the world's most effective fighter planes, Lamborghini's director of brand and design, Manfred Fitzgerald had each of his designers create a vision for the Reventón based on the jet. Fitzgerald then chose the design he liked best and sent the team to work refining it. Still, despite all the bells and whistles on the design end, in terms of performance, the Reventón actually doesn't do much more than the Lamborghini Murciélago LP640. Like the Murciélago, the Reventón has a V-12 engine, is controlled via a six-speed manual transmission and tops out at a similar speed of 211 mph. While the Reventón has a slight edge over the Murciélago in horsepower (650 instead of 640), the Murciélago has a slightly quicker pick up time (0 to 62 mph in 3.3 seconds compared to the Reventón's 3.4 seconds).

Certainly, though, no one will confuse the tag on the Reventón with the Murciélago's $300,000 ballpark price. The limited-edition piece of automotive artwork costs nearly $1.4 million (or 1 million euros). And don't get your hopes up, millionaires - only 21 Reventóns will be built and all of them have already been sold (with the exception of one car which will be stowed away in the Lamborghini vault). So, if not to make money (the costs of producing the vehicles doesn't leave room for much profit), what's the point? More than anything, the Reventón is a reassertion of Lamborghini's high-end position in the car industry. While it may not necessarily be practical to produce a wildly expensive car simply for visual appeal in a world of economic woes and debilitating gas prices, there is something to be said for the awe of excess. And nobody does awe or excess quite like Lamborghini.

Exotic Classic Sports Cars - The Unmistakable Lamborghini Diablo

Lamborghini Diablo. The name is pure magic. Few cars are sexier than a Lamborghini. Even the Batman drove one, the Murcielago LP640 Coupe, in the Dark Knight. The purr of the engine was unmistakable, as it tore through the streets of Gotham City. Of course, it was a convertible and, of course, Bruce Wayne had two beautiful women with him. With an exotic sports car like this, would we expect anything less?

It is somewhat amusing to consider that Lamborghini was a little tractor company that grew to become a leader in world class supercars. In its day, Lamborghini's tractor business was producing 1000 tractors a year. Their distinctive black and white Trattori could be found all over Italy. Ferruccio Lamborghini did not like the post WWll cars that carmaker Ferrari was building. He thought they lacked the creature comforts and appointments that befitted a Grand Touring automobile. After he was snubbed when he visited the Ferrari factory, he decided to build his own cars. As they say, the rest is history.

Lamborghini had a tradition of naming the cars after famous fighting bulls. The Murcielago, according to Lamborghini, "refers to a 19th-century Spanish bull that earned fame through its courageous nature in a bullfight" (Lamborghini). The Diablo, the Devil, which was Ferruccio replacement for the early Countach, was also named for a famous bull. According to THE MOST CHARISMATIC CARS from 80' to present, this bull in particular was raised by the 19th century Duke of Veragua and was made famous for "fighting an epic battle with 'El Chicorro' in Madrid on July 11. 1869".

Regardless, the Lamborghini makes a strong impression. The look is as unmistakable as the sound of the engine. Hollywood is drawn to the design, often featuring the Lamborghini, knowing that doing so will draw attention. There are other exotic sports cars, but few have the appeal of the Lamborghini.

The exclusivity of the Lamborghini is part of the appeal. Oftentimes, production of certain models was so limited that only a few of each model were made. For instance, only 138 Diablo SE30 were made in 1994 as a celebration of Ferrucci's business. Lest one should think that 138 is quite few, try again. Only one Roadster Prototipo was made in 1992. The point is that these are not production line cars, cranked out by the thousands. Exclusivity is inherent in the production.

Then too is the raw power of the Lamborghini. With a maximum top speed of 315 miles per hour, they were designed as racing cars and even the police in Italy drive them, as speed limits in Europe are still largely unregulated on the freeways, not that speed limits in general seem to matter much in Italy.