2023 Lamborghini Urus Performante First Test: Record Breaker!

There are two models in the 2023 Lamborghini Urus lineup—the Urus S is the new entry trim and the aptly named Urus Performante represents the even higher performance variant. Both get a 16-hp bump compared to their predecessors (now 657 hp), with all power routed through an eight-speed automatic transmission to all four wheels. Both 2023 Urus versions retain four-wheel steering and active anti-roll bars, but the Performante goes beyond those items.

In an effort to improve acceleration, the 2023 Lamborghini Urus Performante SUV gets a shorter rear axle ratio. To improve roadholding and handling, the Urus Performante swaps out air springs for steel coils that lower its ride height by nearly an inch, and its front and rear tracks are slightly wider. Finally, Lamborghini worked with Pirelli to develop a nearly slick, exceptionally grippy Trofeo R tire.

The Urus Performante's weight reduction is thanks to extensive use of carbon fiber for the body panels, vents, splitter, and wing, plus a titanium Akrapovič exhaust system. However, Lamborghini's claim of the SUV delivering a 104-pound savings seems to have vanished on our 2023 Urus Performante test vehicle. In fact, the 4,993-pound Viper Green machine we put on our scale weighed 62 pounds more than the 2019 Urus we last tested. Our guess is the addition of optional heated, ventilated, massaging front seats tipped the scale.

When we tested that 2019 Urus, it set MotorTrend's record for the quickest SUV from 0-60 mph we've ever tested with a 3.0-second dash. Then along came the 2022 Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT, which tied the feat. Now the 2023 Lamborghini Urus Performante joins the 3-second-flat club. To break this tie, we examined the data to one further decimal, and the 2019 Urus (2.97 seconds) maintains first place, followed by the Porsche (3.02 seconds), and the Urus Performante (3.05 seconds) completes the podium.

A little more than 4.0 seconds later, the 2023 Lamborghini Urus Performante eclipses 100 mph in 7.35 seconds, followed by the Cayenne Turbo GT (7.54) and the 2019 Urus (7.56). A 2023 Aston Martin DBX707 nearly got in on the action with its 7.62-second performance.

To think that a nearly 5,000-pound luxury SUV can run in the 11s in a quarter mile is mindboggling. The fact we've now tested nine that do so tells us much about the health of the super SUV segment. The Lamborghini Urus Performante is now the top dog with its 11.25-second, 121.3-mph pass. Owing to its higher trap speed, second place belongs to the Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT (11.32 at 121.0), followed closely by the 2019 Urus (11.32 at 120.1).

Completing a lap of MotorTrend's figure-eight course necessitates driving in opposite directions on two 100-foot-radius skidpads; we combine these left and right turns for an overall average lateral-acceleration figure. The 2023 Lamborghini Urus Performante took the top spot with a 1.08 g average, while the Cayenne Turbo GT is just behind at 1.07 g. The 2019 Urus (1.01 g) completes the entire roster of SUVs we've tested that pulled more than 1.00 g of average lateral acceleration.

Only four SUVs we've tested have dipped below 24.0 seconds on a figure-eight lap, and the Urus Performante's 23.1-second time just pipped the record-holding Cayenne Turbo GT's 23.2. The other two SUVs are the 2019 Urus (23.5) and a 2019 Porsche Cayenne Turbo (non-GT) (23.9).

To break a three-way 11.5-second tie here, we resorted to hundredths of a second. We stitched together a (theoretical, based on our segment times and braking data) run from a standstill to 100 mph and back to a stop, and the 2023 Lamborghini Urus Performante came in at 11.48 seconds. The Cayenne Turbo GT (11.53) now sits in second place. Once again, that potent non-GT 2019 Cayenne Turbo rounds out the podium (11.54).

Considering all these new records, it's hard to argue the 2023 Lamborghini Urus Performante isn't a singular success. It certainly is in raw performance terms. But its base price of $265,971, about $35,000 more than the "base" Urus S, makes us wonder. The comparably performing 2023 Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT starts at $190,150—a $75,821 difference. You may never have thought you'd say a Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT (with which the Lamborghini shares engine/transmission hardware and its MLB platform) is a "deal," but in this context it is.

Moreover, to gain the performance advantages we measured, the 2023 Lamborghini Urus Performante gives up a great deal of everyday drivability. We noticed its loss of suspension travel and cushier air springs within the first block of driving it. Even in the softest Strada setting, the ride is so harsh that we felt like bobble-headed test drivers; what we refer to as "head toss" never relented. We loved the Urus Performante super-SUV at the track, we loved the titanium exhaust system's sound, and it was amusing to make new friends out of interested observers with each (highly frequent) refueling. But from a livability standpoint, we weren't sad to see it go at the end of our loan. There's no denying its place, however, as the current king among super SUVs.