Lamborghini Huracan STO 2022 Review

The 2022 Lamborghini Huracan STO is intended to be a road-going version of the brand’s Super Trofeo and GT3 race cars. It’s been extensively modified over the base vehicle to reduce weight, increase performance and improve the connection to the driver.

Such a process isn’t cheap, the STO starting at $596,000 plus on-road costs. While those on-road costs aren’t pocket change, they are a drop in the ocean compared to what you can spend on options.

Paint colours tend to be around the $25,000 to $30,000 mark, the full exterior carbon package will set you back about $40,000, bronze magnesium rims are almost $30,000, right down to $6480 for Apple CarPlay and $2400 for different-coloured brake callipers, though the sky is the limit through Lamborghini’s Ad Personam customisation program.

A slightly bigger issue than the size of your bank account is that the entire STO production run is currently accounted for. If you want one, tough luck, however circumstances change, slots become available, so if you’re keen give your local Lamborghini dealer a ring.

Otherwise, many of the STO learnings have been incorporated into the latest Lamborghini Huracan Tecnica, which is now scheduled to land in Australia in mid-2023.

A three-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty is standard though this can be extended to a fourth ($8610) or fifth ($15,860) year and 24/7 roadside assistance is included.

Service intervals are 12 months or 15,000km and a pair of prepaid servicing packages are available for either three ($7450) or five ($15,860) years.

The process of creating the 2022 Lamborghini Huracan STO starts with the bodywork. More than 75 per cent of the bodywork is made from carbon-fibre for a 43kg weight saving over the previous track-focused Huracan, the Performante.

Magnesium wheels and a lightweight windscreen – that we weren’t allowed to fix GoPros to for fear of cracking – complete the diet, though the fact the STO is rear-wheel drive and forgoes the front-drive paraphernalia of the Performante is doubtless also a contributing factor.

Downforce has increased by 53 per cent thanks to all manner of vents and wings and holes and fins. The entire front section is fused into one giant clamshell with a front splitter to direct air to the underbody and louvred guards to extract turbulent air from the wheel wells.

At the rear a new bumper reduces surface area, the engine is fed air by a roof-mounted scoop, there’s a shark fin on the engine cover for greater stability and a giant manually adjustable rear wing.

The area that’s changed least is the 5.2-litre naturally-aspirated V10, with only a slight recalibration to the throttle and gearshift mapping for better response and quicker shifts.

Then again, 470kW/565Nm and an 8000rpm redline don’t really stand out as needing improvement, especially as the STO’s power-to-weight ratio improves to 351kW/tonne (dry) versus the Evo’s 331kW/tonne (dry) thanks to being 83kg lighter.

Despite the traction disadvantage of rear-wheel drive, 0-100km/h is claimed to take just 3.0sec and 0-200km/h only 9.0sec, though top speed is slightly lower at 310km/h due to the drag associated with the extra downforce.

The chassis also receives plenty of attention, with a widened rear track, second-generation MagneRide dampers, stiffer bushings, new anti-roll bars, rear-wheel steering and new-generation CCM-R composite brakes, which are claimed to have 60 per cent higher stress resistance compared to ‘traditional’ carbon-ceramic brakes.

Tyres are Bridgestone Potenzas – 245/30R20 (front) and 305/30R20 (rear) – in either a street or track compound.

Finally, the drive modes have been reorganised with the option of the default STO mode for road driving, Trofeo for maximum track attack and Pioggia (rain) which optimises all the various vehicle programs for low-grip conditions.

Pioggia mode came in handy during our drive of the 2022 Lamborghini Huracan STO as sadly our memo requesting blue skies and warm temperatures went unheeded by Melbourne’s winter weather.

In a way, the wet track was beneficial in testing this track-optimised wedge.

With mega power, stiff suspension and huge tyres, it’s not difficult to imagine how impressive it would be in the dry, but supercars can be notoriously skittish when the rain comes down.

Driving the Porsche 911 GT3 recently in similar conditions felt like the track was smeared in cooking oil but the Lamborghini finds much more purchase.

This is in large part due to the tyres, the Huracan STO sensibly wearing the more road-focused of its Bridgestone tyre options, which deal with cold temperatures and standing water much better than the GT3’s semi-slick Cups.

Nonetheless, the STO sends 470kW to just the rear wheels and has a very large engine sitting behind your back – not typically a specification that instils confidence. Oh, and the test cars are all left-hand drive.

That it does so is a testament to the feedback this finely honed machine gives to the driver, much more than in a standard Huracan.

It’s telling that Lamborghini has foregone its fancy speed-dependent variable steering for the STO, instead opting for a fixed-rate set-up that, while still quick, is the same in all scenarios.

It gives a terrific sense of what the front tyres are up to, allowing the car to be driven right on the cusp of understeer to maximise cornering speeds.

Even in these conditions the brakes are hugely powerful with plenty of modulation, something early carbon-ceramics struggled with. As the track dries slightly they sound to have had a hard life (they’d been lapping all week) but there is no reduction in stopping power.

The engine remains phenomenal. The 5.2-litre V10 is outgunned by rivals in terms of pure performance these days, but there’s little wrong with 0-200km/h in 9.0sec. Even with a slow entry and early braking, the main straight results in a top speed of 265km/h.

Being naturally aspirated also helps traction in the wet, peak torque being produced at 6500rpm, and the linear nature of the engine allows you to precisely meter out power.

For track use there is nothing really to say about the dual-clutch gearbox; it simply acts exactly as you’d expect it to. Shifts up and down are very quick, the latter accompanied by a delightfully theatrical bark of revs.

In comparison to some other manufacturers’ ‘wet’ modes, the STO’s is remarkably liberal, still allowing wheelspin and oversteer before stepping in. It’s also possible to feel the torque vectoring holding the car on line without the ESP intervening.

A brief stint in STO mode reveals an even more liberal view of intervention, and while Trofeo is the pick for maximum-attack fast laps, the prospect of spinning $600K+ worth of Lamborghini into Bass Strait means it goes untouched.

Phillip Island is a very fast circuit but it’s in these fast corners where the STO feels most confidence-inspiring, the magic and invisible hand of downforce pressing the car firmly into the road. It certainly isn’t glued to the tarmac, but there is definitely a strong connection.

In the final session a semi-dry line appears in places, enough for a glimpse into the STO’s ultimate potential. The brakes are applied harder, cornering speeds are higher, full throttle reached sooner and the biggest disappointment is that the session ends.

More laps are wanted. More laps are needed.

Is the 2022 Lamborghini Huracan STO the pick of the supercar pack? A dozen laps on a mostly wet racetrack isn’t sufficient to definitively answer that question.

It’s also largely a moot point and not just because of the fact that demand is far outstripping supply for this V10 track weapon.

Buyers at this end of the market are rarely making either/or decisions and are as likely to be wooed by the Huracan’s extrovert looks and seductive noise as they are its g-force readings or lap times.

It feels focused, it feels special, it feels remarkably different to the standard Huracan Evo and it makes us excited to sample the Huracan Tecnica in a more varied setting when it lands in 2023.

How much does the 2022 Lamborghini Huracan STO cost?
Price: $596,000 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Sold out
Engine: 5.2-litre V10 petrol
Output: 470kW/565Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel: 13.9L/100km (WLTP)
CO2: 331g/km (WLTP)
Safety rating: Not tested