Lamborghini AVENTADOR J

Lamborghini Aventador J

The Lamborghini Aventador J is an absolute one-off: a one-of-a-kind piece of art. It combines the overwhelming performance of the Lamborghini Aventador with the most intense experience of power and dynamics imaginable in an automobile.

Built from the beginning as a one-off showpiece that just a single lucky Lamborghini fan would own, the Aventador J revealed today at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show is an expected yet stunning take on an already mind-boggling car.

With a carbon monocoque, the idea of an open driving position is perhaps obvious; that's what all formula cars use, after all. But this is a road car, adapted from the coupe version of Lamborghini's new flagship. And as with any Lamborghini flagship of the last decade of more, it's as opulent and feature-packed as it is high-performance. The Aventador J, however, is not.

Along with the top, Lamborghini has thrown out the vast majority of the entertainment and other equipment, leaving behind what the company calls "the most uncompromising open super sports car of its entire history."

And so it is. Retaining the 700-horsepower, 6.5-liter V-12 engine, ISR transmission, pushrod suspension, and all-wheel drive of its more common LP 700-4 coupe brother, the Aventador J's similarities essentially end there.

There's no front windshield; the exterior and interior are melded into one, but the driver's head and face are exposed at 186 mph without the right protective equipment. A wide intake at the front of the car and small upward-tilting winglets on the edges give the J the look of an F1 car from the side, says Lamborghini.

And unlike most convertibles converted from coupes, the Aventador J actually saves weight--though it ditches the air conditioning system, stereo, and more in addition to the roof and the windshield to get there.

A totally new carbon fiber material, dubbed Carbonskin, is also introduced on the Aventador J; a carbon fiber fabric. Made of woven carbon fiber soaked in a special epoxy resin that retains its flexibility, Carbonskin adorns every surface of the J's interior, giving it a matte carbon black finish.