First Drive: 2023 Lamborghini Huracán Tecnica

The dream for most of us gear heads is to have a car you drive to the track, spend the day racing, then take home—no trailer necessary. But most track-focused cars are too stiff and uncomfortable to drive very far on public streets, while road cars are too soft and supple to provide much of a thrill on a circuit. But what if there were one that was just right for both? The 2023 Lamborghini Huracán Tecnica might just be our Goldilocks answer to this quandary.

Yes, It’s Fast!

Last year, Lamborghini debuted the Huracán STO, a road car that prioritizes track experience over driving on public thoroughfares. It was certainly brilliant ripping laps at hellacious speeds, but it was quite evident the STO wasn’t a rig well-suited to bumps in the road. With the 2023 Lamborghini Huracán Tecnica, the Italian maker has effectively created an STO in street clothing. The engine, transmission, and braking system are essentially the same, but the chassis has been given a softer setup, making it more comfortable in everyday situations. Also, Lamborghini has stripped away much of the aero kit, as well as the massive scoop and wing, giving it a more conventional Lamborghini aesthetic.

Of course those changes are not strictly visual, the Tecnica offers less downforce than the STO, but it does generate 35 percent more rear downforce than the Huracán EVO and 20 percent less drag. Also, Lamborghini has reshaped the underside of the car and the brake vents to keep them cooler and prevent stopping power from fading as you push it on the road or track.

To save a bit of mass, Lambo used lightweight materials including a carbon fiber hood and engine cover to reduce the weight of the Tecnica by 10 kg compared to the EVO RWD.

The aforementioned engine is a naturally aspirated V-10 that savagely throws 631 hp and 417 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels. At the 8,500 rpm redline, the sound is both staggering and addictive. Once you hear it, you want to hear it again and again, like your favorite song on repeat.

Controlling how the car deploys that staggering power, the LDVI (Lamborghini Dinamica Veicolo Integrata) system manages the totality of the car’s dynamic behavior. Drivers have the option of three driving modes: Strada provides maximum comfort; Sport mode sharpens the throttle input, revs higher in automatic, and adds a bit of oversteer to the rear wheels; and Corsa offers maximum lateral and longitudinal grip, the fastest shifting from the gearbox, and greater precision for sticking the line on the track while you try to find the limit.

On the Road

There are some truly epic driving roads in Spain, especially around the Parc Natural de la Serra Calderona, and if you find yourself behind the wheel of the Tecnica, you’ll want to drive them all.

Pop it into the Sport setting and the Valencian hills come alive with the sounds of V-10 music. Give the Tecnica even a modest amount of throttle and it howls. Push the accelerator further and it screams. Gear shifts are intensely quick, whether you’re lazily rolling in automatic or using the paddles while cosplaying an F1 driver. The carbon ceramic brakes are so strong they could probably yank the Millennium Falcon from hyperspace to a dead stop in a few hundred feet, but the pedal itself feels a bit dull.

Moreover, the throttle response in Strada could be a little sharper. The Tecnica requires a forceful push of the accelerator to wake the engine from its slumber. But that massive V-10 power is only a stomp away. Minor gripes in the big picture.

The softer setup makes the Tecnica a reasonably comfortable place to grind out highway miles or saunter through town. Of course, for most customers, it won’t serve as a daily driver. But it’s certainly versatile enough that it could.

On the Track

As good as the Huracán Tecnica is on the road, it’s equally adroit on the track. Flicking through turns and hammering the throttle on straights, it’s hard to find the edge in this car lapping the Circuit Ricardo Tormo. Raw speed comes so easily to the Tecnica what seems like hair-on-fire-fast in other cars feels easily manageable.

Rear-wheel steering gives the Tecnica both enhanced maneuverability at lower speeds and more lateral stability at faster ones, a feature you appreciate both on the track or during hairpin turns and hills on the open road. Optionally, the same custom Bridgestone Potenza race tires featured on the STO provide insane levels of grip that leave you with the impression there’s no line you can’t hold. But should you get a touch too aggressive, the traction control system can unwind all but the most serious mistakes.

Best of Both Worlds

For those who are going to live the dream and drive their race machine to the track, along with those race specific tires, customers should probably pick up a set of the Bridgestone Potenza Sport tires and some extra rims to swap for track days.

Those lucky few should also add the optional roll bar, though it does significantly diminish the already minimal rear visibility. But when you’re driving a Lamborghini, what’s behind you doesn’t matter…unless they have flashing lights and a siren.

[$239,000; lamborghini.com]