At the LA Auto Show, Lamborghini presented the new 2012 Gallardo LP550-2 Spyder. Packed with a V10, 550 hp rear engine, the new convertible comes with revised aerodynamics and other small upgrades in comparison to its standard model.

                                            2012 Lamborghini Gallardo LP550-2 Spyder is Coming Soon
 

Automobile Lamborghini is expanding the most successful model line ever built under the sign of the bull with a very special car – the new Gallardo LP 550-2 Spyder combines the open spyder body style with purist rear Wheel Drive. This version brings together that stunning level of open-air driving fun that can come only from a super sports car with a folding roof and an unbelievably agile and spontaneous handling.

                                            2012 Lamborghini Gallardo LP550-2 Spyder is Coming Soon
 

"With the Gallardo LP 550-2 Spyder, we are expanding the Lamborghini lineup with a purist model that adds yet another dimension of driving fun. This will appeal in particular to a very special group of customers that enjoy a spirited driving style and also like to experience the sheer pleasure of open-air driving," says Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini. "This special model with rear-wheel drive is a logical expansion of our lineup of spyder models with all-wheel drive."

The most important technical characteristics of the Lamborghini LP 550-2 Spyder are already recognizable from the model designation – LP stands for Longitudinale/Posteriore, for the mid-engine built longitudinally in front of the rear axle. 550 refers to the power output in hp, and the 2 stands for the drive to the rear wheels. At Lamborghini, the word spyder means the ultimate synthesis of a fascinating, powerfully expressive super sports car design, the ultimate open-air thrill and sheer pleasure for all the senses.

                                           2012 Lamborghini Gallardo LP550-2 Spyder is Coming Soon
 

Lamborghini says that its engineers have carried out extensive modifications to adapt the car to rear-wheel drive such as applying specific dampers settings and tweaking its aerodynamics to take into account the change in the distribution of forces.

The Gallardo LP 550-2 Spyder tips the scales at 1,520 kilograms (3,351 pounds) and can accelerate from standstill to 100km/h (62mph) in 4.2 seconds en route to a top speed of 319km/h (198 mph).

We saw lots of intriguing mod jobs at SEMA this year. But among them we didn't see one Lamborghini with a ski rack. Not one! Leave it to the Swedish, then, to show us the way.

Where others might opt for an SUV or an all-wheel-drive station wagon, professional skier Jon Olsson likes driving from one ski hill to another in a Lamborghini. He had a Murciélago LP670-4 SuperVeloce fitted with a ski rack, and even forded a river in the beast for the Gumball rally. He's apparently dead-set on doing the same (the ski rack part, not necessarily the automotive bi-athalon bit) with the new Aventador, but since there's a bit of a waiting list, he's gone with a Gallardo in the meantime.

Olsson had a custom ski box made, capable of handling the wind at speeds up to 159 miles per hour, turned to DMC (the aftermarket tuner, not the DeLorean producer) for a race-style body kit and had the whole thing – car and box – wrapped in some sort of angular take on winter camouflage. Not exactly our cup of tea, but it sure beats hitting the slopes in a Subaru Outback.