Normally I’m dead set against lopping the roofs off cars that started out as saloons or coupés. The results are often bodies without adequate torsional stiffness, a problem exacerbated when a 520bhp engine is part of the mix. In the case of the Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, the chassis was designed from the outset with an open-topped car in mind and hence has an incredible resistance to twisting. Even with the metal roof lopped off, the Gallardo is still a good deal stiffer than many supercar coupés. Only a very small amount of strengthening work was required, with some reinforcements added to the sills.

Unlike the Murcielago Roadster, which has a fiendishly complicated ragtop, the erection of which would make a fitting Krypton Factor finale, the Gallardo shows significant progress with an electrically-folding hood mechanism operated by a pair of buttons on the centre of the dashboard. Twenty seconds later, you’re good to go, the roof either neatly cinched into place or secreted beneath the engine cover well out of harm’s way. The rear screen moves automatically while the hood is being raised or lowered and defaults to a raised position. Unlike its great rival, the Ferrari F430 Spider, the Lamborghini actually looks pretty smart with the roof up, the angular styling giving it a far better resolved profile than the slightly awkward-looking Ferrari.

Those who remember the 493bhp engine originally fitted to the Gallardo coupé now get even more of a good thing. Teased out to fully 520bhp to spike the guns of ‘the crew up the road’, the Gallardo Spyder has also been re-geared to further access that concussive power delivery. The six-speed gearbox is still offered as a conventional manual or the optional automated e-gear sequential shift but first gear is 27 per cent lower and second gear is 13 per cent lower. This means that the Gallardo Spyder steps off the line with real verve despite the added weight of that soft top roof mechanism. Third, fourth and fifth gears are all 6 per cent lower and top is 3.5 per cent lower. The steering has been modified to sharpen up turn-in and the suspension benefits from trick Koni dampers that feel almost rigid when the car is switched to sport mode. For attacking a typical British B-road, it’s a little too much but for the occasional trackday blat it’s just the ticket.

Let’s not kid ourselves about the purpose of this car though. As much as Lamborghini needs to build in all that capability, most owners will buy this car for the way it looks, the way it sounds and the badge on the bonnet. That’s it. It could handle like a frog in a sock and the Gallardo Spyder would still disappear out of dealer showrooms as fast as Lamborghini could bolt them together. That it doesn’t is a welcome bonus. In fact, it’s a better car than many would give it credit for.

Take the four-wheel drive system as an example. Many serious drivers groan when they encounter all-wheel drive sports cars, accusing them of pandering to those with no skills and tempting the inexperienced into an invincible feeling that usually ends in a very high speed realisation that this isn’t, in fact, the case. The Gallardo is different. And it’s gorgeous. Enough said.

FACTS AT A GLANCE:
CAR: Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder
PRICE: £131,000
INSURANCE GROUP: 20
CO2 EMISSIONS: 450g/km
PERFORMANCE: Max Speed 196mph / 0-60mph 4.1s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: (combined) 20mpg
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE ? Length/Width/Height 4300/1900/1165mm