2025 Lamborghini Urus SE Plug-In Hybrid is still a righteous raging bull

AUTO REVIEWS

By LARRY PRINTZ

Tribune News Service (TNS) D on’t look now, but Lamborghini builds nothing but gas-electric hybrids.

As Lamborghini develops its _rst battery-electric supercar, due in 2028, it’s also busy _elding gas-electric hybrid powertrains in the interim. It started with the Aventador’s replacement, the Revuelto. With 1,001 horsepower owing from its 6.5-liter V-12 and three electric motors to all four wheels, it heralds a new era for Lamborghini sports cars. Next came the replacement for the Huracán, the Temerario hybrid, powered by a new twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 and three electric motors delivering 907 horsepower to all four wheels.

Now comes the Urus SE plug-in hybrid SUV, the brand’s _rst plug-in hybrid that shares its 611-horsepower twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 and 189-horsepower electric motor placed between it and the eight-speed transmission, with Porsche and Bentley models as well as the Temerario. The Urus SE’s AC motor is powered by a 25.9-kWh lithium-ion battery under the rear cargo oor. It provides 37 miles of pure electric driving up to 81 mph and requires 4 hours and 20 minutes to fully recharge from 20 percent. Lamborghini also _ts the Urus SE with six driving modes. There’s Strada, Sport and Corsa for on-road, and Neva, Sabbia, and Terra for off-road. They can be mixed with four hybrid settings: Hybrid, Recharge, Performance and EV Drive.

Being an SUV, the Urus SE is the most practical of modern Lamborghinis, one that easily _ts four and their luggage, the Urus SE will do what all Lamborghinis are designed to do: thrill you with its driving demeanor and bring a grin to your face. But it also does it more ef_ciently and with more power than the Urus Performante.

This is apparent after time spent piloting the Urus SE at Nardò Technical Center in southern Italy, a testing facility owned and operated by Volkswagen Group stablemate Porsche. There, the Urus SE proved its off-road rally chops tackling the Strada Bianca, an off-road course designed to evaluate a vehicle’s performance and dynamics once the sidewalk ends. Making the most of its many hairpin turns, the Urus SE plug-in hybrid proves it’s a true Lamborghini. With its twin-turbo V-8 and electric motor producing a robust 789 horses, there’s enough power to easily slide around corners before powering straight on to the next twisty, producing a cloud of dust and a grin-inducing V-8 roar that leaves little doubt as to its mission. Next, it’s time to hit the skid pad. There, Lamborghini proved what Walt Disney once portrayed in “Fantasia.” Hippos can dance, and this slick truckster can tackle a motocross course, sliding around corners like, well, a Lamborghini, thanks to its combination of active anti-roll bars, rearwheel steering and adaptive dampers. But there’s no hiding its 5,523-pound curb weight, despite its agility. At least the steering is precise despite being relatively light in feel. Braking is excellent, thanks to carbon-ceramic brakes.

But inevitably, hybridization also brings a layer of civility to the proceedings. It’s not enough to banish this SUV’s inherent raucousness – a core Lamborghini trait – but it does make it a bit more urbane around town. Nevertheless, the exhaust note still has a wildly boisterous character, something not true of Urus SEs elsewhere in the world, where noise pollution restricts the use of loud exhausts.

It’s all wrapped in a freshened interior and exterior, with changes made to lighting, and grilles reworked to enhance cooling. Inside, the cabin is decorated in a manner be_tting its station, with quilted leather, aluminum trim and three 12.3-inch digital displays – one for the instrument cluster, the other for the infotainment and climate control systems.

And there’s 22 cubic feet of cargo space, expanding to 57 cubic feet with the seats folded. Don’t try that with a Revuelto.

What makes the 2025 Lamborghini Urus SE so remarkable is its ability to play so many parts, as if it’s some kind of automotive one-man band. It hauls people and their stuff. It can tow a 7,000-pound trailer. It can transport your mom comfortably to her bridge game. It can be the ultimate off-road warrior or on-road urbane street _ghter. Adding a hybrid brings with it fuel ef_ciency as well as added power and the ability to not use a drop of gas. That’s a rare combination of ability for any vehicle, but particularly among SUVs.

And priced from $262,631, it’s one rare raging bull.

Larry Printz is an automotive journalist based in South Florida.

Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. Company / TNS