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Twin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LT

In recent years, the folks at McLaren have been doing an amazing job at keeping up and sometimes going faster than the competition. Their line-up of cars is ever so impressive, while some may feel that Lamborghini needs something new to get back in the game. The Aventador replacement is bound to show up within the next few years, but until then, we're going to see how the Aventador SVJ fares against the 600LT.
Twin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LT 9 photos
Photo: Carwow
Twin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LTTwin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LTTwin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LTTwin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LTTwin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LTTwin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LTTwin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LTTwin-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LT
Someone who has less knowledge of today's supercars might be tempted to think that the Aventador is bound to win this race upon hearing its mighty V12 growl. Looking at the stats, it does have the upper hand from a performance point of view.

The 6.5-liter V12 churns out a massive 759 horsepower and 531 lb-ft (720 Nm) of torque. It's also quite capable of using those numbers to its advantage, thanks to a highly capable AWD system. Weight-wise, things aren't great, but they're not bad either. The SVJ weighs 3,362 lbs (1,525 kg), which is 266 lbs (121 kg) more than the McLaren 600LT.

The engine on the British supercar is almost half the size and has four fewer cylinders. The 3.8-liter V8 relies on its twin-turbo setup for an output of 592 horsepower and 457 lb-ft (620 Nm). Power is sent to the rear wheels only, which may or may not lower its odds of winning this challenge.

Strangely enough, the 600LT is off to a slightly better start for the first run. By the time both cars cross the finish line, the gap is quite small, but the naturally aspirated V12 has to admit defeat. It's a different ball game on the second run, which goes to show how big of an impact the driver can have on the outcome of a drag race.

Twin\-Turbo V8 Drag Races NA V12, Aventador SVJ Has a Tough Time Going Up Against 600LT
Photo: Carwow
It all boils down to the third run of the day, and it feels crazy to see that an RWD car can dominate the mighty Aventador SVJ like that. The difference between the two cars is of only 0.1 seconds, so it's now down to the rolling race to see who's going to win this supercar challenge.

While you would expect the lighter car to have an advantage here, it cannot go up against the pure grunt of the Italian exotic. Starting from 30 mph (48 kph), the 600LT is last across both the half-mile (804 meters) and 1-mile (1.6 km) finish lines.

Starting from 50 mph (80 kph) doesn't change anything, as the slightly laggy twin-turbo V8 is no match for the instant throttle response of the naturally-aspirated V12. At this point, we're looking at a tie. But there is one last test that is bound to reveal the winner.

Both cars get up to 100 mph (161 kph), and it's an all-out braking battle to a halt after they reach the designated area. Once again, the 600LT should have the upper hand here, even though both vehicles are running carbon-ceramic breaks. This last challenge is just as exciting as everything we've seen before, and McLaren ends up losing by a small margin.

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About the author: Dragos Chitulescu
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The things Dragos enjoys the most in life are, in no particular order: cars, motorcycles, diecast cars, and drifting. He's seen (and driven) many vehicles since he started his writing career back in 2009, but his garage currently houses a 1991 Mazda RX-7 FC3S Turbo II and a 1999 Suzuki SV650-S.
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