Elite Traveler Summer 2020

INSPIRE TOP CARS

Top Cars

At the dawn of a fresh decade, premium automakers are eagerly jostling to carve out their respective identities. Some invest in proprietary technology while others repurpose nostalgia. Once unthinkable, several share the same engine, as parent companies continue to amass once-independent coachbuilders. In this new era, differentiation arrives via bold design and bespoke possibilities. Within this crowded luxury market, manufacturers wrestle not only with brand recognition but allegiance. Providing plush, dynamic sanctuaries that transport drivers and their partners or families, each vehicle found in these pages articulates its automaker’s vision, from more nuanced offerings to long-awaited arrivals.

by Alexandra Cheney

Lamborghini 2020 Aventador SVJ Roadster Flirting with the absurd seems a common theme running through Lamborghini. That is, until Italy’s Raging Bull recognizes the lunacy, then transforms it into a track-ready, road-eager supercar — like the Aventador SVJ Roadster. A 6.5-liter, naturally aspirated V12 (likely one of the last) pumps 770 hp through the convertible’s all-wheel drive, four-wheel steering system. A loud, fast-moving contradiction, its gun-slit windows abut bulky A-pillars, and trapezoids and triangles swoop

and squish, forming lines that pinch and pucker. Technically, all the bodywork’s shapes can be found in nature — usually not together. But that’s part of the romance, and a textbook Lamborghini design aesthetic. These features also make the car go fast.