The sound of the baritone V10 wailing in the desert sky is truly something to hear

Drumming up a premise to feature a Lamborghini in evo is actually harder than it sounds. Especially when the Lambo in question is four years old. This might be the first time we have driven the Gallardo Spyder on the sandy soil of the Middle East, but European coverage has been extensive. So what to do?

Well, as this issue is all about outright speed (and as far as most are concerned the Gallardo Spyder is considered the ultimate drop-top super sports car) a simple test was devised. And what better place to conduct this test than Qatar, where not only have Lamborghini recently unveiled a showroom, but is also home to some amazing roads. Or so we were told!

Jon may have driven the LP640 through the Welsh countryside and Bassam got to stretch the legs of the Superleggera on track, the same month, so in the same vane I decide that I'll put both the new Lambo showroom in Doha and the oddly infamous roads of Doha to good use by seeing how fast you really can go with the top down. A premise was duly born; keys to the Gallardo now in hand (as was a rather out-dated road map of the city) and 24 hours to enjoy. It was the first time that I had driven through Qatar and planned on literally driving from one tip of the country to the other.

The first thing Alejandro and I did, was drive out of the city and head to the Saudi border. A mere 90 km drive and we were there, having risked both life and limb in thick fog, weaving our way through trucks on highways which were being expanded, fixed and contorted in every way imaginable. This was not entirely what I had in mind when I thought of the great roads of Qatar...

It was during this short and insanely slow jaunt to the Saudi border that I relied on the previous praise given by evo to this incredible car, the Gallardo. Curiously, several friends who had driven both the coupe and the roadster version of this car had said pretty much the same - and that the latter was the better of the two. Something usually unheard of for a sports car - surely - since they tend to lose some of their torsional rigidity and pile on a few pounds whenever the tin-snips are brought into play - losing the roof in the process. Make no mistake about it this is more than just a convertible, this is a completely different experience; more visceral, involving and obviously a lot louder. Being the eternal critic though, I had dismissed these claims right off the bat. I'm now at the Saudi border eating my sombrero. But not for long, for I have a premise to pander to...

Floor the throttle from a standstill and the instrument cluster simply lights up with traction control alerts. Lift off mid-turn though and you won't find yourself a part of the scenery as Jon nearly did at the helm of the LP640. The sound of the baritone V10 wailing in the desert sky (with the top down) makes for a much more involving and visceral experience than with the coupe, but how fast can we honestly attack these roads before this intuited state marks the end of our hearing - forever?

As we embarked on a last stab at our mission, Alejandro was sat calm and cool. I've known our snapper long enough now to sense a slight unease - the combination of pea-soup thick fog, a near empty fuel tank and not a single pump in sight and the prospect of being stranded in the desert somewhere in between Doha and Saudi Arabia past midnight was a good enough reason for these nerves. Trying to bypass these important factors in order to appreciate a sense of genuine speed in a cabriolet Gallardo (in Qatar of all places) was something altogether different.

Luckily, a fuel station did in fact appear seemingly out of nowhere. A pleasant shock came when the pump stopped when just $ 17.50 worth of fuel had been pumped into the virtually empty tank. A flick of the ignition showed a full fuel tank. Wow, we're truly blessed with cheap petrol in the Middle East. But are we blessed with truly tenacious stretches of tarmac? By now it was too dark to decide! The following morning though we decide that the holy grail of asphalt that people had talked of must be out there somewhere, so we weasel our way out of town through heavy traffic and hit the northern highway towards Al Ruways, the northernmost tip of the Peninsula. Superb weather and a virtually empty highway all the way to our destination gave us the opportunity to stretch the car's legs a little. Similar to the coupe, the Spyder pulls strongly in any gear - the chassis translating what little there was in the way of waving roads into alacrity and bite, with only the tiniest hint of understeer and attitude over the bumps to make sure you're paying attention. But truth be told, the roads were too bumpy and boring for any serious top speed antics desolate as they may be.

But it wasn't a totally wasted trip, for I am now more qualified than most to say that the Spyder is actually even better than the coupe - without losing any of the Gallardo hard-top's handling characteristics, or sharp edged handling for that matter. Unlike the folk that advised that the best place to appreciate this sports car was Qatar. These unqualified idiots clearly have no idea about what they are talking about. As far as I can tell this is no place for anything remotely sporty, Lamborghini in particular, especially the new Gallardo LP560, which no doubt will sell by the bucket load there once delivered to the region mid Summer. So if you fancy ordering one you better keep reading...

Engine V10, 4961cc
Max power 520bhp @ 8000rpm
Max torque 384lb ft @ 4250rpm
Top speed 307kph (claimed)
0-100kph 4.3sec (claimed)
Price $ 245,232
On sale Now

+ Engine note at 8000rpm
- Uncomfortable seat are the only downside