$465,000 Lamborghini Urus Performante joins Italian police fleet

The Italian national police force – known for its use of high-performance Alfa Romeos and Lamborghinis – has enlisted a Lamborghini Urus Performante super SUV for high-speed, urgent transport of organs and plasma.

It is the fifth Lamborghini to be donated to the force since 2004 – following various Gallardo and Huracan supercars – and will be used alongside a pair of Huracan LP610-4s in service since 2017.

Rather than writing speeding fines or catching criminals, the Urus will be used for the transport of organs and plasma needed for urgent transplants.

To prepare for police duties, the Urus gains a blue and white police livery, a light bar on the roof, and interior modifications such as a fridge for storing the organs, an armoured weapons box, dash-mounted message display, defibrillator, and locked boot storage.

Powering the Urus Performante is a twin-turbo 4.0-litre petrol V8 engine developing 490kW and 850Nm, sent to all four wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission. 

Lamborghini claims it can hit 100km/h from a standing start in 3.3 seconds before reaching a top speed of 306km/h. 

In Australia, the Lamborghini Urus Performante is priced from $465,876 before on-road costs. 

"These cars have specific equipment for organ transport, so they are used for so-called 'life-saving transports', which are transports that would be particularly complex due to the location of hospital facilities,” state police officer Maria Francesca Bruschi said in a media statement.

The SUV is planned to begin its duties in 2024, after the keys were handed over in Rome in mid-December 2023.