Lamborghini Gallardo may end run with stripped-down, manual version

The Lamborghini Gallardo is no stranger to special edition models, but with the car soon headed to that great racetrack in the sky, it sounds like a fitting send off is in the works. Road & Track had the chance to sit down with Lamborghini America COO Michael Lock who says that a "back-to-basics" Gallardo is being planned with a stripped interior, rear-wheel drive and a manual transmission.

Aside from marking the end of the Gallardo, this model will also mark the end for Lamborghini's manual transmission. That might sound like a devastating one-two punch for fans of the Italian automaker, but the report goes on to say that the paddle-shifted models outsell the three-pedal models to a tune of nine to one. No official word has been given as to when we'll see this new Gallardo model or its successor, but it sounds like at least one could be here by the end of the year.