That doesn't sound like you're ready for a Lamborghini. These are definitively not meant to ride from A to B anytime as yopu would with a normal car, and you'd better know what to expect on the way...Have you given any thoughts to a Renault Scenic ?
Just joking....
The Gallardo can be a daily driver, that's for sure, but that doesn't mean it is a "real" car....no space, noise, no trunk, poor visibity (compare to "real" cars), etc, etc...in other words, it is not practical at all, and, after all, isn't it what you should be looking for in London ?
Well...I guess if you're looking for a vehicule, go for a Porsche. If you'd rather a "super cool" vehicule, go for the R8 (I love it !). If you really want an exotic, the Gallardo is a good choice, but again, be ready to live with...an exotic. Now, if you want to disappear in the mob of London, Ferrari is a good option.

I've considered the R8 but how exactly is it more practical then the gallardo? It's also wide, with low clearance, no space and bad visibility, isn't it???

Yep..it is, but probably much more reliable than the Gallardo.
If I understand well, you need a "special" vehicule...not necessarily an Exotic, right ?...R8 wiyld be the best choice...but again, it all depends on you

By the way, welcome to the forum...and honestly, if you can, what the hell, go for a Gallardo, and enjoy the power of the Dark Side

Just buy a lamborghini shirt and walk around town, it probably get you from point to point quicker around London.

Just got my 2004 Gallardo. It had 2000 miles on it. So the previous owner did about 50 miles a month, or drove 2000 and parked it.... Since I joined the site I have put 400 miles on it.

Issues with driving around town:
1 - Rednecks and gawkers will surround you while you are driving and when you park.
2 - early models need some care (no lift) when pulling into our out of parking lots, drive ways. Not much of a problem - you just have to slow down a bit to get over the bumps. Or you could just drive right in and hear a large scrape from the front of the car
3 - You constantly have to watch the speed - I have not figured out yet how to get the car to drive slow in town .... LOL

My thought is .... if you buy it drive it! Or I guess you could buy a big poster of a car and put it in the garage.

Alright boys, thanks for the many useful replies. I think I'm gonna go for it. Will plan and shop around a bit and go for a spyder (easier parking) with 1-2K on it. Worst case scenario, I just enjoy driving it occasionally for a couple years and sell it at £30K loss. It wouldn't be the end of the world.

I'm gonna go to a track and drive one first though. Found a £100 thrill ride package that will allow me to do so!

Only thing still on my mind is I haven't heard any definitive answers about the large speed bumps they have in London. They're all a standard size so someone should know whether you can go over them without scraping the car or not. Anyone?

This is the kind of thing we see around here: http://www.students.bucknell.edu/pro...edHump3big.jpg

Looks pretty standard, use the front end lift and take it slow and you should be fine.

If you hit the first one well you don't need to worry about the second.

While I have no experience driving in London, I use my Gallardo as a daily driver in South Florida .. . I go over speed bumps with no problem, and we have traffic jams in south florida that should rival those in London I would think...I use neutral on the e-gear alot when caught in stop and go traffic jams, and consider this to be the only thing the car is not well set up to handle...the problem is the gallardo does not go slow --3 mph type slow, so in a 45 minute long traffic jam, with stop and go and a great deal of very slow driving, you have to protect the clutch--this means sitting still when other cars would already have crept forward, then gassing it and jerking forward a few car lengths, prior to hard braking. My mechanic told me NEVER to ride the clutch--it needs to be engaged quickly, which means you ALWAYS start fast--you never "ease into" first gear slowly like you might in a normal car. This is the only issue with bad trafic, other than if some jerk bangs in to you.

I have over 11,000 miles of S Fla driving since last Christmas, with plenty of traffic jams, and my clutch still feels like brand new.
Right now I am driving the Gallardo in the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina, which is more like driving it in the mountains of Italy ( south of Tropea, or perhaps in the Amalfi coast area.....narrow mountain roads, switchbacks, steep climbs, sometimes a bumpy road, and plenty of high speed sections!)

I would say go with the Gallardo, given all the comments you made about what you wanted.

As to storage of sports gear, I don't golf, so have not tried this--but am fairly certain you could bring clubs..a large bag might be problematic.
I have taken all my freediving gear, and even my scuba diving gear( minus the tanks), and had plenty of room. I can not find a bike rack to use for it, so if I want to mountain bike or road bike, I need to use my other car ( Honda s 2000 with bike rack :-) .. or use my wife's Ridgeline.

Hope this helps.