Well, after speaking to a number of body shops, it turns out that my Gallardo decided to pop the engine 1-5 code, so the car instead of going into a body shop went into a repair shop. I will know tomorrow for sure what the problem is, but I think the car is in good hands. I left it with Brian at Supercar Specialists in Scottsdale. I was initially hesitant to leave my car with a non-factory service center but Brian definitely won me over with a combination of knowledge, great customer service, and competitive pricing. Most importantly, he was patient with questions and phone calls. If his work comes out as good as my first impression was, I will definitely be sold (and Scottsdale Lamborghini can kiss my *** goodbye, well until its time for me to upgrade anyway).

Since the car is going to be in the shop for engine trouble (hopefully nothing too major!), I asked Brian to help with the repair of the rear diffuser. He surprised me by not only offering to repair it but by agreeing to give me a used diffuser in good shape (a small nick on the side) free of charge. So I am getting the best of both worlds! If there is a surefire way to get customer loyalty, free stuff would be #1 on the list

I am getting some other minor stuff taken car off (annual service, polishing some minor scuffs on the wheel, getting minor paint blemishes buffed out). However, one costly upgrade I was introduced to at Supercars was the LOC exhaust. I have to say, it has a very appealing sound! My question to the board is are there any tradeoffs to using this aftermarket exhaust in particular? I know some exhausts throw engine codes, others instead of increasing hp actually end up decreasing it, and so on and on. Also I've heard of some cases in which aftermarket enhancements reduce resale value. The exhaust will cost in the neighborhood of a few grand, and I do love the sound, and Brian is offering to install the exhaust at a discounted rate since the bumper is coming off, so I am wondering if it is worth installing this option. I want to know all the consequences of installing this exhaust before doing so.

Brian said he will send photos of the work in progress, and I will be sure to post any relevant ones.

 

You will do better posting this question on Lambopower or another lambo specific board, but to my best recollection the LOC exhaust is very popular with G owners since it sounds great, doesn't throw codes in 06+ cars like some other exhausts do, and is priced moderately compared to other exhausts. Negative (depending on your preference) is that it tends to be quite loud since it is essentially a set of muffled straight pipes. If you would like a more tame option the Tubi sounds great and is very high pitched but is more quiet for the most part. Also, if you have an 06+ you could just open the muffler bypass full time but I seem to remember some reporting codes being thrown.

 

Latest update: most of the repairs were going well until disaster struck today. As the clear bra guy was removing the front clear bra to replace it (it had suffered some scratches and was peeling off at some places), some of the paint came off with the clear bra. Brian is going to have the paint guy look at it but now with the repainting, then having to wait 72 hrs for the paint to set before putting on the new clear bra, it looks like my car won't be returned until late next week, and that's not mentioning the extra cost of repairs just incurred

I will pass on the exhaust upgrade for now to offset the cost of repairs to the front bumper, save that for another time.

 

Some good news to report: the clear bra people are accepting responsibility for the paint damages.

Also, I have decided to go with the LOC exhaust... it will be installed Thursday!