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VW makes $23K on every Porsche sold, more than Bentley or Lamborghini

It's a good time to be in the luxury car business. In Volkswagen Group's financial report for the 2013 fiscal year, it is revealed that that Porsche enjoyed an operating margin of 18 percent. That means the Stuttgart brand made on average about $23,200 per car sold, according to BusinessWeek. Bentley wasn't far behind, and Audi (which was combined with Lamborghini) posted a 10.1 percent margin. This compares to only around 2.9 percent for the Volkswagen brand.
"Luxury brands are on fire," said Dave Sullivan, an industry analyst at AutoPacific. He said that the average profit margin is between six and eight percent. Brands like Porsche and Bentley have the benefit of competing in rarefied markets. Buyers looking at one their vehicles have fewer models to shop against and don't care as much about price. They can also charge more for options, which further boosts income, according to BusinessWeek.
In a way, we should be more impressed by the continued success from Audi. Its models generally have direct competitors in every segment from the other premium automakers. Plus, their buyers aren't the captains of industry who are shopping for a Bentley. Still, the Four Rings is leading rivals in sales so far this year.

Best bus stop ever makes public transportation way more interesting

For all the advantages public transportation offers, relying on your local bus is typically about as entertaining as taking in someone's lint collection. Telecommunications giant Qualcomm set out to remedy that scenario at one stop by switching out the bus schedule on the wall for a URL. Visitors were encouraged to participate and immediately got more than they bargained for. One would-be bus rider got a trip in a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, and that was probably the most predictable result.
We would like to think we'd be more prone to embracing public transportation if it came with this level of entertainment. You'll have to watch the video below to see more about what we mean.

Lamborghini Veneno Roadster stands in for fighter jet aboard Italian carrier

How do you draw even more attention to $4.47 million hypercar? Placing it atop an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf ought to do the trick, as Lamborghini has demonstrated with the live reveal of the new Veneno Roadster on the flight deck of the Italian Navy's Cavour.
Docked in the port of Mina Zayed, Abu Dhabi, the 787-foot flat-top is being used as a floating showcase of Italian products, with Lamborghini chosen to represent the automotive industry. A fitting location to unveil a roadster that looks like the half-breed lovechild of a fighter jet and a Le Mans racer, particularly since Sant'Agata is bound to find in the Emirates a buyer for at least one of the nine Veneno Roadsters it will produce.
"We are honored that Lamborghini was chosen to represent the Italian car industry in the UAE, as a perfect example of iconic Italian super sports cars, and that we have the opportunity to show the Veneno Roadster for the first time in Abu Dhabi, said Lamborghini chief Stephan Winkelmann. "Lamborghini has an extremely strong following in the region for its super sports cars, with the Middle East one of our largest markets in the world." Turn up the Kenny Loggins and ride into the danger zone with photos from the event in the gallery above and the press release below.