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Previewing the 2014 Paris Motor Show

Don't let the shiny objects detract from the serious side of the show. Sales, fuel economy and regulations are part of the conversation.
The Paris Motor Show is one of the glitziest events on the automotive calendar. Yes, it helps that it's in the City of Light, but the glamorous surroundings only enhance the spectacular wares that automakers bring to the show. This is where Europeans debut their best new cars for the coming year, both as eye-catching concepts and in production trim.

Lamborghini Cabrera 'Ring session caught on video

While our spy photographers were getting shots of the Lamborghini Gallardo replacement, said to be called "Cabrera," at the Nürburgring, there were other spotters lurking who caught the thing on video. It could just be the audio captured by the camera mic, but to our ears the exhaust sounds deeper and more burbly than that on the current car. One audio cue that can't be missed, however, is the speed of the gearchanges; think dual-clutch.
The reworked 5.2-liter V10 sitting behind the cockpit is expected to put out around 600 horsepower, sent either to all four wheels or just the rears depending on customer preference. The sights and sounds await you in the video below, your own ruminations can be heard in Comments just below that.

Lamborghini trying its best to keep new Cabrera under wraps

The Gallardo was far and away Lamborghini's most successful model. Over the course of ten years, the Bolognese automaker sold some 14,000 of them. As the Gallardo has now reached the end of its production cycle, Lamborghini is hard at work developing its replacement, and these are the latest spy shots of the work in progress.
Now wearing swirly camouflage instead of the flat-black wrap spied on previous prototypes, this latest version is our best glimpse yet at the supercar expected to be called Cabrera. Despite the more disguising wrap, though, the contrast between bodywork and air vents is more evident - particularly between the side window and the rear wheel, where this prototype appears to be sporting a panel similar in appearance to the "side blade" on the Audi R8 (with whose replacement the Cabrera is expected to share much). However, this is more likely a bit of disguise to throw us off the scent. Don't be thrown by the headlamp treatment, either. It may look like a Photoshop product, but our photographers on the ground tell us these translucent screens are just another diversion - as if you couldn't tell this was a Lambo from a mile away.
As for technical details, we're still expecting a reworked version of the outgoing model's 5.2-liter V10 driving all four wheels, only retuned to the tune of 600 horsepower. A dual-clutch gearbox (similar to the excellent unit newly installed in the R8) is tipped to transmit the power instead of the six-speed manual or robotized gearboxes in the outgoing Gallardo or the rapid but unrefined ISR transmission in the Aventador. Expect weight to be trimmed thanks to Lamborghini's further experimentation with carbon fiber production techniques, helping the Cabrera do better than hold its own with newer, fresher competition like the Ferrari 458 Italia and McLaren 12C.