Only 476 Miles! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Maserati and Lamborghini pull out of Iran

Daimler is out, Toyota is out, Porsche is out, Hyundai, PSA Peugeot-Citroën are out and when it comes to selling cars in Iran, now Maserati and Lamborghini are out, too. The definitive pullouts of those last two automakers are said to be reactions to a press conference held by a group called United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI). The group highlights businesses that sell in both the US market and Iran, and works to get those businesses to choose one market or the other.
UANI said it had sent letters to Maserati and Lamborghini about their dealings in Iran, but that the letters went unanswered. Mark Wallace, head of UANI and a former US ambassador to the United Nations, held a press conference in October of last year that referenced the two companies. Apparently Lamborghini contacted Wallace just after the press conference and told him "they were out, they weren't doing any business in Iran anymore."
Discussions with Maserati then took place, and the Italian automaker said it had been out of Iran ever since Fiat announced it was leaving the country in May 2011. UANI said Maserati had been in talks with an Iranian distributor, however, and that distributor was continuing to use the Maserati name. The carmaker has since cut all ties with Iranian interests and has prevented its name from being used, adding that its new models will not be able to be sold there because they won't pass regulations the country's regulations.

Coronavirus prompts VW to stop production throughout Europe

FRANKFURT — Volkswagen Group, the world's biggest carmaker, is suspending production at factories across Europe as the coronavirus pandemic hits sales and disrupts supply chains, the company said on Tuesday. The German carmaker, which owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Ducati, Lamborghini, Porsche, Seat and Skoda brands, also said that uncertainty about the fallout from coronavirus meant it was impossible to give forecasts for its performance this year. "Given the present significant deterioration in the sales situation and the heightened uncertainty regarding parts supplies to our plants, production is to be suspended in the near future at factories operated by group brands," Chief Executive Herbert Diess said on Tuesday. Volkswagen's powerful works council concluded it was not possible for workers to maintain a safe distance from each other to prevent contagion and recommended a suspension of production at its factories from Friday. Production will be halted at VW's Spanish plants, in Setubal in Portugal, Bratislava in Slovakia and at the Lamborghini and Ducati plants in Italy before the end of this week, Diess said. Most of its other German and European factories will prepare to suspend production, probably for two to three weeks, while Audi said separately it would halt output at its plants in Belgium, Germany, Hungary and Mexico. Volkswagen's vast factories in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in Puebla, Mexico, and plants in Brazil were not affected, but that would depend on how the coronavirus spreads, VW said. Volkswagen has 124 production sites worldwide of which 72 are in Europe, with 28 in Germany alone. "2020 will be a very difficult year. The coronavirus pandemic presents us with unknown operational and financial challenges. At the same time, there are concerns about sustained economic impacts," Diess said.   Production in China resumes Volkswagen Group sold 10.96 million vehicles last year, putting it ahead of Toyota based on the latest figures from the Japanese carmaker. Globally, VW employs 671,000 people and it delivered 4.86 million vehicles to European customers in 2019. Only last month the car and truck maker based in Wolfsburg, Germany, predicted that vehicle deliveries this year would match 2019 sales and forecast an operating return on sales in the range of 6.5% to 7.5%. "The spread of coronavirus is currently impacting the global economy. It is uncertain how severely or for how long this will also affect the Volkswagen Group.

Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato, the Lamborghini rally car we didn't know we wanted

Usually, the answer to a question no one asked is a bad thing. But every now and then, it leads to something wonderful, like the Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato concept car you see above. It's Lamborghini's take on a rally version of the 2020 Lamborghini Huracan EVO, and it's something we weren't asking for but now desperately want. The Sterrato (translation: "dirt") is mostly a stock Huracan EVO underneath, but that's not bad with a naturally aspirated 5.2-liter V10 making 640 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque. It also retains its all-wheel drive, four-wheel steering and torque vectoring, but they've all been retuned for dirt and loose surfaces. To get around on rougher surfaces, Lamborghini raised the car by 1.85 inches, which the company says improves the approach angle by 1% and the departure angle by 6.5%. The Sterrato's exterior receives huge fender flares that allow for a one-inch wider track front and rear. It wears 20-inch wheels with chunky off-road tires. Aluminum skid plates have been added to the front and rear, and the rear plate doubles as a diffuser. The rocker panels also get aluminum plates for extra protection. Mud guards are fitted, too, as are little deflectors ahead of the intakes to keep rocks from flying in and doing damage. Finally, like any good rally car, it gets huge auxiliary lights with a pair of hexagonal units on the front, and a wide bar on the roof. Inside the Sterrato are a pair of carbon fiber bucket seats plus four-point racing harnesses. But the real showpiece is a full titanium roll cage. Lamborghini didn't say anything about putting the Sterrato into production. But this concept isn't particularly out there, especially compared with some of Lamborghini's concepts, so we suspect if the car gets a good enough reaction, Lamborghini might consider production. And if it doesn't, we're sure there are some aftermarket companies that would be happy to help wealthy car enthusiasts re-create the car.