2008 Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder Convertible 2-door 5.0l, Manual, True Six Speed on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Lamborghini outlines electrification strategy, announces first EV

Lamborghini, one of the industry's fiercest defenders of the naturally-aspirated engine, is planning to electrify its range during the 2020s. It detailed the path it will follow to electrification, and it announced the road leads to an EV. Company boss Stephan Winkelmann named the three-part electrification strategy Direzione Cor Tauri, which is Italian for "towards Cor Tauri," a reference to the brightest star in Taurus — the constellation in the northern celestial hemisphere, not the Ford built over six generations. Significantly, he stressed that adding batteries and electric motors to a supercar's driveline will not dilute the hardcore performance that Lamborghini's image is built on. The first phase of the plan calls for celebrating the non-electrified internal combustion engine. Lamborghini wants to send it off with a bang, if you'll pardon the pun. It will flex its engineering muscles by unveiling two models powered by a naturally-aspirated V12 in 2021. Our crystal ball tells us at least one will be the long-awaited successor to the Aventador S. Act fast if you want one, because it undoubtedly won't stick around for as long as its predecessor. Lamborghini's first production-bound hybrid, the Sian (pictured as a roadster), arrived in 2019 as a sold-out, limited-edition model with a V12-electric powertrain. Some of the lessons learned during the project will permeate a series-produced hybrid model that's expected to make its debut in 2023. Advances in carbon fiber solutions and new technologies will help engineers offset the weight added by the battery pack. We don't know what kind of system the model will use, or where it will slot in the firm's portfolio. It might be a replacement for the Huracan Evo, however. The entire Lamborghini range will be electrified to some degree by 2024. Reaching this ambitious goal will require investing 1.5 billion euros (around $1.8 billion at the current conversion rate) to develop powertrains and other technologies. That's the largest cash injection the firm has ever received since its inception in 1963. Finally, the first series-produced electric Lamborghini will arrive at some point during the second half of the decade. It will arrive as a fourth model, meaning it likely will not be merely a battery-powered version of an existing car, but it's far too early to provide details like its name, the segment it will compete in, and the technology it will use.

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 Murcielago SV reverse-engineered by a team from Iran

Iranian engineers successfully made themselves a copycat Lamborghini Murcielago SV. In looks, if not in performance, that is. The most interesting aspect behind the project is that they say it was created using Lamborghini's original data. They took a serious left turn when it came to the powertrain though, because sitting behind the driver is a 3.8-liter Hyundai V6. Not quite the 6.5-liter V12 monster in the actual Murcielago SV. Massoud Moradi, the director of the project, thinks that nobody would be able to tell the difference between this car and Lamborghini's from an appearance standpoint. "All parts of the body, inside the car and precise mechanics of the car are manufactured and mounted based on the original ... Murcielago platform. Its chassis is also one and one with the original," Massoud says. One of the reasons Massoud and his team embarked on this project was to learn how Lamborghini made its supercars. They made their replica after taking apart a real Murcielago and designing new parts based on the original Lamborghini bits. The project to make this thing started four years ago, and the team didn't spend "any time planning or testing the car." Now that's a clear indication you probably don't want to drive this thing. Just because it's designed to be a copy of the Murcielago doesn't mean it's going to perform anything like it on the road. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. We'll admit the exterior design is pretty spot-on compared to the actual Murcielago SV, as you can see in the video above (which comes from RT, a network funded by the Russian government). Everything apparently lines up to the original dimensionally, and it uses a bunch of carbon fiber and composite components throughout. Moradi claims a top speed of at least 174 miles per hour — there's no word on what, if any, modifications have been done to the Hyundai engine and transmission to achieve such a speed. So count us skeptical for the time being. The Iranian team wants to make more of them too. Moradi suggested that the small company could make 50-100 units per year if they were to go into production. He'd like future iterations of the car to have larger V8 and even V10 engines, too. Might we suggest some testing first? And what does Lamborghini think of this whole operation? These guys purposefully copied one of Lamborghini's designs with an intent to eventually make money off of it.