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Here's why the Lamborghini Lanzador EV is neither sedan nor SUV

Unveiled earlier in 2023, the Lamborghini Lanzador concept previews the Italian brand's first series-produced electric car. It features a 2+2 interior, which isn't new for Lamborghini (the company built 2+2 GTs for decades), but it's characterized by a rather unconventional design pegged at the intersection of crossovers, coupes, and station wagons. Here's why designers and engineers chose to straddle segments. "We were scouting opportunities in our portfolio [when we started the project], and there are two segments that we are not covering. One is the sedan segment, and the other is the 2+2 segment," Federico Foschini, Lamborghini's chief marketing and sales officer, told me. His team quickly ruled out taking Lamborghini into the sedan segment for the first time, as the body style had at least two strikes against it. "One, it was already clear when we decided to do the Urus instead of the Estoque that the sedan segment is declining, while the SUV segment is picking up. The second point is that, when it comes to sedans, it's a very regional discussion. In China, which is one of the main sedan markets, you need a long-wheelbase car — a chauffeur-driven car. This is not Lamborghini. This can't be Lamborghini," he said. Meanwhile, the 2+2 body style is more closely aligned with the firm's image in terms of design, performance, and heritage. And yet, the Lanzador eschews the usual GT proportions defined by a low ride height and a long hood. Mitja Borkert's design team did that on purpose. "It is the volume of a super-sports car in a higher position. It's as simple as that," Borkert, Lamborghini's head of design, told me. Instead of looking toward the past, or taking a peek at what rivals are doing, he drew inspiration from the firm's current range of models. "We were working on the Huracan Sterrato, where you have this higher seating position. There's the exterior cladding, and it looks quite rugged. I said that a cleaner version of the Sterrato could work perfectly for the 2+2. It's a spaceship with a higher position," he summed up. As for the proportions, Borkert cited the electric drivetrain as one reason to think beyond the classic definition of a 2+2 gran turismo. "The tradition of having a long hood is giving you the impression that there's a huge engine, and that is not the case when you have an electric car. An electric car is different, and we don't want to follow what others are doing.

Lamborghini Aventador S Roadster loses roof, keeps the speed

Supercar builders seem to becoming good at making convertibles that make negligible sacrifices. McLaren recently launched the 570S Spyder, which is exactly as fast, stiff and efficient as the coupe with only about 100 pounds of extra weight. Now, Lamborghini has done virtually the same thing with its flagship Aventador S Roadster. The Aventador S Roadster features the same naturally aspirated V12 as its hard-headed twin, and it makes the same 729 horsepower and 509 pound-feet of torque. That engine will take the roadster to the same 217 mph top speed as the Aventador S coupe. The only sacrifices appear to be that the roadster weighs 110 pounds more than the coupe, and it has a claimed 0-62 mph time a tenth of a second slower. But we're not sure you'll care about that tenth of a second with the wind in your hair and the V12's exhaust note in your ears. And if you ever get tired of the exposure to the elements, you'll always have the top with you, since the top panels, weighing roughly 13 pounds a piece, can be stowed in the front trunk. Actually, there is one extra sacrifice to choosing the convertible, and that would be the price. The Aventador S Roadster has a starting MSRP of $460,247. That's roughly $40,000 more than the coupe. That could get you a well-optioned and customized Aventador S coupe, but no amount of custom interior configurations can get you the full auditory experience the Roadster can. Related Video: Featured Gallery Lamborghini Aventador S Roadster: Frankfurt 2017 Related Gallery Lamborghini Aventador S Roadster View 14 Photos Image Credit: Lamborghini Lamborghini Convertible Supercars lamborghini aventador s

Audi: record profit as 'biggest product initiative' in its history gets underway

Audi Group CEO Markus Duesmann   Even as the Audi Group (VOW.DE), VW’s luxury division, is in the midst of a huge EV transformation it still needs to perform where it counts — the bottom line. And so it is doing just that.  On Thursday the Audi Group - which is dominated volume-wise by Audi, but also includes Bentley, Lamborghini, and Ducati - posted record revenue and operating profit in 2022. That shouldnÂ’t be a surprise given what the industry has been seeing at the highest end of the market - record performances despite macroeconomic jitters across the globe. But that it's happening as the group is noteworthy.  “We are on the verge of the biggest product initiative in our history,” Audi Group CEO Markus Duesmann said at a news conference earlier on Thursday. “By 2025, we will have launched around 20 new models, more than 10 of which will be all-electric. We have set the course to go 100% electric. By 2027, we seek to offer an all-electric vehicle in each core segment.”   This is all part of Audi GroupÂ’s Vorsprung 2030 plan, which seeks to have all of the groupÂ’s new models be electric by 2026 — and to end traditional gas-powered engine production by 2033. To that end, the group saw EV deliveries jump 44% (in 2022) compared to 2021 to over 118,000 vehicles, with the share of EVs rising to 7.2% from 4.8% in the prior year. Audi is also launching its first EV using the PPE (premium platform electric), which was developed together with Porsche. That EV, the Audi Q6 e-tron, will be unveiled later this year. (Past Audi EVs shared corporate parent VWÂ’s electric platform.) “With the Audi Q6 e-tron, e-mobility is coming from Ingolstadt (Audi HQ) for the first time,” Duesmann said in a statement. “To this end, weÂ’re also building a dedicated battery assembly facility on site. This will enable us to retain important know-how here in Germany and train our employees in future fields.” AudiÂ’s German rivals of course are also leaning in hard on their EV transformations. That makes it all the more important that Audi get its EV strategy right—and launched in a timely manner.