2019 Lamborghini Urus Urus on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Porsche designer to head Lamborghini style department

The winds of change are blowing through the front office in Sant'Agata Bolognese. Not only does Lamborghini have a new chief executive, but not it named a new chief designer as well. And he comes from Porsche. Mitja Borkert is his name, and he's been working in the Porsche design department since 1999. He headed up its advanced design office until 2014 when he was named head of exterior design for the company. The Macan, Cayenne, and the new 987 Boxster were all heavily influenced by his work, as were concepts like the Panamera Sport Turismo and Mission E. As the new director of the Centro Stile at Lamborghini, Borkert takes over from Felippo Perini, who's heading over to run Italdesign – a job that used to belong to Wolfgang Egger. The once-independent design firm was taken over by the Volkswagen Group in 2010, and recently saw its famous founder Giorgetto Giugiaro leave to start another office afresh. The shift in the design office follows hot on the heels of the announcement that longtime CEO Stephan Winkelmann is leaving for Audi's Quattro GmbH, and that former Scuderia Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali is moving in to take his place on the outskirts of Bologna. Considering how different their design approaches are, it will be interesting to see how a longtime Porsche designer applies his skills to Lamborghinis. Will future Raging Bulls go softer and more rounded, or will Borkert have to pull some new tricks out from his sleeve? We'll be watching to find out. Related Video: Mitja Borkert is the new Director of Centro Stile Lamborghini Sant'Agata Bolognese, 1 March 2016 – Automobili Lamborghini has appointed Mitja Borkert as the new Director of its Centro Stile (design center), starting from 4 April 2016. In his new role Mr. Borkert is responsible for the design of future Lamborghini models and the coordination of the design team, reporting to Maurizio Reggiani, Board Member for Research and Development. He succeeds Filippo Perini, who was appointed Design Director of Italdesign. Borkert is German, aged 42, and attended the Design University of Pforzheim where he graduated in Transportation Design. In 1999, he began work at Style Porsche, in Weissach, holding various positions, including General Manager Advanced Design until 2014, when he was appointed Director of Exterior Design. He contributed to the development of several Porsche models (Panamera Sport Turismo, Porsche Boxster 987 facelift, Cayenne, Macan, Mission e).

Audi R8, Lamborghini Huracan could get twin-charged five-cylinder

Engine downsizing and forced induction are some of the biggest trends in automotive powertrains today because. They offer the chance to reduce emissions and boost fuel economy, while possibly maintaining power. The shift is already happening to performance cars with turbocharged four-cylinders finding their way into the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, and future Porsches. Now, there are rumblings of a tiny chance for a similar change coming for the Lamborghini Huracan and Audi R8. Why the new powertrain? China. While the market there might have slowing growth, it's still a major country for auto sales. The annual taxes on cars there also happen to be based on engine displacement, and there's a 40 percent rate on those over 4.0-liters, according to Car and Driver. The obvious answer to this conundrum is to build a smaller displacement, forced induction engine for the R8 and Huracan. Car and Driver points to the new turbocharged and electrically supercharged, 2.5-liter inline five-cylinder from the recent Audi TT Clubsport Turbo concept as a possible solution. Audi's e-turbo technology runs off a 48-volt electrical system and lithium-ion battery to produce a total of 600 horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque in the prototype. With this mill, horsepower would barely shrink compared to the R8 V10 Plus and Lambo, but it actually makes more peak torque than their 5.2-liter V10s. While this is all theoretically feasible, take the possibility with a big grain of salt for now. According to Car and Driver, Quattro GmbH's Stephan Reil says that there's no work currently underway to fit the twin-charged five-cylinder, "but it has been talked about." That means such a vehicle is likely years away, if ever. In the meantime, a diesel version of the e-turbo setup is on the way the in the SQ7. Related Video:

Lamborghini Pregunta Paris concept offered at $2.1M [w/video]

When the Lamborghini Veneno was introduced at the Geneva Motor Show, there were those who connected dots from it to the Lamborghini Pregunta concept from 1998, and also to the Pagani Zonda that arrived one year later. Near the end of the turmoil that was Lamborghini's ownership through the mid-nineties, an order was placed with the French Carrosserie Heuliez for a one-off concept car that was "new, original and impossible to confuse with any other car's shapes," that would be built on a Diablo chassis. The result was the Pregunta.
It was an aerospace-influenced supercar with carbon fiber bodywork, a 530-horsepower V12 and a claimed 207-mile-per-hour top speed. It employed rear-wheel drive instead of the Diablo's all-wheel drive, was coated in the same paint used on the French military's Dassault Rafale fighter jet and had fiber optic lighting, rear-view cameras and a GPS system. It was shown to the world at the 1998 Paris Motor Show, and again at the 1999 Geneva Motor Show.
Thought to be the last concept built on a Lamborghini body before Audi bought the company in 1998, AutoDrome, a French specialist in vintage exotics, has the Pregunta for sale for 1.6 million euros ($2.1M US). You can watch it hit the runway with a Rafale in the video below, then give AutoDrome a call if you're interested.