2023 Lamborghini Urus Performante on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Lamborghini walks us through improvements it made to the Huracan

LE CASTELLET, France — Lamborghini's updated Huracan EVO2 will make its competition debut during the 2022 season of the Super Trofeo one-make series. Visually, it gains a new-look design that blazes the path future models — including production cars — will follow in the coming years. There's more to it than a face-lift, and we sat down with Leonardo Galante, the man in charge of technical development for Lamborghini's racing arm, to get the full scoop on the changes made. "It's a big step from EVO to EVO2, and we focused on three main pillars," Galante told us at the Paul Ricard track. Design is the first; aerodynamics is the second, and it's closely linked to design; braking performance is the third. Customers and enthusiasts will notice design before any of the mechanical changes, so Galante's team worked directly with Centro Stile, the company's in-house design department, to update the Huracan. The lights are thinner on both ends, and the rear units are embedded in a housing that echoes the Countach's back end. Air curtains are now positioned on either side of the front fascia, while a redesigned diffuser dominates the Huracan's rear end. Centro Stile and Squadra Corse had an equal influence on these updates. "We learned a lot in terms of shapes, about how to make a car look beautiful, and designers learned a lot about the principles of aerodynamics," Galante explained. "We worked together to define the best shapes to generate an efficient aerodynamic profile. We want to generate as much downforce as possible while creating as little drag as possible." Sculpting a car's aerodynamic profile isn't as straightforward as merely adding wings, spoilers, vents, and ducts to keep it glued to the ground around a turn. Galante stressed the quality of the downforce generated by the various add-ons is just as important as headline-grabbing figures. His aim was to keep the car as stable and predictable as possible, even when the weight balance shifts under heavy braking from triple-digit speeds. Feedback provided by Super Trofeo competitors since the beginning of the series helped his team dial in the right amount of downforce. Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo Evo 2 View 11 Photos "With my group, I design the car, but I'm also here on the race track listening to the teams. When something is very good, or when something is very bad, I get immediate feedback. This is a very good part of my job," he said. Braking was one of the areas he wanted to improve.

Shuffle at Lamborghini sends CEO to Quattro GmbH

A management shakeup in Volkswagen Group's high-performance divisions will make Stephan Winkelmann (above) the new chief executive of Audi's Quattro GmbH on March 15. On the same day, former Scuderia Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali will replace Winkelmann as Lambo's boss. These changes are necessary because current Quattro chief Heinz Hollerweger is retiring. Rumors of these exact shifts cropped up in Italian media in December. Winkelmann began leading Lamborghini in 2005, and he has been at the helm for massive growth at the company. In 2015, the Italian supercar maker delivered a record 3,245 vehicles, and it had just set its previous best of 2,530 units in 2014. His new role at Quattro GmbH puts Winkelmann in charge of Audi's equivalent to M at BMW or AMG at Mercedes-Benz. The division is responsible for the Four Rings' R and RS production models, the Audi Sport customer racing program, and Audi Exclusive customization service. "In the future, the Audi Sport brand is to be positioned more clearly," the company's announcement said, which hints at one of Winkelmann's duties. Domenicali has been closely associated with Lamborghini rival Ferrari during his career and had years of experience within the automaker's racing team. He started in financing at the Prancing Horse in 1991 and moved to business planning for the Scuderia Ferrari F1 squad in 1993. He held many positions there and eventually ascended to the top as team principal in 2008. Domenicali resigned from leadership in 2014 because of the team's poor performance, but Audi quickly snapped him up as its as Vice President New Business. He now gets the reins of one of Italy's premiere supercar makers. Related Video: Stephan Winkelmann to be new CEO of quattro GmbH As of March 15, 2016, Stephan Winkelmann (51) will be the new CEO of quattro GmbH, a 100 percent subsidiary of AUDI AG, which produces and distributes the high performance R and RS models. Winkelmann was President and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. since January 1, 2005. Heinz Hollerweger (62), the current Head of quattro GmbH, is to retire after almost 40 years of successful work for Audi. "With his experience from more than eleven years in charge of Lamborghini, Stephan Winkelmann will be a key contributor to the further growth of quattro GmbH," says Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG.

Weekly Recap: Lamborghini fires on all cylinders

Lamborghini added 192 technicians and specialists in 2014 as the Italian automaker expands under the ambitious growth strategy of parent company Volkswagen AG. The additional workers helped Lamborghini increase its sales 19 percent last year to 2,530 supercars, and further expansion is planned for this year. Lambo has added more than 500 people in the last four years, bringing its headcount to 1,175. "Lamborghini is undergoing a strong phase of growth in both sales and in terms of recruitment," CEO Stephan Winkelmann said in a statement. "We invest significantly in our people ... in 2015 we plan to hire further." The supercar maker's solid performance last year came during a time of transition. Lambo sold off the final 265 Gallardos, which were the brand's best-selling models ever. Its 10-cylinder successor, the Huracan, immediately filled the void. It garnered 3,300 orders, and 1,137 of them were delivered in 2014. The other Lamborghini, the 12-cylinder Aventador, saw its sales increase 13 percent to 1,128 copies. The sales leap comes as Volkswagen drives sales expansion across its portfolio of brands. The German carmaker sold 10 million vehicles around the world for the first time last year. Though Lambo will never make supercars in great numbers, it is expected to contribute to VW's bottom line through its image and profitable sales. Look for further growth this year, and a Super Veloce version (shown above) of the Aventador has already been spotted during testing. Lamborghini has been working on a sport utility vehicle for years, though the company has never publicly approved the project. It also showed a hybrid, the Asterion, at last year's Paris Motor show, suggesting the automaker is considering an electric future. Other News and Notes GMC ponders Jeep Wrangler fighter GMC is considering adding a competitor to the Jeep Wrangler and has discussed the idea with its dealers, according to the Wall Street Journal. Details of the vehicle are unclear, but the report suggested the vehicle could have cues from General Motors' old Hummer brand. The move would broaden GMC's lineup of trucks and SUVs and attract new customers. GMC sold 501,853 vehicles in 2014, making it GM's second-best selling brand. GMC had more volume than Cadillac and Buick combined, though it's still well behind Chevrolet's tally of more than two million vehicles. The notion of a "Wrangler fighter" could be a moving target.