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Lamborghini Sian's supercapacitor hybrid system explained by company's CTO

"We are a game-changer and a provocateur," Lamborghini's CTO, Maurizio Reggiani told Engadget. The automaker has a long history of making waves with traffic-stopping designs and more recently, innovative tech. At last week's Frankfurt Motor Show, the Italian company unveiled its Sian hybrid supercar. But it ditched the traditional battery pack in favor of a supercapacitor to power an electric motor, which is exactly what you would expect from the Italian company. Typically a hybrid uses a lithium-ion battery pack to store energy. Then when needed, it transfers an electrical current to a motor (or motors) to either help the gas-powered engine or take over propulsion entirely. It's a recipe that has successfully improved gas mileage and sold over six million examples of the Toyota Prius, not to mention countless other hybrids. "It's too easy to follow," Reggiani said. "If you want to move for the first time in electrification you must guarantee that the implementation will not destroy the DNA of a car and brand." With that in mind, the automaker went with a supercapacitor instead of a battery. According to Reggiani, the supercapacitor offers up three times the power of a battery pack from the same weight and packaging. Plus, it stores and discharges energy much quicker. The spent power can be fully regenerated very quickly during normal braking. Reggiani explained that this could be particularly useful while cornering. Going into a corner, the driver applies the brakes and replenishes any spent energy. Then, as the driver accelerates out of the corner, all the available power is there for acceleration. Then as the driver brakes for the next curve, the process starts all over again. Plus, the supercapacitor doesn't have to cool down like traditional battery, it's just ready to go at all times -- which is exactly what Lamborghini owners want. The output of the 48-volt motor installed into the gearbox is 34 horsepower which brings the total power output of the V12 Sian to 819 horsepower. While 34 horsepower doesn't seem like much, it means the vehicle can do zero to 62 miles per hour in under 2.8 seconds. That's Tesla Model S Performance and Porsche Taycan levels of fast. But there are other benefits. The electric motor reduces the torque hits of the gears shifting. You know those momentary losses -- then explosions of power -- you feel in the car as it speeds up, that's the vehicle going through its gears.

Atelier Jalaper's new watch made from Lamborghini Miura bulkhead

Last August, French watchmaker Atelier Jalaper announced itself with an automatic timepiece whose dial was cut from the hood of an Aston Martin DB5. The next collection is ready, this one with an Italian flavor. After another lengthy search, the company located a burned-out Lamborghini Miura P400S in Avignon, France. We're told a section of the aluminum bulkhead between the engine and the trunk escaped the fire, and with this, Atelier Jalaper created the AJ-P400. Instead of the Miyota automatic movement used in the DB5's AJ-001 and AJ-002 watches, the AJ-P400 is based around a Sellita SW200-1 manual caliber. Anyone without a watch winder will need to restore the power reserve after about 45 hours. The oval-shaped 39.5-millimeter satin-finished steel case shows off the first Miura connection: An oval outer bezel surrounding a circular dial, recalling the oval "eyelash" treatment around the Miura headlights. The chapter ring around the bezel comes in four colorways close to original Miura hues of Azzuro Cielo (blue), Verde Miura (green), Arancio Miura (orange) and Nero Cangiante (black). The Miura wreck provides the aluminum dial, its face textured and anodized matte black. The lengthy hash marks and somewhat crowded numbers are inspired by the Miura's speedometer. At bottom, instead of a Lamborghini logo and unit indicator, the watch shows the power reserve meter. And the band makes a callback to Miura seats. Last year's Aston Martin watch was produced in a run of 1,200, costing from ˆ800 ($852 U.S.) to ˆ1,150 ($1,225 U.S.). The Miura timepiece will be more rare and more dear, coming in a run of 400 examples, each costing $2,000. Orders are open now, the first samples to be delivered in July. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Ferdinand Piech (1937-2019): The man who made VW global

Towering among his peers, a giant of the auto industry died Sunday night in Rosenheim/Upper Bavaria, Germany. Ferdinand Piech, a grandson of Ferdinand Porsche, who conceived the original Volkswagen in the 1930s, was the most polarizing automotive executive of our times. And one who brought automotive technology further than anyone else. Ferdinand Porsche had a son, Ferdinand (called "Ferry"), and a daughter, Louise, who married the Viennese lawyer Anton Piech. They gave birth to Ferdinand Piech, and his proximity to two Alfa Romeo sports cars — Porsche had done some work for the Italians — and the "Berlin-Rome-Berlin" race car, developed by Porsche himself, gave birth to Piech's interest in cars. After his teachers in Salzburg told his mother he was "too stupid" to attend school there, Piech, who was open about his dyslexia, was sent to a boarding school in Switzerland. He subsequently moved on to Porsche, where he fixed issues with the 904 race car and did major work on the 911. But his greatest project was the Le Mans-winning 917 race car, developed at breathtaking financial cost. It annihilated the competition, but the family had had enough: Amid growing tension among the four cousins working at Porsche and Piech's uncle Ferry, the family decided to pull every family member, except for Ferry, out of their management positions. Piech started his own consultancy business, where he designed the famous five-cylinder diesel for Mercedes-Benz, but quickly moved on to Audi, first as an engineer and then as CEO, where he set out to transform the dull brand into a technology leader. Piech killed the Wankel engine and hammered out a number of ambitious and sophisticated technologies. Among them: The five-cylinder gasoline engine; Quattro all-wheel drive and Audi's fantastic rally successes; and turbocharging, developed with Fritz Indra, whom Piech recruited from Alpina. The Audi 100/200/5000 became the world's fastest production sedan, thanks to their superior aerodynamics. Piech also launched zinc-coated bodies for longevity — and gave diesel technology a decisive boost with the advent of the fast and ultra-efficient TDI engines. Less known: Piech also decided to put larger gas tanks into cars. Customers loved it. Piech's first-generation Audi V8 was met with derision by competitors; it was too obviously based on the 200/5000.