2008 Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder Convertible 2-door 5.0l on 2040-cars

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The Lamborghini Centenario is sold out

Lamborghini is expected to unveil a new supercar at the Geneva Motor Show in a couple of months. Tipped to be called the Centenario, the limited-run special will commemorate the hundredth anniversary of company founder Ferruccio Lamborghini's birth. But before it makes its public debut, the company has reportedly sold every last one. The Centenario (or whatever it's ultimately called) will be the latest in a line of limited-production supercars rolling out of Sant'Agata, following in the footsteps of the Reventon, Sesto Elemento, and Veneno. It's expected to be based on the Aventador, but with unique bodywork and a more potent version of Lambo's 6.5-liter V12 engine. The company is expected to produce 40 examples – 20 coupes and 20 roadsters – all of which have reportedly already been spoken for despite a price tag of nearly $2.4 million. The trend of selling out such high-end machinery prior to their debut is picking up steam at the top end of the supercar market. Manufacturers like Lamborghini, Bugatti, Pagani, and Koenigsegg typically show their most dedicated customers plans for what they have in store behind closed doors and start taking deposits before the vehicle is ever shown to the public. And with such limited production numbers, they sell out rather quickly, no matter how many millions the company charges for the privilege. As Autocar points out, 2016 also marks the 50th anniversary of the Miura – one of Lamborghini's most legendary models. Ten years ago the company marked the model's 40th anniversary with a one-off concept that never saw production. While Lamborghini is more forward-looking than prone to retro throwbacks, we wouldn't be surprised to see some form of tribute resurface this year.

Volkswagen Group sales down 15% in pandemic year, but EV sales up 214%

FRANKFURT, Germany — German automaker Volkswagen said its global sales fell 15.2% during 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic but showed significant recovery toward the end of the year. The company more than tripled its sales of battery-only vehicles. Global sales for all of Volkswagen's brands amounted to 9.3 million vehicles. The fourth quarter showed a smaller decline of 5.7% and within that quarter the month of December was still further improved, showing a shortfall of only 3.2% from the same period the year before. Volkswagen said Wednesday that sales fell the most in Western Europe, by 21.6%, while China, the company's largest single market, was down 9.1% Sales of battery-only cars jumped 214% to 231,600 from 73,700 across all the company's brands. The company's electric sales leaders included the Volkswagen ID.3 compact, with 56,500, the Audi E-Tron SUV with 47,300, and the high-end Porsche Taycan with 20,000. Volkswagen said that its sales fell by less than the overall market, meaning it had slightly expanded its market share. “The COVID-19 pandemic made 2020 an extremely challenging year,” said group sales chief Christian Dahlheim. “The Volkswagen Group performed well in this environment and strengthened its market position." Volkswagen Group's brands include Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche, SEAT, and Skoda as sell as truck makers MAN and Scania.

Lamborghini supercar prototype shows angry face in spy photos

Lamborghini made it clear last year that it's working on a new supercar to replace the V12-powered Aventador. And the car shown above is definitely a new Lamborghini of some sort. However, we don't think this is the Aventador replacement. Instead, we suspect this is another limited-run Aventador-based special model. The key tipoff is the greenhouse. All the glass looks just like the pieces found on the Aventador, the Countach, the Sian and plenty of other special Aventador models. Similarly, the proportions of the car match those models, too. And Lamborghini has said that its full Aventador replacement will be a completely new car with a completely new powertrain. So nothing leftover from its predecessor. There are of course styling features not shared with other Aventador-based cars, so it will still probably be a unique model. The front end has particularly angry eyebrows over the lights, and they appear to intersect with the lower grille openings. Interesting aerodynamic panels behind the windows also show up. The rear is the most distinct with high-mounted quad-exit exhaust right in line with slim taillights. Note, the "lights" lower in the rear are just printed on the camouflage. This prototype also tips us off to the powertrain. On the outside are high-voltage warning stickers. And since it seems to be a special Aventador-based model, we bet it's using the same hybrid V12 used in the Countach and Sian. Output should be around 803 horsepower, maybe a little more from the naturally aspirated V12 and a small electric motor powered by a supercapacitor. We're expecting the car will be revealed within a year, since it looks pretty far along in development, and it's based on a car whose days are numbered. We don't have a name yet, but Lamborghini recently trademarked the name Revuelto, which could be used on this model, or on that planned Aventador replacement. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.