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Lamborghini Aventador SV Roadster gets chilly shakedown

It was only days ago that Lamborghini gave the Aventador Superveloce its official debut at the Geneva Motor Show, but apparently the Italian brand has been hard at work on the next variant too. For those that want a 740-horsepower, 6.5-liter V12 singing a sweet song just behind their ears with the top down, then Lambo is testing an SV Roadster in the arctic. While the model is wearing copious camouflage and some very cool spotlights, the removable roof panel is still fairly obvious in several of these spy photos. Beyond the top, it doesn't look like Lambo is doing much to the body design, though. All of the pieces here can also be found on the SV coupe. There's no word when the SV Roadster might debut. Although with the standard model already complete, development of the convertible probably shouldn't take too long. The official unveiling might even be before the end of the year, especially with the coupe beginning sales in Europe in the spring. Featured Gallery Lamborghini Aventador SV Roadster Spy Shots Image Credit: CarPix Design/Style Spy Photos Lamborghini Convertible Performance Supercars lamborghini aventador sv lamborghini aventador lp 750-4 superveloce lamborghini aventador sv roadster

Lamborghini Aventador successor to use supercapacitors instead of batteries?

While we continue trying to zero in on the next-generation Lamborghini flagship and its specs, Lamborghini CTO Maurizio Reggiani spoke to Road & Track to offer glimpses and set a few things straight. Discussing the coming LB48H supercar, Reggiani said the use of supercapacitors in that limited-run supercar will be a "first jump" into a robust hybrid application for supercapacitors, and that Lamborghini "will prove that in a super sports car, it's possible to have this technology." We've known the LB48H would use supercapacitors, but we didn't — and frankly still don't — know how. Based on Reggiani's comment, and likely the fact that Lamborghini uses a special supercar to hint at what's coming in tech and design, RT takes Reggiani's comments to mean that the Aventador successor will "store its electric power electrostatically instead of electrochemically, as you would with a lithium-ion battery." A caveat to this comes in another of Reggiani's remarks. He said the brand hasn't given any indication when an Aventador successor will reach the market, and before that happens, the brand is deciding whether to do another special edition flagship. "There's the possibility to have a kind of final Aventador family member," he said, because the brand probably won't get another chance to make a non-hybrid V12 after the scissor doors come down on the Aventador. Sales of the 6.5-liter V12 monster are still on the rise, remember. The current Aventador already uses a supercapacitor for the starter battery, to run the stop-start system. And the Italian carmaker has been working with MIT for years on such technology previewed in the Terzo Millennio concept, and rolled out for prime time in the LB48H. It's hard to see supercapacitors alone serving the next flagship, though, because company CEO Stefano Domenicali has said that "we need to respect legislation. In certain places, you will need electrification to go into the city." Supercapacitors can boost the kind of fast-acting peak performance buyers expect of a V12 Lamborghini. But their specific energy is roughly one-tenth that of a lithium-ion battery, or less; to provide the kind of range needed for all-electric trips into a city, the flagship would need a trailer hitch to haul a Urus carrying the supercapacitor array. Lamborghini has already said the best-case scenario for the Aventador successor is a 330- to 440-pound weight gain because of the hybrid system.

Rough seas delay salvage operation for burning ship carrying luxury cars

LISBON — Rough waters forced authorities on Wednesday to postpone a salvage operation for a ship packed with luxury cars that have been on fire for a week in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, a port official said. With teams unable to board the Felicity Ace, heavy tug boats sprayed water to cool the vessel, which is carrying around 4,000 vehicles, including Porsches, Audis, Lamborghinis and Bentleys. Lamborghini of America CEO Andrea Baldi told Automotive News that there were dozens of pre-sold Lamborghinis aboard, mostly the Urus SUV. But also some Huracans and Aventadors, the latter of which have ceased production. The ship's 22 crew members were evacuated last Wednesday, the day the fire began. Some of the vehicles are electric, and their lithium-ion batteries have made the fire very difficult to extinguish, port officials have said. Joao Mendes Cabecas, the captain of the nearest port on the Azorean island of Faial, said the blaze had lost its intensity — probably because there was little left to burn. Salvage teams hoped to board the ship, which is is adrift around 170 km southwest of the Azores near Portugal, to assess its condition and start preparing it for towing, the Portuguese navy said in a statement on Tuesday. The navy took photos of the ship that showed a gaping hole at least four decks high, with burn marks running the length of the ship. It is unclear if the vessel will be towed to the Bahamas or Europe. Cabecas told Reuters bad weather prevented the team from boarding the ship. Waves as high as 2.5 meters battered the coast of Faial on Wednesday, Portugal's weather agency IPMA said. The salvage team was expected to be flown to the ship on a helicopter belonging to the Portuguese air force, which will decide on Thursday if the operation can proceed, Cabecas said. Ship manager Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd (MOL) said in a statement on Tuesday the vessel was still on fire but stable, and that no oil leak had been reported so far. It did not respond to a Reuters request for comment on the cause of the fire. Insurance experts said the incident could result in losses of $155 million.   Weird Car News Audi Bentley Lamborghini Porsche