Lamborghini delays Lanzador EV to 2030, teases hybrid hypercar
With the hybrids over the line, our attention turns to what’s next for Lamborghini...
Mingling with the bright minds that steer the good ship Lamborghini during the UK launch of the Temerario, there’s a sense of relief. It’s been a gruelling 18 months in Sant’Agata, as the Raging Bull revealed its trio of hybrids to the world. With light at the end of the tunnel, what lays ahead? We sat down with CEO Stephan Winkelmann and Commercial Director Federico Foschini to discuss Lamborghini’s present and near future, from EVs to hypercars.
The decision to bestow electrical augmentation on the flagship V12 Aventador successor, that we now know as the Revuelto, was what Winkelmann described to us as, with an assist from the sidelines to find right English words, a ‘leap of faith’. For while it was essential to reduce emissions while increasing performance, that customers and commentators alike would accept a partly electric-powered entry in Lamborghini’s definitive bloodline – one typified by internal combustion at its most theatrical – was never guaranteed. It’s easy to forget that now the Revuelto is every bit the Instagram darling its predecessor was.
Then came the Urus SE, a philosophically less difficult Lamborghini hybrid for those invested to accept. Lambo’s breadwinner is now better looking, more refined, faster and more versatile – what’s not to like?
The last hurdle, the Temerario, was arguably the toughest sell. Unlike the Revuelto, it didn’t hybridise the engine that defined its predecessors. This is an all new supercar from Lamborghini, with an all-new powertrain. Over 900bhp it may have, up to 10,000rpm it may rev, but it’s a new hybridised twin-turbo V8 to which those figures belong, not a derivation of the beloved howling V10.
And with that we’re up to date. But what about the future? The elephant in the room, so to speak, is of course the Lanzador, an EV SUV previewed with a concept last year that was due to go into production in 2028. The Italian marque was very up front from the beginning about the challenges of making a silent family car Lamborghini-enough to wear the badge. It seems between that and perhaps the uneven landscape around electric cars, particularly of a premium variety, Lamborghini has elected to postpone its introduction.
Lamborghini CEO Stephan Winkelmann, clarified: ‘The acceptance curve of fully electric cars is flattening and this is even more valid for expensive cars. There’s an equation saying the more expensive the car, the less willing the people are to buy fully electric. This is something which was different a couple of years ago but we all think this will change in years to come. We are holding the end of the decade as the best moment to have an additional car like the Lanzador – a new body style, new types of customers. Three hybrid cars and one electric car – the end of the decade is the right moment to have this add on.’
‘In a transition period, you need to be flexible and answer the customer,’ Commercial Director Federico Foschini added. ‘You cannot force the customer to buy despite willingness. This is the big trouble the automotive world is in today.’
Exactly what is to become of Lamborghini’s emotive combustion cars in what is a persistently uncertain-looking future is another question. Synthetic fuels give hope but for now at least, it seems there is contentment in Sant’Agata with what is a freshly-revamped, newly-electrified lineup and that what comes next can be worried about, when it comes time to worry about it.
‘We want to continue as long as possible with hybrid cars, also maybe if this is allowed due to synthetic fuel, after 2035,’ Winkelman said. ‘A lot is not decided, we have to see what is going to happen. The lineup today is completely new, so we’re not in a hurry to decide what to do next.’
Foschini continued, insisting that the V12 will be fought for to the last:
‘We are not in the position now to decide on the next generation but it’s clear, if there will be an open door and we can keep hybrid with internal combustion, the first thing we will safeguard is the V12. The V12 is the icon of Lamborghini. With synthetic fuel there is an opportunity. I cannot see, if there is an opportunity, Lamborghini not having a V12.’
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Finally, we got onto that otherworldly market above the traditional flagship V12, that 30 years ago consisted of the Ferrari F50, the McLaren F1 and not a lot else. Today of course, there are more multi-million-pound hypercars than there are hot hatches and for sure, Lamborghini wants a piece of the action. As Foschini was keen to point out, Lamborghini’s been in the seven-figure limited-run supercar game for almost two decades, whether with bespoke versions of the existing supercars, or altogether more advanced tech demonstrators. There’s more to come where that came from, once the new hybrids are all fully on stream:
‘We started with the few-off cars with the Reventón. After that we went over with the Sesto Elemento that for me is still a hypercar, based on less than 1000kg weight. It was a technological demonstrator. We had the Veneno, the Centenario, the Sian, the Countach. We know there’s a pyramid and on top of the pyramid there’s an opportunity for this seven-digit car with low volume.
‘It’s clear that at the moment our strategy was to transform the lineup. We launched three models in 18 months, something that for a company of our size is a huge effort, especially facing the technological transition. This is the first pillar. For sure the second pillar is the derivatisation – the Super Veloces, the Performantes, the STO. After, on top of the pyramid, is this few off hypercar. It’s something we’re planning and looking for in the future. We need to give priority now, renovating our three models, but it’s something that we have an idea, we have something in the future. We will surprise you, for sure.’
If we’re to be surprised, does that mean what’s to come will go beyond being the current flagship in drag? The Sian and Countach featured novel electrification in the form of supercapacitors, so there’s precedent for these cars to be something ‘more’. It would however be safe to assume that whatever the new head of the pyramid is, it’ll be related in some way to the 1000bhp Revuelto.
