The V12 could disappear, too.
On paper, everything at Lamborghini and its Sant'Agata, Italy headquarters should be splendid. The Urus is a massive sales success. In the first half of 2019, the Urus helped the automaker nearly double its sales, which has put it on track to deliver more than 8,000 vehicles by the end of the year – a record. But while things are hunky-dory now, the company's future is uncertain. Automobile
is reporting VW Group CEO Herbert Diess isn't happy with Lamborghini's
financial performance, pointing toward Ferrari as the benchmark. Then
there's the ongoing conundrum that is the Aventador's replacement, which
has been pushed back even further.
According to the report, the Lamborghini Aventador replacement is delayed again until 2024 with the next Huracán
coming a year later. The reason? Audi, the company that owns
Lamborghini within VW Group, doesn't want to spend the money to update
the Aventador's V12 engine to Europe's new emission standard. Instead,
the German automaker would rather invest in hybrid V8 engines for both
supercar models, which would mean Lamborghini's flagship supercar might
not feature a V12 engine. There's a good chance a Porsche-developed
4.0-liter V8 set to arrive in 2024 could be the new mill for the two.
Lamborghini is one of the few remaining supercar makers not to embrace some form of electrification. Porsche, Ferrari, and McLaren
have jumped on the electrified bandwagon, and it appears Lamborghini
could be next. A report from earlier this year suggested the Italian
company could electrify the Aventador's naturally aspirated V12
with three electric motors delivering at least 1,100 horsepower (820
kilowatts) from the plug-in hybrid system. The April report also noted
the timeline for the Aventador's replacement had been pushed back from
2020 to 2022.
If the Aventador replacement is delayed until 2024, which is rumored to be based off the Lamborghini Terzo Millennio Concept (above),
it would mean the top-tier supercar would be on sale for well over a
decade. Aventador production started in early 2011; however, while the
company has found success with limited-edition models, extending the
Aventador's life for another four years could be difficult. The company
may have to invest in a mid-cycle refresh to keep the Aventador and
Huracán competitive, and that takes money.
