No turbocharging. No electrification.
The Lamborghini Aventador Ultimae is the end of a road car era for the Italian automaker. Its naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12 will soon be no more. The Aventador's successor will retain the V12 engine but it'll be linked to a hybrid electrical system to aid in power and efficiency. Lamborghini surely won't disappoint. Still, the NA V12's departure from the scene is tough, but there could be another way for it to survive in a more limited capacity.
Speaking to Autocar, Lamborghini CEO Stephan Winkelmann admitted that limited production, track-only vehicles like last year's Essenza SCV12 may not be going anywhere.
"Let's see what comes up. We do this once in a while," he said. "We have a lot on our plate so we have to be focused." That's definitely not an outright denial. We remain hopeful. But until the next hardcore track model arrives, Lamborghini has a lot of work to do, as Winkelmann noted.
Aside from the unnamed Aventador successor, there's the next generation V10 model, aka Huracan replacement, and prior to that the facelifted Urus SUV. The refreshed 2022 Urus will be hybridized and will retain a V8. Further down the line, the first all-electric model will appear, but it won't be an extreme hypercar. Instead, Lamborghini wants another 2+2 model.
Winkelmann confirmed it won't be an SUV and we suspect it could sport a body style similar to that of the Espada. Having two SUVs in the lineup would create internal competition, hence the reason for something very different. The carmaker intends to keep internal combustion engines for as long as possible and a plug-in hybrid setup is probably the best way for doing so. There's also the possibility of making use of a new synthetic fuel under development by Porsche for future Lamborghini models.
But Winkelmann made clear synthetic fuel alone is not enough to prevent the V12 (and probably the V10's) path to hybridization. Now, about that next NA V12-powered track animal…
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