Aventador S

Segment
Coupe

The fallout from the burning and now drifting Felicity Age cargo ship continues as the first salvage crews managed to board it on Wednesday. Stuck in the Atlantic Ocean, the Felicity Age contains around 4,000 vehicles from the Volkswagen Group, including high-priced Porsches, Bentleys, and Lamborghinis.

In regards to the Italian marque, some of the last examples of the V12-powered Lamborghini Aventador are onboard, all of which have been pre-sold to anxious American customers. A majority of the Lambos are the Urus SUV, but that's less of a problem because it's not going out of production; the Aventador is.

Automotive News spoke to Lamborghini of America CEO, Andrea Baldi, about the situation and what can possibly be done about it, assuming the worst.

"We don't know yet the final outcome. We also are waiting for official information for the time being," he said. "We have informed our dealers, and they have informed our customers, because whatever happens, in any case, there will be a delay."

The sold-out Aventador is the sticking point. If any of them (possibly even Aventador Ultimae examples) are damaged or completely destroyed, Lamborghini will have to speak with its suppliers about potential rebuilds. "There is always a possibility out of 563 units that some cancellation can allow an Aventador replacement, but I prefer to hope for the time being that at least the few Aventadors on the ship will be safe," he added.

Expectant customers could be facing a six-month delay in either getting the Lambos from the ship (assuming they are undamaged) or replacements. "We will inform the customers as soon as we have a definitive picture," Baldi said. "And you know, still we still hope for the best, but we are prepared for the worst."

It'll certainly be interesting to see what those salvage crews discover in the coming days. North American Lamborghini dealers are also holding their collective breaths; informing customers that their high-priced Urus, Huracan, or Aventador is destroyed won't be a pleasant experience. If the latter is the case, then customers could potentially be offered first dibs on the Aventador's unnamed successor. We have no doubt Lamborghini will make every effort to ensure a positive outcome despite the situation being beyond its control.