reporter2
15-09-21, 11:00
Lamborghini fans bid S$2m farewell to the brand's pure combustion era
The Aventador Ultimae closes a chapter for the Italian supercar maker, six years before its first all-electric car is due
Wed, Sep 15, 2021
Leow Ju-Len
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/transport/lamborghini-fans-bid-s2m-farewell-to-the-brands-pure-combustion-era
FRANCESCO Scadaoni has vivid memories of the first time he drove an Aventador, the flagship product of Italian supercar maker Lamborghini.
More than a decade ago in Italy, the company's region director for Asia-Pacific took a prototype of the mid-engined, V12 two-seater onto the motorway linking Bologna with Verona in the north, and decided to go for it.
"I started to push on the highway, and I remember it was 250km/h and still pushing, and I felt this engine that never dies," he said. "It was never ending."
But for fans of an engine that has become a Lamborghini signature, that ending has now come.
While the Aventador is the kind of car whose acceleration must seem boundless, the V12 that powers it has reached the end of its lifespan, as Lamborghini consigns pure combustion cars to history.
On Tuesday, the brand launched the Aventador LP 780-4 Ultimae in Singapore, a limited-edition car designed to give its engine a send-off.
Lamborghini is only building 350 examples of the 780 horsepower machine, along with 250 open-top Ultimae Roadsters. It accelerates to 100km/h in just 2.8 seconds, and can reach 350km/h.
The Aventador Ultimae costs roughly S$2 million while the Roadster is slightly higher at S$2.15 million, but it's too late if you feel like adding either to your collection.
The Ultimae cars are already sold out around the world, Mr Scadaoni said.
Even if someone changes his mind and gives up his booking, there is a long waiting list of hopefuls.
"We don't disclose the number for each market, but Singapore got quite a good allocation of cars," he told The Business Times at a media viewing.
He said that local dealer EuroSports Auto acted quickly to secure the cars. "Our dealers know those V12 lovers," he added.
While the Aventador's engine apparently has no shortage of well-heeled fans, tightening emissions regulations are making powerful combustion engines an endangered species.
"I think that history will look back and then see that this will be the last masterpiece, the last icon of the pure, pure definition of a super sportscar," Mr Scadaoni said of the Aventador Ultimae.
Adding electric motors and a battery pack, a move that arch-rival Ferrari has made with three of its models, is the next step for Lamborghini.
"We will hybridise our full product line. The first hybrid car, in 2023, we will be the new Aventador. It will still have a V12, naturally aspirated engine, plus a hybrid unit," he said.
The brand's other cars, the Urus sport utility vehicle and the Huracan sports coupe, will also get hybrid engines.
"This will allow us to reach 2025 with a 50 per cent reduction in terms of CO2 emissions," he noted.
The first all-electric Lamborghini is due in 2027, and Mr Scadaoni admitted that making sure it excites drivers the same way that its combustion cars do is a challenge.
"This is the difficult part of our job," he said.
"We need to make sure that when you sit in the new electric Lamborghini, you will feel like you are sitting in a Lamborghini, no doubt."
The Aventador Ultimae closes a chapter for the Italian supercar maker, six years before its first all-electric car is due
Wed, Sep 15, 2021
Leow Ju-Len
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/transport/lamborghini-fans-bid-s2m-farewell-to-the-brands-pure-combustion-era
FRANCESCO Scadaoni has vivid memories of the first time he drove an Aventador, the flagship product of Italian supercar maker Lamborghini.
More than a decade ago in Italy, the company's region director for Asia-Pacific took a prototype of the mid-engined, V12 two-seater onto the motorway linking Bologna with Verona in the north, and decided to go for it.
"I started to push on the highway, and I remember it was 250km/h and still pushing, and I felt this engine that never dies," he said. "It was never ending."
But for fans of an engine that has become a Lamborghini signature, that ending has now come.
While the Aventador is the kind of car whose acceleration must seem boundless, the V12 that powers it has reached the end of its lifespan, as Lamborghini consigns pure combustion cars to history.
On Tuesday, the brand launched the Aventador LP 780-4 Ultimae in Singapore, a limited-edition car designed to give its engine a send-off.
Lamborghini is only building 350 examples of the 780 horsepower machine, along with 250 open-top Ultimae Roadsters. It accelerates to 100km/h in just 2.8 seconds, and can reach 350km/h.
The Aventador Ultimae costs roughly S$2 million while the Roadster is slightly higher at S$2.15 million, but it's too late if you feel like adding either to your collection.
The Ultimae cars are already sold out around the world, Mr Scadaoni said.
Even if someone changes his mind and gives up his booking, there is a long waiting list of hopefuls.
"We don't disclose the number for each market, but Singapore got quite a good allocation of cars," he told The Business Times at a media viewing.
He said that local dealer EuroSports Auto acted quickly to secure the cars. "Our dealers know those V12 lovers," he added.
While the Aventador's engine apparently has no shortage of well-heeled fans, tightening emissions regulations are making powerful combustion engines an endangered species.
"I think that history will look back and then see that this will be the last masterpiece, the last icon of the pure, pure definition of a super sportscar," Mr Scadaoni said of the Aventador Ultimae.
Adding electric motors and a battery pack, a move that arch-rival Ferrari has made with three of its models, is the next step for Lamborghini.
"We will hybridise our full product line. The first hybrid car, in 2023, we will be the new Aventador. It will still have a V12, naturally aspirated engine, plus a hybrid unit," he said.
The brand's other cars, the Urus sport utility vehicle and the Huracan sports coupe, will also get hybrid engines.
"This will allow us to reach 2025 with a 50 per cent reduction in terms of CO2 emissions," he noted.
The first all-electric Lamborghini is due in 2027, and Mr Scadaoni admitted that making sure it excites drivers the same way that its combustion cars do is a challenge.
"This is the difficult part of our job," he said.
"We need to make sure that when you sit in the new electric Lamborghini, you will feel like you are sitting in a Lamborghini, no doubt."