Lamborghini Revuelto debuts – 6.5 litre NA V12 PHEV with 1,015 PS gets new 8DCT, three e-motors, ADAS

The LB744 from Lamborghini officially has a name, and here it is – the Lamborghini Revuelto, the electrified successor to the Aventador that made its debut in 2011, the flagship arriving on the Italian marque’s 60th anniversary year.

The Revuelto is the first series-production V12 model from the Sant’Agata Bolognese supercar maker to feature electrification, specifically being a plug-in hybrid; a hybrid V12 supercar has emerged from Lamborghini before, though that was the limited production, 63-unit Sián that brought electrification through a supercapacitor instead of a battery.

The electric part of the drivetrain combines with a brand-new internal combustion naturally aspirated 6.5 litre V12 petrol engine that makes 825 PS at 9,250 rpm and 725 Nm of torque at 6,750 rpm. Codenamed L545, the new V12 unit with a 9,500 rpm rev limit replaces the L539 in the Aventador, and has the distinction of being the marque’s most powerful 12-cylinder engine yet, while at 218 kg, is also its lightest; this is 17 kg lighter than the Aventador’s V12.

Transmission for the Revuelto’s V12 engine is a new eight-speed dual-clutch automatic unit, and sees the V12 turned 180 degrees relative to the Aventador engine as the Revuelto’s gearbox is now transverse-oriented and located behind the engine to make room for the battery pack in the centre tunnel.

Electric drive in the Revuelto is by a trio of motors – one 150 PS/150 Nm unit acting on the rear axle and the other two on the front axle, producing 150 PS and 350 Nm each and also providing torque vectoring for the front wheels; each of the front oil-cooled axial flux motors weigh just 18.4 kg, according to Lamborghini. All together, the total system output of the Revuelto amounts to 1,015 PS.

Collectively the motors form the electric all-wheel drivetrain of the Revuelto, and the 3.8 kWh battery is a longitudinally-oriented pack of pouch cells that occupy a 550 mm long, 240 mm wide and 301 mm tall space in the aforementioned centre tunnel, made possible by the lack of a traditional propshaft to the front axle as front drive here is fully electric.

The electric drive battery can be recharged from a charging point at up to 7 kW, and reaches a full charge from empty in 30 minutes. Alternatively, this can also be recharged through regenerative braking from the front wheels or directly from the V12 combustion engine in just six minutes, says Lamborghini.

The advent of a hybrid powertrain in a series-production Lamborghini also sees the debut of three dedicated driving modes in the Revuelto; the Recharge, Hybrid and Performance modes combine with the selection of Citta (City), Strada, Sport and Corsa modes for a total of 12 available settings which are driver-selectable via two rotary selectors on the new-design steering wheel.

Citta, or City mode defaults to fully electric driving, and when the lithium-ion battery needs recharging and charging points are unavailable, the Recharge powertrain mode fires up the V12 to replenish the battery. In Citta mode, the suspension, transmission and stability control systems are set for maximum comfort, and limits powertrain output to 180 PS.

Strada mode ensures that the V12 combustion engine is always on and continually recharges the battery, and the front electric drive axle supports torque vectoring for stability at highway speeds; powertrain output in this mode is 886 PS. Meanwhile, Sport steps up proceedings to 907 PS, during which the V12 is always on and in all three Recharge, Hybrid and Performance modes, with suspension and aerodynamics set to enhance the car’s agility.

Peak performance in the Revuelto is delivered in Corsa mode, in which the full 1,015 PS is deployed in the Performance powertrain mode and the hybrid system is configured to maximise the performance delivery of the electric drive in terms of torque vectoring as well as AWD, says Lamborghini.

Corsa Recharge mode makes it possible to maximise recharging in the more aggressive drive mode, and allows the deactivating of stability control as well as summoning launch control from the centre button within the left rotary controller. At its maximum performance potential, the Revuelto does the 0-100 km/h benchmark sprint in 2.5 seconds and a top speed of over 350 km/h.

Housing the powertrain is the new ‘monofuselage’ chassis that is comprised of a fully carbon-fibre monocoque and a front structure of a special composite material made of short carbon fibres which have been soaked in resin. This Revuelto monofuselage is 10% lighter than the Aventador’s chassis, and the composite front structure is 20% lighter than its predecessor’s aluminium structure.

Torsional stiffness has been increased to 40,000 Nm per degree, or up by 25% compared to that of the Aventador, offering a more rigid base for the components to work from.

Active aerodynamics feature in the Revuelto, and which offer gains of 61% in efficiency and 66% in downforce in high-load situations when compared to the Aventador Ultimae. These work together with the semi-active suspension to manage load changes involving the suspension and rear wing operation in real time.

Rolling stock is a set of 21- or 22-inch wheels depending on specification, and these are bespoke Bridgestone Potenza Sport tyres which are developed for the Revuelto. Standard fitment is a set of run-flat tyres measuring 265/35R20 for the fronts and 345/30R21 for the rears, or 345/30R21 and 355/25R22 for the larger-diameter option.

These house carbon-ceramic brakes with 10-piston monoblock calipers in front and four-piston calipers at the rear; these clamp on discs measuring 410 mm x 38 mm in front and 390 mm x 32 mm at the back.

A “performance combination” of tyres of the same 20-inch front and 21-inch rear size pairing combination is offered, which are non-run-flat tyres. For those who will drive the Revuelto in snow and ice, custom-designed Bridgestone Blizzak LM005 tyres can be specified.

The Revuelto marks a Lamborghini-first with the introduction of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), and here the new V12 flagship packs active lane departure warning, lane change warning, adaptive cruise control and rear cross-traffic alert, as well as adaptive headlamps.

Inside, infotainment comes courtesy of three displays – a 12.3-inch instrument cluster, an 8.4-inch central display and a 9.1-inch display. This runs on a connected infotainment system that can receive over-the-air updates, and the Lamborghini Unica mobile app enables the driver to continue monitoring the car in terms of fuel level, battery charge, electric range and its exact position when parked.

The cabin of the Revuelto carries the Y-shape theme from the exterior – as seen in its DRLs – and the ‘feel like a pilot’ philosophy is applied to the dashboard which also draws upon the Y-shape. For space, the Revuelto offers 26 mm more headroom and 84 mm more legroom than the Aventador Ultimae, the run-out edition of its predecessor, where the resulting additional space can accommodate luggage ‘up to the size of a golf bag’.

Materials used in the Revuelto cabin include Corsa-Tex fabric made of Dinamica microfiber, and which can be combined with leather when specifying interior trim; up to 70 colour options are available. Meanwhile, up to 400 exterior paint colours are offered for the Revuelto.

Pricing for the Lamborghini Revuelto has yet to be confirmed, however it is set to be more expensive than the hardcore Aventador SVJ, even in the Revuelto’s launch form, according to Autocar. Lamborghini CEO Stephan Winkelmann told the magazine that the first two years of customer allocations have been spoken for.

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