Archive for Lamborghini

The sexy Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 goes topless with this new Spyder edition, which takes the drop top Gallardo up from the old 519 PS engine to the new LP560-4’s 5.2 liter V10 producing 560 horsepower and 540Nm of torque sent to all four-wheels. Other numeric improvements are found in the time it takes to swap cogs, which is now 40% faster in the Corsa mode of the E-Gear single clutch automated transmission. The time it takes to open the soft top remains the same at about 20 seconds. Will Clarkson plonk down some cash for one to replace his 2006 Gallardo Spyder?

Look after the jump for a whole load of hi-res images.

Click here to read the rest of Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 Spyder

Autocar UK has a few more details on the upcoming production version of the Lamborghini Estoque, which is expected to hit the showrooms by end-2011.

Apparently one of the engine choices available will be a re-tuned 5.2 liter direct injection normally aspirated V10 engine with 500 PS and 610Nm of torque. I’m not sure how they’re going to manage such an impressive torque to displacement ratio - even about 560Nm for a 5.2 liter engine would be impressive, but I think quite achievable.

The engine currently makes 560 PS and 540Nm in the LP560-4 and I think the whole idea is to increase torque over a wider rev range but produce less power at a lower peak RPM. An example of cars with a rather high normally aspirated torque to displacement ratio is the E46 M3 CSL with 365Nm from its 3.2 liter S54B32 engine, and the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR with 435Nm from a 3.8L engine, which are coincedentally both about 114Nm per liter. 610Nm from a 5.2 would be 117.3Nm per liter! If Lamborghini manages to achieve 114Nm per liter it would mean about 593Nm of torque.

Some other powertrains are also being considered, including… surprise, surprise… a diesel powertrain! Lamborghini’s R&D chief Maurizio Reggiani says fans need not worry as diesels will never find their way into Lamborghini’s supercars, but the Estoque represents an opportunity to develop a turbodiesel engine or even a turbocharged petrol engine for the car as it would suit the car’s driving pattern, plus Lamborghini needs to improve its fleet’s CO2 figures. Thus, a twin turbo petrol V8 or a turbodiesel V8 is possible, as are mild hybrid systems.

Reggiani also revealed that the Estoque is based on an all-new platform (and not based on the Audi A8 as some have speculated) with components sourced from the Gallardo and other areas in the Volkswagen parts bin, which indicates some form of parts sharing with the A8, but not the platform itself.

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Lamborghni Estoque Official Details and Photos

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Lamborghini has just released an official press release and hi-res photos of the Lamborghini Estoque. Interestingly, Lamborghini makes no attempts to call the Estoque a 4-door coupe, instead it refers to it as a 4-door 4-seater super sedan.

It’s quite a large monster, measuring 5150mm long, 1990mm wide and 1350mm tall, with a wheelbase of 3010mm. The wheels are 22 inch five double-spoke alloys at the front and 23 inchers at the rear. The boot is said to be able to store a few golf bags.

No photos of the interior have been revealed but Lamborghini says it fits 4 comfortably despite the low stance thanks to a relaxed seating position. The interior is done up in the highest quality Nappa leather, and the driver gets to enjoy a large LCD display showing vehicle and route information. This LCD can show information in either analog with virtual circular meter dials or digital form.

Mounted at the front behind the front axle for optimum weight distribution is a range of engines, one of which will be the V10 from the Lamborghini LP560-4. The 5.2 liter direct injection normally aspirated V10 produces 552 horsepower and 540Nm of torque.

Lamborghini says that this will not be the sole engine option. A turbocharged V8 derived from the V10 is one alternative, while a “greener” option could either be a V8 with a mild hybrid motor or a high-performance TDI turbodiesel that can be easily obtained from the Audi and Volkswagen engine stables.

Look after the jump for a hi-res gallery and a video.

Click here to read the rest of Lamborghini Estoque Official Details and Photos

Fully undisguised images of the 4-door Lamborghini Estoque have been leaked out on the internet! The roofline doesn’t look particularly attractive, with the cab looking like a stretched version of a traditional Lamborghini. The rear has hints of a muscle car in it. There are no door handles to be seen so I wonder how the owner gets in! No photos of the interior yet, so expect another post with the full hi-res images and details coming up soon. For the moment, look after the jump for the rest of the images.

Click here to read the rest of Lamborghini Estoque undisguised photos leaked!

Lamborghini has released a fourth teaser image of the upcoming Lamborghini Estoque front-engined four-door coupe. They show front projector headlamps that share the sharp angular design language that the rest of the car has shown. Together with the sketches, I bet most people can already imagine how it will end up looking like in their heads. It will be revealed in the metal at the 2008 Paris Motor Show this week.

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Lamborghini Estoque sketches uncovered!
Third teaser image of Lamborghini Estoque released
New Lamborghini to be a front-engined four-door - 2 sketches

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A sketch of what appears to be the four door Lamborghini set to be unveiled at the 2008 Paris Motor Show has found itself onto the big wide internet right into the hands of curious automotive enthusiasts.

The sketch does not 100% match the teasers of the actual concept set to be revealed though - the rear tailpipes are different. This could be an early sketch, with the actual concept getting a revision to appear much more meaner in the metal.

The name Lamborghini Estoque has been confirmed to be correct and the Paris concept will be very close to the production “four-door coupe”. The car’s engine will be mounted at the front behind the front axle for better weight distribution and it will have permanent all-wheel drive.

Read the related post for the teaser images and more details.

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Third teaser image of Lamborghini Estoque released!

Above is the latest teaser image for the new upcoming front-engined Lamborghini set to rock the 2008 Paris Motor Show, adding to the other two teaser images we’ve already seen (on the left). It seems the name Lamborghini Estoque is being tossed around all over the internet in speculation of what this new Lambo will be called.

“Es Toque” is actually a small sword used in a bull-fight. Toque means touch in Spanish and it means something like a “finishing touch” as it is the sword used to deliver a killing blow.

Will the Lamborghini Estoque deliver the killing blow to its competitors?

The mysterious new Lamborghini concept car set to be unveiled at the 2008 Paris Motor Show has been unveiled and it turns out some of you who were commenting in the previous post got it spot on - a front-engined four-door coupe!

Yes, even Italian supercar maker Lamborghini is not spared from the four-door coupe craze and is it really is surprise, given that it is owned by Audi (which is planning the Audi A7), which is in turn owned by Volkswagen (which came up with the Passat CC), which is in turn has its share majority held by Porsche (currently sells the Cayenne SUV and soon the Porsche Panamera).

One clue that pointed to a four door coupe when the teaser images were revealed last week was the large amount of space between the front wheels and the door. Initial details reveal that the new car will have its engine installed at the front, behind the front axle for good weight distribution. It will have all-wheel drive.

The engine is likely to be a more tractable twin turbocharged V8 or V10 instead of a manic high revving normally aspirated engine as the former will offer more usable power during relatively sedate driving, is likely to be more refined and thus more suited to this kind of application. For a better power to weight ratio, the chassis might be all-aluminium according to Lamborghini sources.

The Paris show concept will preview a production version which will be showcased in the future. Lamborghini targets 3,000 units a year, a far cry from Porsche’s 20,000 unit annual target for the Porsche Panamera.

Lamborghini has released two teaser images of a mystery car that’s set to be unveiled at the 2008 Paris Motor Show.

There’s not much we know about the car - we don’t even know if it is a pure concept car or a production car or a concept car that is previewing a production car. All we know is it has delicious bits of carbon fiber all over the place and the design theme stays true to the futuristic tone set by the Reventon.

More will be revealed at the Paris motor show but for the moment you can click the image on the left to see a larger version with more detail.

A rich Arab man rumoured to be a Sheikh spent roughly £23,552 (RM152,475) to service his £190,000 Lamborghini Murcielago LP640. Out of that amount, only £3,552 was for the actual service - the remainder was freight costs to fly his supercar all the way from Qatar to a specialist mechanic in London, a distance of over 10,000km.

It’s really quite amazing what the rich do. You could buy an Audi A4 in the UK for £20,000. Would have been a much better idea to fly the mechanics down to perform the necessary service? It supposedly wasn’t a major service, just routine.

Perhaps the LP640 requires special tools for servicing, tools that cannot be flown over or cost as much to transport as flying the car over. Perhaps the Sheikh did not really think, or just wanted the bragging rights. Who knows. I wonder what the other supercar owners in the Middle East do in this situation.

I had to think long and hard before posting this story, just in case we hear later of a certain state government sending their fleet of E-Class to Germany for an oil change because they somehow managed to calculate that it is cheaper than servicing locally.

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