2004 Lamborghini Gallardo Twin Turbo Brushed Aliminum Wrap on 2040-cars

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Lamborghini explains how (and why) it designed the Huracan Sterrato off-roader

Lamborghini broke new ground (literally and metaphorically) by launching an off-road-ready variant of the Huracan called Sterrato. It's not the brand's first off-roader; that branch of the family tree includes the LM002 built in the 1980s and the Urus. But it's the only Lamborghini that has made the improbable leap from the track to the trail. I sat down with Rouven Mohr, the head of the firm's research and development department, to find out how and why the Sterrato came to life. Interestingly, it started with a wild idea floated by executives during a dinner. [The following has been edited for clarity.] RG: What's the story behind this car? RM: I have a personal connection to this project. The basic idea was born at a dinner I attended the first time I worked for Lamborghini, in 2017. I was eating with Maurizio Reggiani, my former boss, and Mitja Borkert, our chief designer, right after a test of the Urus. We were so happy talking about how much fun the Urus is to drive on gravel, and we said, "This would be even cooler with a super-sports car." At that time, I was responsible for whole vehicle development. When I got back to the office, I decided to take an old Huracan durability test car that was scheduled to be scrapped and build a demo car. Everybody was so in love and agreed it was very cool, but based on other priorities the company decided to stop [the project]. When [CEO] Stephan Winkelmann returned to Lamborghini, he saw the car and asked why we didn't build it. So, we restarted the project. I'm back at Lamborghini now, and it's a big pleasure for me to bring this project to the market. RG: Beyond the cool factor, what was your goal during the project? RM: This car's mission is quite easy to explain. At Lamborghini, we always have two pillars. One is performance, which means pure numbers like top speed and lap times. It's not only Lamborghini [that can deliver this], however, because a lot of other brands also have the numbers. We are always looking for something unexpected that improves the driving thrill, the overall experience, and we recognized after testing the demo car that there is really nothing comparable from the perspective of pure emotional driving behavior on the market. The mission of this car is to bring maximum driving fun, not only on the track but also on low-grip surfaces. The mission of this car is transferring the driving experience that we have from the Huracan STO on the track to low-grip surfaces.

Lamborghini yacht by Tecnomar is 4,000-hp tribute to the Lambo Sian FKP 37

Lamborghini is no stranger to the boating industry, it developed a pair of marine engines in the 1980s, but it has never made its own boat. It took a step toward the world of yachts when it teamed with Italian firm Tecnomar to design a high-performance vessel inspired by the limited-edition Sian FKP 37 introduced in 2019. It's quick, rare, and head-turning, and it was deemed worth of wearing the company's Raging Bull emblem on its bow. Tecnomar (a boatmaker owned by The Italian Sea Group) worked directly with Lamborghini's Centro Stile to inject some of the design DNA that characterizes Sant'Agata's supercars into a yacht. The end result stands out with a strikingly rakish silhouette, Y-shaped LED lights on the front part of the hull, and hexagonal glass on both sides. They draw a visual link between the yacht and Marcello Gandini-designed cars such as the Miura and the Countach. Settling into the captain's chair feels a lot like slipping behind the wheel of a modern-day Lamborghini, except you're sitting taller, you're floating on water, and there's a lot more space around you. In lieu of an old-fashioned wooden helm, Tecnomar installed a three-spoke steering wheel that looks a lot like the unit Lamborghini currently puts in its cars. It even has a 12-o'clock mark, which seems more than a little superfluous when you're motorboating. Digital gauges display vital information about the boat and its surroundings, including navigation data, and the throttle levers are reminiscent of the drive mode selectors found on the center console of the Urus.     Buttons lifted straight out of the Lamborghini parts bin are used to start the engines -- and, yes, that's plural. While the Sian is the company's first production-bound hybrid model, there is nothing electrified about its water-going sibling. Power comes from a pair of V12 engines built by MAN and each rated at 2,000 horsepower. Performance specifications haven't been released yet, but it sounds like the yacht needs a 4,000-horse punch because it's 63 feet long and it weighs about 53,000 pounds. It's relatively light all things considered thanks in part to the use of carbon fiber in its construction, and it falls in the ultra-lightweight boat category. Tecnomar expects to deliver the first boats in early 2021. It capped production at 63 units globally, and it priced each one at $3 million before options are factored in.

Lamborghini Urus SUV traces roots to a feline predecessor

The recently-revealed Urus isn't Lamborghini's first SUV. The LM002 pioneered the super-4x4 segment when it made its debut at the 1986 Brussels Auto Show. Tracing its history requires traveling to the mid-1970s, when Ferruccio Lamborghini sold the automaker that he founded and retired in the countryside to hunt and make wine. The new owners had practically no experience in building cars. Instead of expanding the lineup, they sought to land engineering and production contracts. Lamborghini teamed up with an American defense contractor named Mobility Technology International (MTI) to create an off-roader for the United States Army. The partnership spawned a vehicle named Cheetah, unveiled at the 1977 Geneva Auto Show. The Cheetah looked like a Meyers Manx buggy on steroids that ate Jeep CJ-7s for breakfast. The shape of the body gave it unusually high approach and departure angles, while the flat body panels facilitated the task of installing body armor. "Like the cat for which it is named, this high-performance vehicle has explosive acceleration, high speed and sure-footed agility over virtually all terrain," a period brochure claimed. The Cheetah could certainly tame Mother Nature's worst side, but the brochure exaggerated its performance credentials. Power came from the same 5.9-liter Chrysler 360 V8 engine found in Dodge's D-Series trucks. Lamborghini mounted it in the back, and its 183-horsepower rating contributed to a woeful power-to-weight ratio. The eight-cylinder spun all four wheels via an automatic transmission also found on Chrysler's parts shelf. Lamborghini didn't secure the Army's contract. The automaker stood on the brink of collapse. An Italian court took control of the company after it filed for bankruptcy in 1978, and a Swiss entrepreneur later came to the rescue. The new management saw an immense amount of potential in the Cheetah and relaunched the project. Decision-makers spotted an opportunity to enter the burgeoning leisure vehicle segment. Notably, they identified a market for a Cheetah-like car in the Middle East, where a Countach was unpractical at best and a Nissan Patrol was far too pedestrian for oil barons. Lamborghini unveiled a prototype named LM001 at the 1981 Geneva Auto Show. It took the Cheetah concept a step further with an updated look, though it retained the rear-mounted engine. Built as a development mule, it illustrated the limits of a rear-engine off-roader.