2014 Lamborghini Gallardo on 2040-cars

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Italdesign will build five of its Zerouno supercar, a carbon-bodied Lamborghini Huracan

There's a lot going on here. Italdesign is launching its new limited-production brand, Italdesign Automobili Speciali, with the crazy mid-engined supercar you see here. The Zerouno looks more like a place to keep every aerodynamic flourish the company has ever created than a car you will actually be able to buy, but they're going to sell five of them. It also reminds us of a Nissan GT-R in some ways, such as the shape of the roof, but you can be assured this is a Lamborghini underneath. Italdesign says the car is powered by a 5.2-liter V10 that will send it to 62 mph in 3.2 seconds and on to a top speed in excess of 205 mph; the engine makes 602 horsepower and 413 pound-feet of torque, just as it does in the standard Huracan. The Zerouno uses the Lambo's seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and all-wheel-drive system as well. Given the fact that Italdesign is controlled by Lamborghini and the two companies often work closely with each other, we're pretty confident this is the world's most exclusive Lamborghini Huracan. Those few buyers will be able to outfit their car to their taste with help from the Italdesign staff. And just look at all of the aero bits! We count three pairs of dive plane blades, two sets of louvered fender vents, some aggressive splitters, and what might be the world's most complex rear diffuser. The bit at the front that sort of resembles a hand vac intake is part of what Italdesign calls the Y-duct, which pulls in air at the leading edge and routes it out of two ports at the rear of the hood to produce downforce. Air flows around and through just about every part of the car, including the floating light units. The silver car is done up with tricolori accents running down the middle and lots of red trim on the exposed carbon fiber. The whole body is made of the lightweight material, in fact, meaning it should be lighter than a run-of-the-mill Huracan. Even the tires are customizable; it features new Pirelli P-Zero rubber available in a choice of white, red, yellow or metallic gray. The car is designed to be registered for street use, but an optional Corsa package turns it into a track-only vehicle and includes such additional aerodynamic aids as a dorsal spoiler. It will be interesting to see how the Zerouno stacks up against the new top-dog Huracan Performante, which is being shown for the first time at this year's Geneva Motor Show, just like the Italdesign car.

Weekly Recap: Lamborghini to build SUV

Finally, Lamborghini will build a sport utility vehicle. The Italian supercar maker confirmed this week that it will launch a luxury SUV in 2018. It will be built at Lamborghini's soon-to-expand factory in Sant'Agata Bolognese in Italy, and will double the company's current sales volume. Lamborghini did not announce a name for the vehicle or other details, but noted a concept version, the Urus, was displayed at the Beijing motor show in 2012. It will be sold around the world, but it's expected to be a critical offering in the United States, China, and the Middle East. The automaker projects the SUV will sell about 3,000 units per year, and it will be the third product in Lamborghini's portfolio. It currently sells the Huracan and Aventador supercars. "The introduction of a third model line endorses the stable and sustainable growth of the company and signifies for us the beginning of a new era," Lamborghini chief executive Stephan Winkelmann said in a statement. The project is also a boon for Italy, which will get 500 new jobs in the Emilia Romagna region as Lamborghini's factory will nearly double in size. Ian Fletcher, principal analyst for IHS Automotive, said the SUV will position Lamborghini for future growth. "It could well also bring new customers to the brand [who] may find the dramatic styling of Lamborghini products appealing, but find its typical sports cars restrictive," he said. "If it is a success, the SUV could be a catalyst to Lamborghini broadening its portfolio further." OTHER NEWS & NOTES GM invests in Chevy Camaro factory General Motors is investing $175 million to upgrade its factory in Lansing, MI, to build the 2016 Chevy Camaro. The investment will pay for new tooling and equipment. The improvements include three new paint systems and two new robotic framers. GM will add a second shift at the factory to build the Camaro, resulting in 500 jobs. The automaker had dropped the plant to one shift last year amid slow sales for its products, the Cadillac ATS and CTS. GM is spending $5.4 billion over the next three years to upgrade its US facilities. Last week, GM announced plans to spend $439 million to build a new paint shop for the Chevy Corvette. While the Camaro and Corvette plant improvements are intriguing to enthusiasts, GM also confirmed this week that it is investing $1.2 billion in its Fort Wayne (IN) factory that builds trucks.

Felicity Ace sinks with thousands of VWs, Porsches, Lamborghinis

The stricken ship Felicity Ace sank overnight after a week of salvage efforts ultimately proved unsuccessful. The ship, which was carrying up to 4,000 VW Group cars, went to the bottom unexpectedly while a salvage team was attempting to tow it to shore, Bloomberg reports.  "Initial reports from the local salvage team state that the vessel had sunk at around 9AM local time having suffered a list to starboard," Mitsui O.S.K. Lines transportation company (MOL), which owns the Felicity Ace, said in a statement released early Tuesday.    "The last vessel position was around 220nm off the Azores," MOL said. "The salvage crafts will remain around the area to monitor the situation. Further information will be provided as it becomes available." The ship sank after being battered by waves and listing 45 degrees to starboard, the ship’s operator said. “The weather was pretty rough out there,” Pat Adamson, a spokesperson for MOL Ship Management (Singapore), a unit of Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd., said by phone. “And then she sank, which was a surprise.” VW, Porsche, Audi, Bentley and Lamborghini-branded models were aboard the ship, which was headed to Rhode Island from GermanyÂ’s Emden port when the fire broke out on Feb. 16.  Rough seas and ongoing fires fueled by the lithium-ion batteries of EVs onboard delayed the ship's salvage and recovery operations for the better part of a week. While the likelihood of salvaging the smoke and potentially fire- and water-damaged vehicles from Felicity Ace's hold was slim to none, some had held out hope that their special-ordered vehicles might survive the mishap.  The Panama-flagged Felicity Ace was safely evacuated of its 22 crew members by the Portuguese navy after a fire started in its hold more than a week ago. The ship can carry up to 4,000 cars. European carmakers declined to discuss how many vehicles and what models were on board, but it appears to have been transporting approximately 2,500 cars, including roughly 1,100 Porsches and an undetermined number of Volkswagens.  The cars aboard were on order. Porsche customers in the United States were being contacted by their dealers, the company said. “We are already working to replace every car affected by this incident and the first new cars will be built soon,” Angus Fitton, vice president of PR at Porsche Cars North America, Inc., told The Associated Press in an email. The ship sank in water nearly 10,000 feet deep, the Portuguese Navy said.