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The mood at this year’s Paris Motor Show: Quiet

The Paris Motor Show, held every other year in the early fall, typically kicks off the annual cavalcade of automotive conclaves, one that traverses the globe between autumn and spring, introducing projective, conceptual and production-ready vehicle models to the international automotive press, automotive aficionados and a public hungry for news of our increasingly futuristic mobility enterprise. But this year, at the press preview days for the show, the grounds of the Porte de Versailles convention center felt a bit more sparsely populated than usual. This was not simply a subjective sensation, or one influenced by the center's atypically dispersed assemblage of seven discrete buildings, which tends to spread out the cars and the crowds. There were not only fewer new vehicles being premiered in Paris this year, there were fewer manufacturers there to display them. Major mainstream European OEM stalwarts such as Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Nissan and Volkswagen chose to sit out Paris this year, as did boutique manufacturers like Bentley, Aston Martin and Lamborghini. This is not simply based in some antipathy on the part of the German, British and Italian manufacturers toward the French market — though for a variety of historical and societal reasons that market may be more dominated by vehicles produced domestically than others. Rather, it is part of a larger trend in the industry. Last year, Mercedes-Benz announced that it would not be participating in the flagship North American International Auto Show in 2019 — and that it might not return. Other brands including Jaguar/Land Rover, Audi, Porsche, Mazda and nearly every exotic carmaker have also departed the Detroit show. Some of these brands will still appear in the city in which the show is taking place, and host an event offsite, to capitalize on the presence of a large number of reporters in attendance. And even brands that do have a presence at the show have shifted their vehicle introductions to the days before the official press opening in an attempt to stand out from the crowd. In many ways, this makes sense. With an expanding number of automakers, with diversification and niche-ification of models and with wholesale shifts that necessitate the introduction of EV or autonomous sub-brands, there is a growing sense that, with everyone shouting at the same time, no one can be heard.

Lamborghini Huracan LP610-4 Avio is ready for takeoff

The 760-horsepower Lamborghini Centenario understandably gets most of the attention at the Italian supercar maker's Geneva Motor Show booth this year, but the company has the limited edition Huracan LP 610-4 Avio on display there, too. This coupe doesn't have the Centenario's vast array of exclusive parts or any mechanical upgrades at all. Instead, the aviation-inspired model's buyers get special colors and additional standard equipment. You can easily spot the Avio edition from the outside from its white or gray flourishes on the lower portion of the mirrors, side sills, the front spoiler's lip, and a double stripe down the roof and hood. Customers can also order five new colors: pearlescent finish Grigio Falco and matte shades of Blu Grifo, Grigio Nibbio, Grigio Vulcano and Verde Turbine. The final exterior tweak is a small L63 emblem on the doors, which stands for Lamborghini and the company's founding in 1963. Inside, customers find a combination of black leather and hexagonal-pattern Alcantara upholstery with white stitching. Lambo also puts the L63 emblem on the seats, and there's a hand-enameled plate on the driver's side window. In addition to the upgraded surfaces, the Avio comes standard with a lifting system, cruise control, and GPS, which should probably come every version of the supercar. Lambo will limit the Avio to 250 units, and they'll start arriving at dealers in Europe this summer. Related Video: LAMBORGHINI INTRODUCES A HURACAN SPECIAL EDITION AT THE GENEVA MOTOR SHOW: THE HURACAN LP 610-4 AVIO Sant'Agata Bolognese/Geneva, 2 March 2016 – Alongside the Lamborghini Centenario, the Lamborghini Huracan LP 610-4 Avio will make its debut at this year's Geneva Motor Show. Produced in a run of only 250, this special edition's name, colors and materials pay tribute to the world of aviation and aeronautics. From the outset, Lamborghini has been inspired by powerful fighter jets, from which it has borrowed technological, aerodynamic, ergonomic and stylistic solutions. References to the aeronautical world in Lamborghini's current product line include digital instrument clusters; controls located on the center console as in airplane cockpits; the red engine 'start' button; the tight stylistic language of exterior lines; and a broad range of matt exterior finishes. The new Huracan Avio offers a host of premium functional features in its standard configuration including lifting system, cruise control and GPS*.

As VW electrifies, it questions the role of Lamborghini, Bugatti, Ducati

FRANKFURT — Volkswagen needs to change to stay relevant in the electric and digital vehicle era and will announce "important steps" to that end before the close of the year, Chief Executive Herbert Diess said on Wednesday. "Volkswagen needs to change: From a collection of valuable brands and fascinating combustion-engine products that thrill customers with superb engineering — to a digital company that reliably operates millions of mobility devices worldwide," Diess told shareholders at the company's virtual general meeting. Vehicles need to stay in contact with customers, offer new services and comfort functions on a weekly or even daily basis, he said. "We will take further important steps to set the course for this in the rest of 2020," Diess said. Senior executives told Reuters the company is reviewing what role its high-performance brands Lamborghini, Bugatti and Ducati will play as the company increasingly focuses on electric, digital and autonomous vehicles. Volkswagen, which also owns VW, Audi, Porsche, Seat and Skoda, is looking at whether it has the resources to accelerate development of electric platforms for smaller brands at a time it is investing billions to transform its more mainstream cars. Asked whether Ducati, which is known for making noisy combustion-engined motorbikes, has an electric future, Markus Duesmann, who oversees research and development for the group, said: "It will not take long until we see an electric Ducati." Whether Ducati, which is a medium-sized premium motorbike brand, would offer an electric variant, depends on whether a bike could offer range comparable to a combustion-engined variant, Duesmann said. Advances are being made in battery technology which could make this possible, he added. Separately Frank Witter, the company's chief financial officer, in response to a question about whether a sale of Lamborghini is planned, said Volkswagen does not comment on speculation about potential divestments. Lamborghini's Chief Executive Stefano Domenicali this week announced his departure from the sports car maker to take on a new job as president of Formula One. VW needs cash Volkswagen is reviewing the future of these three high-performance brands as part of broader quest for more economies of scale as it shifts to mass producing electric cars, senior executives told Reuters.