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Lamborghini chief stands by V12s

Despite the push for fuel efficiency and low carbon emissions, the V12 is still a staple of high performance. Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, Aston Martin, and yes, Lamborghini maintain fleets of these monstrous dinosaur engines. And for the final entry on that list, that's not going to change. Lamborghini CEO Stefano Domenicali sat down with Autocar and explained in no uncertain terms that his company will continue to offer V12s for the time being. "Our major customers and dealers around the world say: 'Please do not touch the V12'," Domenicali told Autocar. "So we will continue to work in that direction." But there's more than just customer demand driving Lambo's V12 loyalty. According to Domenicali, the company's niche is small enough to weather V12-ruining storms. "In the short term, there is still a lot of development potential in the V12," Domenicali told Autocar. "Of course, we need to understand what the market is doing in terms of emissions and legislation, but I don't see that will be a problem. We are always very open to how the market might evolve." That evolution, lately, has tended toward electrification. The flagship of Lambo's arch-nemesis Ferrari pairs a 12-cylinder engine with a hybrid system for blistering performance. Then there's the stuff happening with the V8-powered Porsche 918 Spyder and McLaren P1. These three hybrids are in an entirely different and more potent performance (and price) class than Lamborghini's hottest model, the Aventador LP750-4 SV. Hybrids are the future of performance, for Lamborghini included... Eventually. "We cannot be disconnected to the world of the future but we want to be balanced," Domenicali said. "We need to make sure that as soon as the technology of electrification is relevant to our car at a cost level, and will add value, we are flexible to shift in that direction." Finally, Domenicali addressed advanced connectivity systems while parrying Autocar's question about autonomous vehicles. "If you own a Lamborghini, you want to have the passion of driving it and we need to keep that. But new technology could have some relevance to the driver. For example, if you are on a race track, you could have a head-up display which shows you how to maximize your performance [around a corner], using the telemetry we have now," Domenicali told AC. "That's an approach where I see that technology could be very useful for our customer." Related Video:

Lamborghini Cabrera 'Ring session caught on video

While our spy photographers were getting shots of the Lamborghini Gallardo replacement, said to be called "Cabrera," at the Nürburgring, there were other spotters lurking who caught the thing on video. It could just be the audio captured by the camera mic, but to our ears the exhaust sounds deeper and more burbly than that on the current car. One audio cue that can't be missed, however, is the speed of the gearchanges; think dual-clutch.
The reworked 5.2-liter V10 sitting behind the cockpit is expected to put out around 600 horsepower, sent either to all four wheels or just the rears depending on customer preference. The sights and sounds await you in the video below, your own ruminations can be heard in Comments just below that.

1970 Lamborghini Miura shows why some dreams are worth a wait

It took Dennis Varni over a decade after his first ride in a Lamborghini Miura in the late '60s to finally purchase his own 1970 Miura P400S in 1979. Judging by his story and the V12 engine's sublime sound in the latest video from Petrolicious, the wait was entirely worth it. No matter where you look on a Miura, you find automotive beauty. On the outside, the design is a symphony of gently curving lines. The shapes are highlighted with wonderful mechanical touches like the eyelashes around the headlights or the little strakes that graduate in size just behind the side windows. Popping up the engine cover reveals a transverse V12 that's capable of a sound like thunder during a summer storm. While the interior appears a little cramped, it's really hard to complain with the carbs positioned inches from your ears and visible through the rearview mirror. As usual, Petrolicious does a superb job in capturing not only all of the Lamborghini's visual details but the sonic ones, as well. Everyone should take a moment to listen to this wonder machine climb through the gears just to brighten their day.