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Lamborghini reveals Asterion LPI 910-4 hybrid hypercar concept

There are automakers that roll out concept cars regularly as a matter of course, and there are those that rarely do. Lamborghini falls squarely in the latter category, which makes the vehicle you see here - revealed just a day before the Paris Motor Show - such a rare treat.
It's called the Lamborghini Asterion LPI 910-4, and if you're familiar with Sant'Agata nomenclature, you're probably already picking apart its specs based on those letters and numbers: LP for longitudinal posterior, telling you this is, like all other contemporary Raging Bulls, a mid-engined supercar. 910 tells you how much metric horsepower it packs. The 4 tells you it's all-wheel drive. But along with the name Asterion, borrowed from a mythical minotaur (a hybrid man-bull, for those unschooled in Greek mythology), it's the letter I - standing for "Ibrido" - which speaks of the novelty of this concept.
That's right, you're looking at the first gasoline-electric hybrid Lamborghini. A plug-in hybrid, in fact, that can travel 31 miles on electricity alone. The powertrain combines the 5.2-liter V10 and seven-speed DSG from the Huracán (good for 610 metric horsepower) to a trio of electric motors (good for another 300) to bring total output up to a claimed 910 - equivalent to 897 hp by our standards - assuming all four motors are running at peak output at the same time. That makes it the most powerful Lamborghini we've ever seen, and puts it in league with the McLaren P1 and LaFerrari. The result is a 0-62 time quoted at three seconds flat and a top speed of 199 miles per hour, or up to 78 mph in pure electric mode.

Lambo to quarantine twin-turbo V8 to Urus

Lamborghini is planning to slot a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 into the Urus sport utility vehicle. But don't expect the engine to make its way into the Italian firm's supercars anytime soon. According to the latest report, that forced-induction mill will be limited exclusively to the sport ute for the foreseeable future. Speaking with Autocar, CEO Stephan Winkelmann reiterated that the Urus will be the only Lamborghini model powered by the turbo eight. "On the supersports cars we are convinced that the choices we have made with the naturally aspirated engines are still the right ones," said Winkelmann. "We are not saying that future engines will never beat what we have in our cars; we are saying as long as there is nothing that is better, especially at low revs or in terms of the sound that the V10 and V12 have, we stick to them." While its rivals have embraced turbocharging, Lamborghini has been a steadfast holdout for high-revving, naturally aspirated engines with two-digit cylinder counts. Ferrari, for example, has slotted a turbocharged V8 into both the California T and 488 GTB. McLaren uses a turbo V8 in all its models. Lambo's own sister brands Porsche and Bugatti also use turbochargers. But the Huracan eschews forced induction for an atmospheric V10, as does the Aventador for a V12. The Volkswagen Group of which Lamborghini is part employs a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 for both the Bentley Continental and numerous Audi models. We'll likely be looking at a version of this engine to power the Urus, which is also expected to offer additional powertrain options in the future. The last time Lamborghini offered an SUV was with the LM002 of decidedly different orientation, powered by a version of the V12 engine from the Countach. Related Video:

Time to catch up with Jay Leno's Garage, including his Lamborghini Espada restoration

If you're already jealous of the time, effort and money that Jay Leno can devote to his massive car collection, prepare to get a little greener with envy with this latest video from Jay Leno's Garage. Instead of the usual format of discussing a model for about ten minutes and then taking it out for a test drive, this week Leno gives viewers on a tour of over a dozen projects concurrently happening in his stable. The breadth of the vehicles shown and the things being done to them run the entire span of the automotive hobby. At the same time, Jay's shop is working on just a simple restoration of his 1969 Lamborghini Espada (pictured), and at the other side of the building, the team is rebuilding a wood-bodied 1914 Detroit Electric from scratch. He eventually plans to slot a more modern electric drivetrain into it. If bikes are more your interest, there's a freshly completed Brough Superior just waiting for a ride, and if American models are your thing, a Ford Bronco is getting a Coyote V8 installed into it. You have some very specific tastes if you can't watch this clip and start wishing at least one of these vehicles could be in your own garage. Other than the personal projects his mechanics are working on in the shop, Jay gets to have them all, plus plenty more.