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What Lamborghini Urus' unapologetic unveiling tells us about the super SUV

BOLOGNA, Italy — "Like a storm at a wedding," was Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni's diplomatically lyrical description of the 'problemo tecnico' that plunged the Lamborghini Urus production line into an awkward silence just as the build-up to the car's unveiling was reaching a crescendo. Given the scale of the event, the hundreds of media, customers and VIPs flown in, the preparation of the new production line for a gala dinner and all the rest of the glitz and glamour, this must have been an excruciatingly embarrassing moment for Lamborghini boss Stefano Domenicali. If it was, he didn't show it, gamely jumping into the middle of the unlit arena with the microphone and stalling for time as two examples of the Urus were whisked around from the adjacent production line, brought hurriedly before the waiting crowd and then thrown into the spotlight for R&D boss Maurizio Reggiani to do his thing. All of this proves that flying all the way to Bologna to attend an unveiling event in person is the last place you want to be if you want the scoop on a new Lamborghini, the vital information on the car already live and online while we folks in the factory were — literally — in the dark. You'll have already read the headlines, gasped at the horror of a turbocharged Lamborghini and then again in amazement at the performance stats the 641-bhp 4.0-liter V8 delivers. 0-62 mph in just 3.6 seconds is but a few tenths off what a Huracan achieves, 0-124 mph in 12.8 seconds putting the Urus into the seriously fast league for any type of car, let alone an SUV. The shock value of the looks has been tempered somewhat by the fact that concepts, test mules and drawings have been in the public domain for a long, long time. We've gotten used to the idea of a Lamborghini SUV, and the design theme of an Aventador on stilts was long-previewed. But what's it like in the metal? Unapologetic would be one word that springs to mind. But then that's the Lamborghini way, right? This is not — never has been — a brand for wallflowers. Even with that in mind, the Urus is a middle finger raised to anyone concerned about brand values being cheapened by the fact it shares platform, engine and electrical architecture with similar products from Audi, Bentley and Porsche. You'll have your own views there. You'll also realize why Lamborghini had to do it and, perhaps, wonder why it took so long.

Lamborghini sold a record 3,245 supercars last year

Lamborghini sold 3,245 vehicles last year. That figure represents new record for the Italian automaker, which moved more supercars in 2015 than it has in any of its past 53 years in business. And that number only stands to grow in the coming years. This represents an enormous increase over the 2,530 units it sold in the previous calendar year – which itself set a new record in 2014. Lamborghini's previous high-water mark stood at 2,430 units sold in 2008, but dipped in subsequent years through the global economic downturn that hit exotic automakers particularly hard. What's more is that the Raging Bull marque is gearing up to increase its sales even further in the coming years. The factory in Sant'Agata is preparing to add a third model line to the existing Huracan and Aventador with the introduction of the Urus. Once production of the new crossover ramps up, Lamborghini expects to sell approximately 3,000 of them each year, potentially doubling the record numbers from last year. Even at those figures, the Italian brand remains among the smallest in the Volkswagen Group. Sales numbers from 2014 reveal that Bentley sold approximately 11,000 units, leaving only Bugatti as a smaller producer than Lamborghini with sales of its multi-million-dollar supercars counted in the hundreds, not thousands. Though it also posted record sales last year, rival McLaren sold roughly half the number of supercars that Lamborghini did at 1,650 units. By comparison Ferrari currently limits its production to 7,000 units per year – more than double Lamborghini's figures – and could raise that limit in the near future. Related Video: AUTOMOBILI LAMBORGHINI: 150 NEW JOBS IN 2015 FOR THE URUS PROJECT WITH FURTHER HIRINGS TO FOLLOW IN 2016 Sant'Agata Bolognese, 26. January 2016 – Automobili Lamborghini just ended 2015 with exceptional results. The all-time record of 3,245 vehicles sold worldwide comes with a rapid growth in workforce, which now stands at 1,300 employees. More than 150 assembly line workers, technicians and highly qualified specialists have been hired recently with open-ended contracts, bringing the total of permanent employees taken on over the past five years to more than 600. Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini, commented: "Lamborghini is experiencing strong, steady growth in sales and also in its workforce.

VW makes $23K on every Porsche sold, more than Bentley or Lamborghini

It's a good time to be in the luxury car business. In Volkswagen Group's financial report for the 2013 fiscal year, it is revealed that that Porsche enjoyed an operating margin of 18 percent. That means the Stuttgart brand made on average about $23,200 per car sold, according to BusinessWeek. Bentley wasn't far behind, and Audi (which was combined with Lamborghini) posted a 10.1 percent margin. This compares to only around 2.9 percent for the Volkswagen brand.
"Luxury brands are on fire," said Dave Sullivan, an industry analyst at AutoPacific. He said that the average profit margin is between six and eight percent. Brands like Porsche and Bentley have the benefit of competing in rarefied markets. Buyers looking at one their vehicles have fewer models to shop against and don't care as much about price. They can also charge more for options, which further boosts income, according to BusinessWeek.
In a way, we should be more impressed by the continued success from Audi. Its models generally have direct competitors in every segment from the other premium automakers. Plus, their buyers aren't the captains of industry who are shopping for a Bentley. Still, the Four Rings is leading rivals in sales so far this year.