Lamborghini lukewarm on entry-level model, bullish on SUV

2015 Lamborghini Aventador back badge — Image used with permission by copyright holder

When Lamborghini introduced the Gallardo over a decade ago, it was a pretty big deal. Traditionally, Sant’Agata Bolognese had survived with just one model at a time, and previous attempts to grow the lineup hadn’t gone well.

Today, Lambo’s two-car lineup seems rather quaint as brands like Ferrari and McLaren introduce new models on a fairly regular basis.

While it may erode some of the brand’s mystique, Lamborghini is considering similar growth, CEO Stephan Winkelmann told Car and Driver in an interview at the recent New York Auto Show.

McLaren unveiled its “entry-level” 570S in New York, and Winkelmann said Lambo is open to the idea of a model at a similar, sub-$200k price point, although not an entirely new one.

While Lamborghini isn’t planning on devoting an entirely new model to that segment, Winkelmann said it is open to “derivatives inside the models” that already exist.

Instead of a direct 570S fighter, this sounds like Lambo would consider a stripped-down version of the Huracán, along the lines of the 625C McLaren offers in Asia.

Of course, there’s another Lamborghini model that seems destined to join the lineup, and that’s the production version of the Urus SUV first glimpsed at the 2012 Beijing Motor Show.

Winkelmann has confirmed this model multiple times, although it still may be awhile before it hits showrooms.

The Urus is expected to share its platform with other Volkswagen Group SUVs, but Winkelmann said it will only share parts with those more common models when absolutely necessary.

Meanwhile, another show-stopping Lamborghini concept appears to be at a development dead end.

The Asterion LPI 910-4 plug-in hybrid wowed audiences at the 2014 Paris Motor Show with its 897 horsepower and claimed 199 mph top speed, but Lamborghini apparently has no plans to build it.

The carmaker intended it purely as a technology demonstrator, to show that it could meet much stricter emissions standards with currently-available tech if it needed to. Since it doesn’t the Asterion will remain a concept.

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