Lamborghini is the boldest and brashest car company out there. They're successful but that doesn't stop them from going a little crazy at times. They're still the last supercar maker holding out on using turbochargers on their cars. They don't apologize to anyone and they continue to go their own way. Sometimes they can't release the craziest ideas that they make public though.
Today we're going to look at 15 concepts that they wanted to build but couldn't let the public have, despite their most selfish desires. We're going to see a few I'm sure you've forgotten about or never even heard about.
15 Egoista
Egoista actually means Selfish in Italian. It's a stunning, one-seater, jet fighter for the road. Based on the Gallardo and released in 2013 it was simply too wild for the public market. The only one they made is fully functional though and has a 600 horsepower V10 behind the single seat in the cockpit.
14 Vision Gran Turismo
When Gran Turismo 6 came out they partnered with numerous marquees to develop special cars just for the game. Some of those brands actually built the car in real life too. Lamborghini was one of those few and it took them years to finally complete the design. Nevertheless, when it was released it was clear Lamborghini was using this to let us all in on the future of the company.
13 Miura
This concept is the one car I wish had made it to market on this list. I can see why Lamborghini didn't release it though. They said at the time that it was simply a tribute and that they're all about the future. I appreciate their dedication to always moving forward and not relying on their past to make sales for their future. Still, this would've sold like hotcakes.
12 Huracan Sterrato
If you saw this render and thought, "Who on earth did that?" you wouldn't be alone. Most people don't believe that Lamborghini would do something like this but sure enough, it's all them. They're pretty serious about branching out and doing things their own way. They nearly sent this thing to production too.
11 Cala
The Cala Concept was intended to be the Gallardo before it was born. You can see how the headlights ultimately translated into the Gallardo. The less angular body was a departure from the Diablo but this concept came out as Lamborghini was still in some financial trouble so it never made it.
10 Marzal
Today we see about 6000 hexagons in the latest Lamborghinis. Very few people realize that the idea started all the way back in the 60s with the Marzal concept car. The doors formed that hexagon and opened to reveal four seats. The doors were mostly glass too so you could see through the sides of the car. It never made it to production but it served as the basis for the Espada.
9 Portofino
The Portofino was maybe the wackiest Lamborghini concept ever. The doors open really strangely, the base chassis is mostly Jalpa and the V8 is still in the back of the car despite room needed for four seats. It set the design precedent for Chrysler for decades.
8 Pregunta
The Pregunta is another car that fell victim to the unpredictable nature of Lamborghini's financial health in the '90s. It was based on the Diablo and housed a big V12 in the back. It lost power to the front wheels and was a little more extreme to drive too. The doors are clearly pretty extreme as well.
7 Asterion
When Lamborghini revealed the Asterion, people went nuts. It was a 910 horsepower 2+2 grand tourer that would use hybrid power to make that big number. The trouble was that the CEO at the time hated hybrid tech and said there was no way Lamborghini would go that direction any time soon. Sure enough, the car never made it past the concept phase.
6 Terzo Millenio
Terzo Millenio is the future of Lamborghini. You can see the running lights used in the latest Lamborghini, the Sian if you click the link below. Till then though, the car is designed to store energy in its body panels. Then use supercapacitors to discharge that energy in milliseconds. Here's to hoping we see that tech come to market sooner rather than later.
5 Estoque
Estoque is the name of the sword used by bull-fighters in Italy. Regardless of our thoughts on that unfortunate practice, I think we can all agree that this car is a killer. The last four-door concept Lamborghini before the Urus arrived, this was very close to production as well until Lamborghini decided that an SUV would create more sales.
4 Athlon
The Athlon was a one-off concept that didn't go much further than that stage. It was released in 1980 and never really made it off the ground. Of course, at the time, looks were everything so it's about as wild as it gets for the time with a-symmetrical design cues and a totally unique interior to boot.
3 Sesto Elemento
The sixth element on the periodic table is carbon. That's what Lamborghini had in mind when they named this concept the Sesto Elemento or "Sixth Element". The entire car is unique and you can see the blend of three different cars, the Gallardo, Cala Concept and the Huracan in the design. There were a few of these built and sold but it doesn't really qualify as a production product.
2 Veneno
The Veneno was created to demonstrate what maximum racecar tech would look like on a streetcar from Lamborghini. That explains the feral aero everywhere and the gargantuan wing on the back. Only 9 of these were ever produced and sold to specifically chosen friends of the brand.
1 Centenario
Centenario is a very limited production car of only 40 units intended to be a tribute to their founder Ferruccio Lamborghini. It's capable of 0-60 in 2.8 seconds and is a demonstration of what Lamborghini thinks of the future ahead. They're all about getting there as fast as possible no matter what it costs.