The switch to electric cars is now a craze that is sweeping the auto industry. Even low production luxury cars like Lamborghini are getting caught up in it. In the last year or so we have heard one car company after another announcement that they are switching over to fully electric vehicles 5, 10 or 15 years from now.In fact, it seems all the major car companies in Europe and America (except for BMW) have announced they have now canceled all further research and development into the next generation of internal combustion engines.Ford Europe has stated that they are planning to only sell electric cars from 2030, while GM has announced that they are aiming to be fully electric by 2035. Some car companies have set dates even sooner. And now it's Lamborghini's turn. Here is everything you need to know about Lamborghini's plan to electrify its fleet.
10 The Urgency
Countries around the world are moving to ban the sale of new traditional combustion engine cars. Many of them, like the UK, will be banning them by 2030, while Norway is banning them in 2025.
Cities may also be bringing in strict rules about what people can drive into the cities. Also, the meteorite rise of Tesla to become the most valuable car company in the world is a warning shot to those slow to transition and fall behind.
9 The Investment
Lamborghini is spending big on electrifying its fleet. It has announced that it plans to invest around $1.8 billion in electric car technology. That is a lot of money for a car company that only received around $700 million or so of income annually (according to 2014 figures).
Lamborghini only sold just over 8,000 cars in 2019 - a similar amount to arch-rival Ferrari. Ferrari is also looking to electrify its fleet but plans to keep the combustion engine.
8 Plan To Be Hybrid
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=750&dpr=1.5)
Lamborghini has said that it wants its whole fleet of cars to be hybrid by 2024 — only around 3 years from now. Lamborghini is moving super fast to hybridize its fleet.
Hybrids can offer a lot of benefits. Not only can they add a lot more power to the car, but most people only drive short distances most of the time. And that short trip can normally be handled by a hybrid car battery.
7 Plan To Go All-Electric
While the existing brands — Huracan and Aventador sports cars as well as the sports utility Urus — will be hybrid by 2024, they will not stop there.
The plan is for future models (including one to launch at the end of the decade) to be fully electric. In time, all of Lamborghini's vehicles will be fully electric. In truth, they won't have much of a choice, as combustion engines being banned in many countries in the next decade.
6 Challenges For Lamborghini
Lamborghini's reputation is at stake, their cars must be top-notch and very high performing. They have admitted that developing an electric car to "evoke the feel of a V12 engine" will be challenging.
One of their main priorities will be to develop an electric car with a fantastic range. It is now clear that the future of cars is battery-electric (or perhaps hydrogen, but that this another story). That includes sports cars, and Lamborghini is now embracing that new reality.
5 Its Land Rover Jaguar Rival
Compared to its luxury British Jaguar rival, it would seem to be following a much longer timetable for electrification. Jaguar's plans are very ambitious — even though they have only just released their first electric car.
Jaguar plans to have all its models electrified by 2025 and then abandon gasoline and diesel engines entirely by 2030. This is a very fast timetable for a car company that has only one electric car on the market — the I-Pace.
4 Its Ferrari Rival
Compared to its fellow Italian luxury carmaker Ferrari, the picture is more mixed. On the one hand, Ferrari is planning to release its first electric sports car sooner than Lamborghini in 2025.
On the other hand, Ferrari's CEO, Louis Camilleri declared back in November 2020 that Ferrari will never be a fully electric brand — or at least not in his lifetime. That being said, Ferrari will also become a fully electric brand just like everyone else in time.
3 Lamborghini's Sales
Of course, as a high-end luxury sports carmaker, Lamborghini doesn't sell many cars. Consequently, if Lamborghini's fleet is electric, that won't change much in the greater scheme of things — unlike GM, Toyota, Volkswagen, etc.
Still, the regulatory environment will soon impact Lamborghini. That being said, Lamborghini's sales have been rising fast, in 2010 they sold only around 1,300 cars, in 2015 that was over 3,200, and in 2019 that had risen to 8,205.
2 Electric Vehicle Performance
Another truth underlying all this is that it is also more than just regulation. It's also technological development. Few could doubt this when faced with the phenomenal performance of Tesla's new record-breaking Roadster.
The Roadster can accelerate to 60 mph in less than 2 seconds, reach a top speed of 250 mph, and has an impressive range of 600 miles. The truth is that while electric cars may not have a V12 engine, they are outperforming them.
1 Time Will Tell
Time will tell how Lamborghini manages this transition, but manage it they must. As a luxury car brand, it is vital that they not be left behind. Tesla is now around three times more valuable than the next most valuable car company in the world (Toyota).
At the same time, car companies slow to develop a forward vision and electric technology are being punished. In the years ahead, it will become ever more difficult to sell gasoline cars.
In summary, this is an inevitable transformation and in the future, Lamborghini's cars are likely to be of even greater performance as EVs.