Report: Volkswagen to Begin Distancing From Lamborghini

More evidence has surfaced that Volkswagen Group may be on the cusp of relieving itself of some of its less-profitable subsidiaries. Following news of a November board meeting that would help decide the fate of numerous ultra-premium brands, rumor has it that VW is currently working out ways to give Lamborghini more autonomy and open the door for supply deals that could foreshadow it being listed on the stock market.

Additionally, the automaker’s supervisory board has already reportedly met to discuss the future of Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, and its Ducati motorcycle arm. Discussions were said to include how to electrify the more sporting nameplates via industrial partnerships and procuring investment dollars. Some of these deals are already in the early stages, according to Reuters, with a possible IPO for the Italian supercar brand alleged to be moving forward at the time of this writing.

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Sell Off? Volkswagen Group Rethinks Its Position on Supercars

Volkswagen Group, the largest automotive manufacturer in the world, is reexamining its relationship with high-performance subsidiaries as it continues pouring money into electrification. Burned by a diesel emissions scandal of its own making half a decade ago, VW leadership now views electric cars as the only path forward — especially in regard to its more mainstream brands. While they aren’t getting identical treatments, VW, Audi, Seat, and Skoda are all presumed to be adding EVs to their production lines over the next few years.

Porsche’s long-term strategy also seems heavily dependent on battery power, but the road ahead is much less clear for ultra-premium brands like Lamborghini and Bugatti. With volumes and lineups order of magnitudes smaller than the core brands, Volkswagen would be incurring a gigantic expense to develop upper-echelon performance EVs that might not appeal to their existing fans. The same goes for upscale motorcycle brand Ducati as the two-wheeled world has become divided on electric and gas-powered bikes. Volkswagen’s management board and directors have decided the situation calls for an all-hands meeting in November to decide what should be done and how to remain financially prudent in a period of economic strife.

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Top Gear Wrecks Lamborghini Diablo During Filming

Television’s Top Gear recently resumed filming on the upcoming season (series 29, if you acknowledge the authority of the Queen), and news of a crash has your author feeling excited about the program for the first time in a while. It also provided an opportunity to actually learn the names of the presenters who aren’t Chris Harris, who was not at the helm of the vintage Lamborghini Diablo that unexpectedly went off-road.

Comedian Paddy McGuinness hopped on social media to let fans know he was safe on Tuesday, following numerous reports that he had suffered an off while the boys were filming it running around in North Yorkshire alongside a Ferrari F40 and Jaguar XJ220. Neither McGuinness nor the other two vehicles/hosts are said to have sustained damage, though the Lambo took a beating, potentially providing us with some top-flight entertainment later this year.

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Rare Rides: The Practical and Elegant Lamborghini LM002

Today’s Rare Ride is one which defies most all expectations of vehicles in its class. It’s larger, more powerful, more exclusive, and more ridiculous than any of its contemporaries. Suitably, it has a raging bull emblem on its hood.

Presenting the Lamborghini LM002 from 1990.

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Young Car Thief Acheives Dream After All

Earlier this week, we reported on a bizarre story in which a 5-year-old Utah boy stole his parents’ Dodge Journey to drive to California. His mission? To procure a Lamborghini for himself. As you already know, he was picked up by local authorities before making much headway, but he wound up getting closer to his dream than anyone imagined.

Adrian Zamarripa’s junior adventure earned quite a bit of media coverage, encouraging a nearby Lambo enthusiast to visit the family this week and give the child some quality time inside his black Huracan. The car’s owner, Jeremy Neves, said he was impressed with the child’s initiative and wanted to meet him.

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Embracing His Inner Adult: Utah Child Steals Family Car to Drive to Lamborghini Dealership

A 5-year-old boy from Utah literally let his passion for cars run away with him over the weekend. After argument with his mother over the possibility of procuring him a Lamborghini, he decided to steal the family SUV to drive to California and buy one himself.

Unaware that the brand’s products typically go for six-figure sums (and that there is a much closer dealership in Las Vegas), the child was discovered driving sloppily on Utah’s I-15 by local law enforcement on Monday afternoon.

Utah State Patrol said he had about three dollars in his pocket.

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Volkswagen Group Planning to Stall European Production, Same for Toyota

With reports of factory shutdowns now being the norm, Volkswagen and Toyota have predictably decided to idle facilities in Europe to mitigate the negative influence of the novel coronavirus. VW Group had already made plans to temporarily close assembly lines in Italy, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain. But said that the entirety of Europe will probably be affected this month.

Toyota was singing a similar song on Tuesday morning, saying it would suspend production in France and Portugal this week. Considering the sameness of these virus-related cancelations, we’ll not bore you with any recaps — you know how we got here. Instead, here’s the gist of the manufacturers’ respective strategies:

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Rare Rides: The Bizzarrini BZ 2001, From 1991

Bizzarrini — a name which conjures images of, well, probably nothing for most people. In the Sixties, Bizzarrini was a short-lived auto manufacturer, but after the company’s demise, the name popped up once more in the early Nineties.

Let’s find out a little more about this one-of-one BZ 2001.

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Lamborghini Feels It May Be Time for a Gas-free Bull

After taking a look around the loftiest of automotive landscapes and reading a few tea leaves, Lamborghini seems close to signing off on a model that won’t have reviewers searching for exhaust note adjectives. There won’t be any use for them.

As European luxury marques — especially those under the Volkswagen Group umbrella — tiptoe tentatively into the EV realm, Lambo is poised to make its next introduction an eco warrior. This, of course, after the recent introduction of the Urus SUV.

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Rare Rides: The 1996 Vector M12, an Elusive Supercar (Part II)

Today is the second portion of the Vector story, which we began in our most recent Rare Rides post. Troubled from the start, the company underwent a hostile takeover by a firm called MegaTech, and fired its founder almost immediately.

The first MegaTech-developed product is our subject vehicle ⁠— the long and low M12. With an NAIAS debut in 1996, it seemed like Vector had a promising immediate future. Or did it?

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Your Prayers Have Been Answered: The Pope's Lamborghini is Being Raffled Off

Roughly a year ago, Lamborghini customized a Huracán RWD for Pope Francis. This was not a commissioned job but a gift from the automaker to the Vatican. Tragically, His Holiness wasn’t interested in holding onto it so he could more easily cruise for babes and Catholic Church decided the best course of action would be to auction the vehicle off for charity.

While sold by Sotheby’s in Monaco last May for 715,000 euros (about $813,000 USD), it would appear the final bidder either didn’t have the necessary funds or experienced a change of heart. Maybe it was divine intervention. Regardless, the Huracán is now being raffled off for ten bucks a ticket — though you can choose do donate more and better your chances.

Even if you aren’t of the faithful, ten dollars for a nearly new supercar that has been blessed and signed by one of God’s favorite people feels like a bargain. Imagine the stellar track times you could achieve with the Almighty by your side and the Pope’s name scrawled on your dashboard.

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V12 + Green: Plug-in Hybrids to Succeed Lamborghini's Aventador and Huracan

Lamborghini has talked a lot about electrification over the last few years, remaining careful never to commit to anything. While meager production rates seriously limit the environmental impact of its vehicles, the Italian automaker is nonetheless subject to the same pressure to go green as larger brands. Almost a decade ago, the brand vowed to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions of its vehicles by roughly one third while simultaneously covering the factory roof with solar panels. It later hinted it might implement widespread turbocharging, much like Ferrari, or go the electrification route.

The greenwashing trend continues today, likely encouraged by Lamborghini’s suddenly eco-conscious parent, Volkswagen. Facing an important crossroad, and surrounded by regulatory and environmental pressures, the company has chosen its path. While Lamborghini’s Stefano Domenicali still seems gently apprehensive, the CEO claims plug-in hybrids will be the best way forward for the brand.

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Lamborghini Secretly Prepping a Limited-edition Hypercar

Lamborghini is allegedly working on a limited-edition vehicle based loosely upon the utterly spectacular Terzo Millennio concept. The hybridized hypercar, codenamed LB48H, hasn’t been shown to the public, but there was a very exclusive private event held in Italy earlier this month. There have also been posts on social media from the event that make passing mention of the model.

The LB48H is rumored to be showcased in Tokyo and New York in the weeks to come. It remains unclear if these will be also private showings, but that seems likely.

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Sticker Situation: 2017 Lamborghini Centenario Recalled Over Incorrect Labels

Supercar recalls are a guilty pleasure of mine. Though they’re frequently subject to the same failings as mainstream automobiles, there is something charming about a recall announcement that only affects a dozen cars. High-end manufacturers also go to weird lengths to keep customers happy in the event of a minor issue. If you’ll recall, Bugatti promised to mobilize its team of “ flying doctors” last December to schedule house calls for 47 sick Chirons because 1 percent of the total might have suffered from bad seat welds.

Last month, the National Highway Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued a similarly svelte recall on the Lamborghini Centenario. The 2017 model, built to commemorate the 100th birthday of company founder Ferrucio Lamborghini, is basically an Aventador on crack. Instead of the standard model’s 6.5-liter V12 pumping out 691 horsepower, the Centenario surpasses even the beefed up variants with its 759 hp. It also comes with exclusive bodywork that can be conservatively described as insane.

You’re probably under the assumption that the Centenario recall has to be related to the tweaked engine or unique exterior then. Nope! Lamborghini is recalling them because they need to have a sticker replaced.

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Rare Rides: The Lamborghini Jalpa Is the Essence of 1985

Bright red paint, an interior to hide even the largest cocaine spillage, a targa roof, and sweet deep dish aero alloys all help define the Lamborghini Jalpa as a product of its era.

It’s the one everyone forgets as their minds gravitate to the older Countach or the newer Diablo.

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  • TCowner We've had a 64.5 Mustang in the family for the past 40 years. It is all original, Rangoon Red coupe with 289 (one of the first instead of the 260), Rally Pac, 4-speed, factory air, every option. Always gets smiles and thumbs ups.
  • ToolGuy This might be a good option for my spouse when it becomes available -- thought about reserving one but the $500 deposit is a little too serious. Oh sorry, that was the Volvo EX30, not the Mustang. Is Volvo part of Ford? Is the Mustang an EV? I'm so confused.
  • Mikey My late wife loved Mustangs ..We alway rented one while travelling . GM blood vetoed me purchasing one . 3 years after retirement bought an 08 rag top, followed by a 15 EB Hard top, In 18 i bought a low low mileage 05 GT rag with a stick.. The car had not been properly stored. That led to rodent issues !! Electrical nightmare. Lots of bucks !! The stick wasn't kind to my aging knees.. The 05 went to a long term dedicated Mustang guy. He loves it .. Today my garage tenant is a sweet 19 Camaro RS rag 6yl Auto. I just might take it out of hibernation this weekend. The Mustang will always hold a place in my heart.. Kudos to Ford for keeping it alive . I refuse to refer to the fake one by that storied name .
  • Ajla On the Mach-E, I still don't like it but my understanding is that it helps allow Ford to continue offering a V8 in the Mustang and F-150. Considering Dodge and Ram jumped off a cliff into 6-cylinder land there's probably some credibility to that story.
  • Ajla If I was Ford I would just troll Stellantis at all times.