Automobili Lamborghini unveiled its first plug-in hybrid (PHEV) technology demonstrator, the Lamborghini Asterion LPI 910-4. Conceived and developed entirely in-house by Lamborghini, the Asterion LPI 910-4 takes the design and engineering expertise found in the current Lamborghini product range, adding hybrid technology, creating thus a Lamborghini that is clearly different than anything seen before, but yet is still unmistakably a Lamborghini.
Designed by Lamborghini Centro Stile, the Asterion contains the unmistakable Lamborghini DNA and heritage and yet is clearly different from the existing Lamborghini super sports car models.
“Lamborghini is always looking ahead, investing in new technologies and setting new benchmarks, delivering the unexpected,” says Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini.
“The best suit for this car was the tailored elegance of a Gran Turismo. It’s not all about power,” design boss Felippo Perini says. “I don’t like creating concepts that aren’t ready for production. The Asterion proposes a real future Lamborghini, not a fake one. A meaningless concept is also a way of wasting money, and I hate wasting money. We are too small a team to be able to squander our time or effort. We’re not telling lies with this car. It will be drivable.”
The V10 5.2 provides a maximum power output of 449 kW (610 hp) with 560 Nm of maximum torque available. Combined with the three electric motors providing a further 220 kW (300 hp), total hybrid power is achievable to a maximum of 669 kW (910 hp).
The combined action of the two propulsion systems sees acceleration of 0-100 km/h in 3.0 seconds. With a top hybrid/combined speed of 320 km/h the Asterion LPI 910-4 also reaches up to 125 km/h under pure electric power. More importantly for city driving the Asterion has a pure electric range of 50 km / 30 miles on its batteries.
Like the Porsche 918, the Asterion uses the motors on the front axle to deliver four-wheel drive, as well as torque vectoring. There’s no mechanical connection between the front and rear axles.
The big question, of course, is whether Lamborghini has any intention of building the Asterion. However considering how much attention rival hybrid hypercars have received, and the capacity Lamborghini has created for producing small runs of rare machinery like the Veneno, Egoista and Sesto Elemento, it would not be surprising. Whether or not the Asterion itself ever reaches customer hands, though, you can bet that the hybrid powertrain eventually will, in one vehicle or another.
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