The premiere of the new Lamborghini supercar, which will take the place of the Aventador model, will take place on March 29. But the company has already begun to gradually shed light on this model. The name has not yet been made public – only the internal factory code LB744. But there are already details about the technique! And this supercar will be truly revolutionary for Lamborghini.
The canonical aspirated V12 with a volume of 6.5 liters is retained. This second-generation motor was developed for the Aventador, so it’s too early to write it off, but a large-scale modernization has been carried out, which resulted in the new L545 index. A new injection system was installed, the compression ratio was increased from 11.8:1 to 12.6:1, the total weight of the unit was reduced from 235 to 217 kg. The upgraded motor spins more fun, the cutoff has been shifted to 9500 rpm. Compared to the engine of the farewell Aventador Ultimae, the maximum power has increased from 780 hp. (at 8500 rpm) up to 825 hp at 9250 rpm, and torque – from 720 to 725 Nm (at the same 6750 rpm).
But the engine is the only thing left of the Aventador. Lamborghini LB744 is a plug-in hybrid, for which the company even came up with a new designation HPEV (High Performance Electrified Vehicle). Therefore, the layout of the units has been completely changed. Engineers abandoned the traditional all-wheel drive transmission in favor of the E-4WD system: individual electric motors with axial magnetic flux and oil cooling are installed to drive the front wheels. Each engine produces 150 hp. and 350 Nm, and individual control allows for thrust vector control.
In the central tunnel, instead of the driveshaft, there is now a lithium-ion traction battery. Its capacity is small (3.8 kWh), but it has high energy exchange rates. You can charge the battery in advance from the socket: an on-board charger with a power of 7 kW is provided. But the main thing is that the rejection of the mechanical drive of the front wheels resulted in a new layout of the rear power module.
The longitudinally mounted V12 engine is rotated 180 degrees, so that the gearbox is no longer “in the cabin”, but transversely on the rear axle. Along the way, the rejection of the transfer case and the clutch made it possible to make the cockpit more spacious. The gearbox is new: it is a two-shaft eight-speed “robot” with two wet clutches. It’s lighter and faster than the seven-speed preselective gearbox on the junior Huracan supercar. The company tested this arrangement of units on the 2020 Lamborghini Essenza SCV12 track coupe, although the gearbox was different there.
Finally, in the same housing with the “robot”, the new supercar has another electric motor with a return of 150 hp. and 150 Nm. It can turn the rear wheels, but a separate clutch allows it to be disconnected from the gearbox and work exclusively in starter-generator mode to start the internal combustion engine or recharge the traction battery. The peak power of the four-engine hybrid power plant is 1015 hp.
The last caveat: there is no reverse in the gearbox. The new Lamborghini supercar will be able to move in reverse only on electric traction. By default, the front electric motors are responsible for this, but if the electronics recognize a slippery surface and require all-wheel drive, and there is enough charge in the battery, the reverse will switch to all-wheel drive mode using the rear electric motor.
So far, these are all published characteristics. We will know the rest of the details during the premiere.