Lamborghini Planning Entry Level Model, Expects Sales Increase by 2014

[ahmed_7erzon]

Because outdoing the Aventador — Lamborghini’s latest poster car for absolute excess — wouldn’t make a whole lot of sense for the brand, Reuters reports that the Italian automaker is instead considering an everyday model to add to its lineup. Just what Lamborghini means by “everyday,” though, is a bit unclear at this point. Seeing as the current cost of entry for a Lambo is roughly 180,000 Euros [$250,000 USD] for the Gallardo, adding a model beneath that could help the brand expand its customer base — important, as it expects its global sales to rise within the next three years.


Speaking at the Reuters Global Luxury and Fashion Summit, Lamborghini Chief Executive Stephan Winkelmann said Lamborghini “[is] going to have a third model.” Citing strong demand for high-end cars in emerging markets such as China and Russia, Winkelmann believes that the super sports car market will return to the record levels of 2007 by 2013-14. That year, Winkelmann says 35,000 super sports cars were sold versus only 26,000 last year. Adding a third model could help Lamborghini see record numbers again.



“It has to be an everyday car,” said Winkelmann. “We want to have a car which is able to be used on a daily basis.”

While no decision regarding which segment the car would fit into has been made yet, Winkelmann says that Lamborghini would need about four years to get the car production-ready once that decision is finally made. Although Lamborghini doesn’t plan on working with a partner on this proposed new model, Winkelmann said the firm “will use synergies where possible within the [Volkswagen] group.”



Winkelmann said Lamborghini could sell as many as 1500 cars this year – of which, 300 are expected to be sold in China alone – compared to just 1302 in 2010. He emphasized, however, that the number wasn’t a fixed sales target and depended upon deliveries of Lamborghini’s newest model, the 313,000-Euro [$438K] Aventador. China will be a key market for Lamborghini and other high-end automakers, as analysts at IHS Automotive see China’s premium segment expanding to 909,946 units this year, up from 727,227 in 2010, and growing to 1.6 million by 2015.

Because Lamborghini has yet to decide which segment this new model would belong to, we’re left to wonder where it might fit in. Would it slot slightly above the Audi R8, Lambo’s corporate cousin, or could “everyday” mean something the common man might possibly be able to afford? And although unthinkable a few years ago, could it take the form of a sedan, similar to the Estoque concept, or perhaps even a crossover? Your guess is as good as ours. What kind of “everyday” Lambo would you like to see?