Lamborghini CEO Stephan Winkelmann has admitted Lambo is looking at introducing an additional model to its existing range.
He made the announcement at a Reuters luxury brand forum in Paris.
We know about the next Lamborghini, it’s the Estoque… isn’t it?
Lamborghini produced the Estoque saloon concept for the 2008 Paris motor show. A relative of the Audi A8, the Estoque has yet to be approved for production.
Winkelman said: ‘We are going to have a third model. It has to be an everyday car. We want to have a car which is able to be used on a daily basis.’
A sports saloon like the Estoque would certainly fit the bill. A four-door would give the company a much more practical car to sell alongside the existing Aventador, Gallardo and a rumoured limited edition car based on the Sesto Elemento lightweight concept.
Why Lamborghini needs to expand its model range
Building mad, bad, yet Audi-like to live with mid-engined supercars has been good business for Lamborghini, until very recently. Sales peaked in 2008, selling 2430 cars that year.
However, the global financial crisis caused sales to plummet. In 2010 Lamboerghini produced only 1302 vehicles, and this year aims to recover to 1500 units. The first year’s production of the new Aventador supercar has sold out, and sales in China are projected to top 300 units, after selling 206 cars in China (excluding Hong Kong) in 2010. Winkelmann sees the supercar market recovering fully by 2013-2014.
To grow sales further, particularly in emerging markets such as China and Russia, Lamborghini needs a four-seater that appeals to buyers in those markets. An Estoque-like saloon or an SUV would allow Lamborghini to diversify its range and tap into the market for such vehicles which Porsche has capitalised upon with its Panamera and Cayenne models.
Winkelmann gave no specifics on when the ‘everyday’ Lamborghini would be launched, but that once the decision was made, it would take approximately three to four years for the vehicle to go on sale.
>> What should Lamborghini do for its third model line? Estoque? A four-seater GT? An SUV? An Audi A1 with scissor doors? Let us know in the comments section below