Meet the Revuelto, Lamborghini's New Hybrid Supercar
After months of rumor and speculation, Lamborghini has launched a new supercar and it's an electrifying successor to the Aventador. Literally.
The Raging Bull unveiled the eagerly anticipated Revuelto late last month to much fanfare at a series of events at Automobili Lamborghini’s Italian headquarters. The Revuelto is the Italian marque’s first series production hybrid. (Its first electrified vehicle, the Sián, was a limited-edition release).
The Revuelto, according to a press release, "continues the Italian super sports car company’s V12 heritage, taking it into a new, electrified future as the first series production hybrid model. The Revuelto comes at a historic time for the Italian marquee as it celebrates its 60th anniversary. Stephan Winkelmann, Lamborghini Chairman and CEO, hailed the hybrid plug-in supercar as "born to break the mold," with its unique combination of a new 12-cylinder combustion engine and hybrid technology powered by three electric motors. The Revuelto, he says, strikes "the perfect balance between delivering the emotion that our clients want with the necessity to reduce emissions.”
A Next-Level Lamborghini
Two front axial flux motors help the Revuelto deliver an outstanding weight-to-power ratio, with a radial flux electric motor positioned above the first eight-speed double-clutch gearbox. The three electric motors are powered by a lithium-ion high-specific power (4500 W/kg) battery pack that also supports a fully-electric drive mode. This means that the Revuelto can accelerate from 0-100 km/h in only 2.5 seconds and a top speed of more than 350 km/h. The supercar also introduces electric torque vectoring, and four-wheel drive in fully-electric drive mode for both track and daily road driving.
The "First High-Performance Electrified Vehicle"
Lamborghini considers the Reveulto "the very first High-Performance Electrified Vehicle, or HPEV, a plug-in hybrid super sports car equipped with a lightweight high-power lithium-ion battery, housed within the transmission tunnel in the central section of the chassis."
The naturally-aspirated 6.5-liter V12 mid-mounted engine is capable of producing 814 hp and 535 lb-ft of torque by itself. Its complemented by three electric motors, one of which is integrated into the new double-clutch eight-speed gearbox. This is mounted transversely and placed for the first time behind the combustion engine.
A 3.8-kWh lithium-ion battery pack powers the electric motors. It can deliver at low revs and turn the new Revuelto into a purely electric car, thus reducing overall CO2 emissions by 30% compared to the Aventador Ultimae. The pack can be recharged via three different methods: plugging it into an outlet, regenerative braking or by using its V-12 as a generator. Lamborghini says that the battery can be fully charged in as little as six minutes using its engine.
The “Y” is also the hallmark of the driver-oriented interior design influenced by the “feel like a pilot” philosophy. As Borkert explains: "The driver and passenger are deeply integrated in the very lightweight Y-shape design of the dashboard and center console, replicating the sensations of being in a race car but with a perfect intuitive balance between digital and physical controls.”
"Adrenaline Made Visible" Design
While the Revuelto maintains the Lamborghini design DNA, it embraces an entirely new stylistic language. The design evokes the iconic and legendary Lamborghini V12 cars of the past throughout the new shape, while the new proportions point toward the future. Elements of the 1971 Countach prototype and its proportions, developed on a single longitudinal line, can be seen in the Reveulto aesthetic. The Space Age era style defined the Lamborghini V12 super sports car DNA and introduced one of the most distinctive Lamborghini V12 elements: the vertically-opening scissor doors, which the Revuelto maintains. The Diablo and its proportions, along with the muscularity of the Murciélago, are also evident in the Revuelto. Or, as Mitja Borkert, Lamborghini Head of Design, puts it: “The Revuelto is adrenaline made visible." With the Revuelto, Lamborghini launches "a new Space Race," ushering in a design language that adapts to the challenges imposed by electrification. Inspiration from the aerospace world shows up in the sculpted surfaces encompassed by two lines that start from the front and embrace the cabin and engine, tapering down to the hexagonal-shaped exhausts. The aerospace elements blend with more beast-like muscularity forms, starting with the shark-nose section modeling of the broad monolithic carbon-fiber front hood. This is matched by the headlamp clusters with Y-shape daytime running lights – a distinctive stylistic feature of contemporary Lamborghini design – framed by aerodynamic blades that connect the splitter to the hood itself. The side fins, located behind the front wheel arches, channel the airflow along the sides and the pronounced concavities of the doors to the side air intakes, which feature sharp edges that echo the arrows on the front. Meanwhile, the rear is a tribute to the hybrid V12. The fully-exposed longitudinal engine highlights the mechanical heart of the Revuelto, visually connecting it to the double hexagonal exhaust surmounted by the geometrically profiled wing, framed by headlamp clusters with the Y-shape light signatures.
The “Y” is also the hallmark of the driver-oriented interior design influenced by the “feel like a pilot” philosophy. As Borkert explains: "The driver and passenger are deeply integrated in the very lightweight Y-shape design of the dashboard and center console, replicating the sensations of being in a race car but with a perfect intuitive balance between digital and physical controls.”
The interior mirrors the all-new futuristic design of the exterior: every aspect of the cockpit is clearly Lamborghini, combining a perfect balance between a digital and physical experience both in daily driving and track environments. The visual center of the cabin houses a pronounced carbon-fiber profile, with a “space-ship” design that encloses the central air vents and the 8.4” vertical touchscreen, the technological heart of the car.
Lamborghini views this as a "new immersive, shared driving experience" between "pilot and co-pilot" (or driver and passenger), where they can view the same information in their own displays.
Sustainability
Sustainability and waste reduction efforts have become the modus operandi of the Lamborghini universe, and this ethos can be seen throughout the Revuelto. All the paints used are water-based rather than solvent-based. Upholstery materials, cut in the Lamborghini "selleria" utilizing latest-generation machinery, limit waste without affecting the "hand-made" quality craftmanship and embroidery for which Lamborghini is known. The upholstery combines fine leathers with the new ultralight Corsa-Tex fabric in Dinamica® microfiber, made of recycled polyester via a water-based production process.Personalization of Materials
The Revuelto offers the most potential for personalization, too, thanks to its offering of 400 bodywork colors and other options. Revuelto owners can customize the interior of their car by opting for a balanced mix of leather and Corsa-Tex, or favor one material depending on their preference, with 70 color options available.
A Smooth, Aerodynamic Ride
Carbon fiber, artfully crafted in the Sant’Agata Bolognese factory, is the principal structural element within the Revuelto, used not only in the aeronautics-inspired chassis (which Lamborghini has dubbed the "monofuselage") and frame, but also for many elements of the bodywork. Made out of carbon fiber and Lamborghini's patented forged composite material, the monofuselage is 10 percent lighter and 25 percent stiffer than the Aventador’s. The extensive use of carbon fiber and lightweight materials, combined with the potent engine power, contributes to achieving the best weight-to-power ratio in the history of Lamborghini: 1.75 kg/CV.
An Emotive Driving Experience
Between the unique architecture, cutting-edge chassis approach, aerodynamic design and the new hybrid powertrain, the Revuelto can maximize the electric motor support and introduce new driving modes, including electric 4WD, for a total of 13 different driving experiences.
“Revuelto takes a significant step forward in terms of reactivity and responsiveness to ensure the most emotive and natural driving in every environment," explains Rouven Mohr, Lamborghini Chief Technical Officer. "Revuelto is a car delivering the highest performance but our objective right from the start was to confirm it at the very summit of driving emotions.”
The Revuelto is unlike any other Lamborghini that has come before it. It closes out a chapter for the luxury Italian automaker spanning a half-century of gasoline-powered V12 cars and opens a brand new chapter of sustainable supercar-ing. As Winkelmann even commented at the Revuelto’s premiere in the Sant’Agata Bolognese factory: “With the presentation of the Lamborghini Revuelto, we start writing a new chapter in our considerable V12 history."
Deliveries will start in the last quarter of 2023.
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