An early September 2019 morning, at the IAA show in Frankfurt, Germany the massive Automobili Lamborghini Stand has three cars on display, a blue Urus, a satin red Huracan EVO Spyder and their first hybrid production car hiding underneath a black satin cover until the official press conference.
We all heard the rumors about the LB48H, a highly limited, Aventador based hybrid supercar made in Sant’Agata, taking inspiration from the fully electric Terzo Millennio combined with some of the more classic models in the history of Automobili Lamborghini SpA like the Countach for instance, and while this new car isn’t the first hybrid Lamborghini, that honor went to the Asterion, this is the first hybrid Lamborghini available for customers.
Performance
The Lamborghini Sián, a name taken from the local dialect in Sant’Agata that translates to ‘lightning’, comes with the well-known V12 engine coupled to a supercapacitor a first in the world of hybrid cars, this puts down a total power output of 819hp, the most ever in a Lamborghini production car 0 to 100 Km/h is accomplished in only 2.8 seconds and the top speed of the Sián is well over 350 Km/h.
The e-motor is incorporated into the gearbox, making it the first time a hybrid has a direct connection between the motor and the wheels this allows for low-speed maneuvers and parking on electric power only. Because the added power is 34 hp and the total weight of the supercapacitor and motor is also 34 kg, this is a perfect power to weight ratio of 1 Kg/hp.
On the Sián the Aventador derived V12 engine has been taken up to 785 hp, together with the 34 hp from the e-motor this results in a better power to weight ratio of the Sián compared to the already impressive Aventador SVJ note that the electric motor does disconnect above 130 Km/h.
Lamborghini Sián Interior & Exterior
The Lamborghini Sián had to be built around the Aventador central hub, but in this case the entire body has been radically redesigned up front we get a big overhang with lots of carbon fiber parts and the very special Y shaped driving lights seen on the Terzo Millennio concept, the actual headlights are housed in the vertical running carbon fiber insets between the front hood and the fenders.
Speaking about the front hood, note how the central part runs into an air intake in front of the windshield, a design element taken from the actual Lamborghini Countach prototype from the Seventies another clue taken from that same car is the roof design. Remember the Periscopio on the early Countach models, an opening in the roof that allowed the interior rearview mirror to be used through that design element inspired a glass section in the center of the roof on the Siän, running into the engine cover and this glass can be turned opaque by the touch of a button inside the Sián.
At the rear of the Lamborghini Sián we discover a set of four slats, these are adjustable cooling vents in fact, but there is no motor to open and close these in fact they are activated by thermal springs once the temperature inside the engine bay gets too high these vents are automatically opened, as if by magic only to close again when the engine cools down enough that is a very nice detail on the Sián, and it saves weight on motors and electronics.
In total, only 63 units of the Lamborghini Sián will be built in Sant’Agata, and every single one will be created for its lucky owner by the Centro Stile together with the Ad Personam studio no two Sián will be identical, every one of these 63 cars will be a unique, bespoke build the show car is finished in Verde Gea, a satin metallic green shade, combined with Oro Electrum a special multilayer paint that actually contains gold flakes and crystals.
On the inside, we encounter another custom touch a brown leather that is called ‘Terra di Sant’Agata Bolognese’, and for the first time on a production Lamborghini the interior holds 3D printed parts, like the air vents on the dashboard for instance, but also a stunning, clear carbon fiber central console where the start button is hiding underneath a gold-painted cover and the dashboard pod gets a new top design, also finished in clear carbon fiber.
The seats on the show car are the lightweight carbon fiber seats seen inside the Centenario, but now with a different stitching pattern, also the door panels show a new design while the central console shows a ’00 di 63′ plaque on the actual customer cars this will show ‘1 di 63’ I’ve been told, the cars will not be individually numbered.
On the Lamborghini Sián, the design was meant to be as clean as possible, no massive wings or canards, the only omission to this are the two vertical fins at the rear, finished in clear carbon fiber and proudly showing the 63 digits to celebrate the founding of Automoili Lamborghini Spa in 1963 but when the flush mounted rear wing comes into action it raises up to become an integral parts of these fins, the top of the rear wing sits flush with the top of these fins when raised, a very nice look indeed.
Price
There is no need to rush to your local Lamborghini dealership to order one of the 63 Sián they were all sold out a long time ago, in fact later on the day of the press conference at the 2019 IAA in Frankfurt, all 63 owners were invited to a private party by Lamborghini to enjoy the new car they will be adding to their collection in the near future but fear not, it seems Lamborghini will be creating a Sián Roadster too, and from what I have heard, the customers that ordered the Coupe are not eligible to order a Roadster, so you might be in luck and be able to get the first hybrid Lamborghini Roadster ever, just expect a steep premium over the price of the Coupe to have no roof.
By the way, if you would like to get a Sián finished in clear carbon fiber, like the Centenario for instance, you might have to swallow the €500,000 price for this option or you can opt for colored carbon fiber, Lamborghini offers the option to have parts on the Sián finished in a carbon fiber shade that matches, or contrasts with the painted parts of the body. the possibilities are endless, and the Centro Stile together with Ad Personam will sit down with the owner to decide just how bespoke their Sián will be.
Specification
Specification | Details |
---|---|
Engine | 6.5-liter V12 engine with 48-volt e-motor |
Power | 819 horsepower (602 kW) |
Torque | 774 lb-ft (1,050 Nm) |
Transmission | 7-speed ISR semi-automatic transmission with AWD |
Top Speed | Over 217 mph (350 km/h) |
Acceleration (0-60 mph) | 2.8 seconds |
Acceleration (0-100 km/h) | 2.8 seconds |
Weight | 3,571 lbs (1,620 kg) |
Length | 196.5 inches (4,990 mm) |
Width | 83.5 inches (2,120 mm) |
Height | 44.6 inches (1,130 mm) |
Price | $3.6 million USD (original MSRP) |