Lamborghini has finally
added a hybrid to its lineup,
and it's kind of bad for the environment.
When you think of hybrids,
you think environmentally friendly, right?
But Lamborghini is taking
a different approach,
using hybrid technology
to boost performance
without taking fuel
efficiency into consideration.
Which raises the question:
Should automakers use hybrid systems
to increase speed rather
than reduce pollution?
Hybrids have grown in popularity
since they were first
introduced 20 years ago.
Now, almost every automaker
offers a hybrid option,
and most hybrids can double
the gas mileage of a standard car.
But Lamborghini's foray
into electrification,
the Sián FKP 37, doesn't save fuel.
The Sián is a blend of the
Terzo Millennio concept
and the iconic Countach.
Instead of fuel efficiency,
Lamborghini is focusing on performance.
And perform it does.
It's the fastest Lamborghini ever,
with a top speed of over 217 mph,
and goes 0 to 62 in
just under 2.8 seconds,
just two-tenths of a second
shy of Tesla's Model S.
There's no doubt that Lamborghini saw
what electric motors could do
and wanted to try something
different for itself.
The Sián's engineering is ingenious.
Instead of a battery pack,
Lamborghini opted for a supercapacitor,
which is lighter,
fire-resistant, more powerful,
and fully charges in
a fraction of the time
of a battery pack.
The only downfall is the lack of range,
which limits the Sián's
fully electric drive mode
to parking and reversing.
But the supercapacitor is
the secret to making it
the fastest-accelerating Lamborghini ever,
virtually eliminating
lag between gear changes,
providing instant torque
via the electric motors,
and fully recharging during
the regenerative braking process
to repeat its performance
around the track.
But Lamborghini's chief
technology officer says
the supercapacitor is not
too hot for emissions.
Meanwhile, Lamborghini's sister company,
Porsche, produced the 918 Spyder,
a super-hybrid that boasts
a top speed of 211 mph
and makes the 0-to-62 run
quicker than the Sián, at 2.6 seconds.
But even more impressively,
it achieves a
miles-per-gallon rating of 22,
and a 67 mpg of gasoline equivalent
while running on the hybrid drivetrain.
And it came out in 2013.
The Porsche accelerates faster,
has a comparable top
speed, and still manages
to be more fuel-efficient
than the Lamborghini Sián.
The point is, you don't have to
sacrifice efficiency for performance.
So, are hybrids and
electric cars the answer
to our climate-change problems?
Probably not. But they could
have a big role to play.
The EPA says that up to 75%
of carbon monoxide emissions
in US cities come from motor vehicles.
So, yes, automakers do
have a big role to play.
There could be some positive
steps in the company's future.
Lamborghini states that they
plan to use battery packs
instead of supercapacitors
in their next hybrid,
which should produce better gas mileage.
But the problem is, for right now,
Lamborghini's one and only hybrid
doesn't do much for fuel efficiency.
