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New Lamborghini Estoque saloon concept revealed
By
Chris Chilton
First Official Pictures
01 October 2008 20:00
After Lamborghini's endless string of frustrating teaser shots, here, finally, are the full pictures of the Aston Rapide-rivalling four-seat Lamborghini supersaloon, the Estoque.
The Lamborghini Estoque? Named after a bull, perhaps?
No, it’s actually the name of a bullfighter’s sword, as was Espada, the company’s front-engined GT of 40 years ago.
So why a four-door saloon?
Haven't you heard, they're all the rage... Porsche, Aston and Rolls all have high-price, high-prestige saloons on the way, cars that have stronger appeal to the luxury-conscious new markets like Russia and far east.
And with the economies of Europe and the US looking distinctly shaky now that credit has crunched and crumbled, that's where the smart companies like Lamborghini are looking for sales.
What’s under the bonnet of the Estoque?
The concept sports a V8, but Lamborghini is incredibly open-minded about possible powertrains. The Gallardo’s V10 will be offered but engineering boss Maurizio Reggiani told CAR that a powerful turbodiesel or possibly a hybrid petrol electric drivetrain would probably also be offered.
‘We will do everything we can to cut the CO2 emissions of this car,' said Reggiani, revealing that Lamborghini has set a target of 300g/km, a chunky 25g/km lower than the lighter, sleeker Gallardo currently manages. So the one engine the production Estoque won’t have is the Murcielago’s V12, but it will have a dual-clutch sequential manual transmission.
Click 'Next' to read more about the Lamborghini Estoque
Click here to read the latest Lamborghini Estoque report from the Paris motor show and watch the video of the unveiling
