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Lamborghini marks 2022 as the last year for its petrol powered cars.

The Sant’Agata-based car brand will transition to hybrid power and then go fully electric under its “Direzione Cor Tauri” (Towards Cor Tauri) program.

In 2021, Lamborghini launched special versions of its iconic models, such as the V12-powered Lamborghini Countach LPI 800-4, paying homage to its internal combustion engine era.

Lamborghini said in a press release that other special editions will follow this year.

Lamborghini will transition to hybrid power by the end of 2024, aiming to launch its first hybrid production car in 2023 and have a full-hybrid lineup by the end of 2024.

The company added that it had earmarked nearly $2 billion over four years to support the shift to electrification.

All-electric Lamborghinis are scheduled to launch in the “second half of the century”, after which all Lamborghinis will be electric.

Lamborghini said the brand aims to launch a fourth all-electric model by 2030.

Cor Tauri, the brightest star in the Taurus constellation, references the sign chosen by founder Ferruccio Lamborghini in 1963. It represents the brand’s move towards an electric future, but remains true to the personality the brand is known for.

Lamborghini’s 2030 plan also addresses a sustainability strategy from the production line to the office.

The brand’s Sant’Agata production site was certified carbon neutral in 2015, a status it has maintained even as capacity has doubled since then.

Lamborghini concluded that further reduction of carbon emissions, environmental protection, sustainability of the supply chain, focus on employee well-being and corporate social responsibility are also part of this strategy.

Before founding the company, Lamborghini commissioned engineering firm Società Autostar to design the V12 engine for its new car. Lamborghini wants the engine to have a displacement similar to Ferrari’s 3-liter V12. However, he wanted the engine to be designed for road use, in stark contrast to the modified racing engines Ferrari uses in its road cars.

Autostar was led by Giotto Bizzarrini, a member of the “Gang of Five” of Ferrari engineers who was responsible for building the famous Ferrari 250 GTO, but left the company in 1961 after founder Enzo Ferrari announced his intention to restructure the engineering staff.

Bizzarrini designed the engine, known today as the Lamborghini V12, it has a displacement of 3.5 liters, a compression ratio of 9.5:1, and a maximum output of 365 PS (268 kW; 360 hp) at 9,800 rpm. Lamborghini was unhappy with the engine’s high revs and dry sump lubrication system, both characteristics of racing engines he didn’t particularly want to use.

When Bizzarrini refused to change the engine’s design to make it more “polite,” Lamborghini refused to pay the agreed fee of 4.5 million Italian lire (plus a bonus engine that can produce more per unit of brake horsepower than an equivalent Ferrari).

Lamborghini didn’t fully compensate the designers until the court ordered it, which is pretty ironic considering that Lamborghini cars used Bizzarrini’s V12 design variant for nearly half a century from 1963 to 2010.

The first Lamborghini chassis design was designed by Italian Gian Paolo Dallara of Ferrari and Maserati and a team including recent university graduate Paolo Stanzani and New Zealander Bob Wallace, known at Maserati for his keen chassis sense and excellent handling feedback and development skills. The body was designed by a relatively unknown designer at the time, Franco Scaglione, who was chosen by Ferruccio Lamborghini after ignoring highly regarded names including Vignale, Ghia, Bertone and Pininfarina.

Lamborghini designed and built the 350GTV in just four months, just in time for its October unveiling at the 1963 Turin Motor Show. Due to ongoing disagreements with engine designer Giotto Bizzarrini, a working powerplant for the prototype was not available in time. The car was shown in Turin without an engine under the hood.

According to legend, the Ferruccio Lamborghini’s engine bay was filled with bricks so the car could sit at the proper height from the ground and ensured that the hood remained closed to hide the missing engine. The automotive media gave a warm response to the 350GTV.

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