Los Gatos Lamborghini reopened its doors after 10 months of renovations to reflect the brand’s “new identity” at a cocktail reception Tuesday, Aug. 16.
The dealership, located at 620 Blossom Hill Road, was decked out with luxury cars, floating appetizers and cocktails, waitstaff, a DJ and cappuccinos.
The new, sleek look of the dealership comes as Lamborghini unveiled its plan to release an entire fleet of plug-in hybrid vehicles in 2023 and 2024. The anticipated all-electric vehicle will follow in 2028, said Lamborghini Chairman and CEO Stephen Winkelmann.
“Due to the emission rules, we have to adapt,” Winkelmann said. “Also, the younger generations are telling us, ‘Yes, we want more sustainable cars on one hand, but on the other hand the performance of the cars of tomorrow have to be better than the ones of today.’ So this is the challenge we are in.”
The company will spend more than $1.8 billion to create the hybrid fleet of its SUV and performance-centric supercars by 2024, Bloomberg reported. Lamborghini’s first-ever electric vehicle will be unveiled in 2028, Winkelmann said.
Most other luxury car brands have already pledged to pivot to all-electric vehicles. Bentley said every vehicle built will be battery-electric by 2030, Audi will stop developing combustion engines by 2026 and Rolls-Royce will showcase its first EV this fall.
California is considering legislation that would mandate 70% of new car sales to be EVs by 2030, and 100% by 2035.
Winkelmann said Lamborghini considered hybrid and electric vehicle options, as well as synthetic fuels that are non-polluting and can still be run through combustion engines.
“We’re going to see how this works out in the next (few) years, but basically it’s legislative, which is putting us in a position to move and do things,” Winkelmann said. “But we also feel responsible for sustainability.”
Lamborghini’s factory in Italy is Co2-neutral. Worldwide, there were 70 million cars produced last year, of which Lamborghini produced around 8,400, Winkelmann said.
In the first six months of 2022, Lamborghini delivered 5,090 vehicles globally, the highest number in the company’s history and up nearly 5% from last year’s numbers. The company has sold out its vehicles for the next 18 months.
California is the largest market for the luxury car dealership in the US, and in the top five markets worldwide.
“It’s a very important market for us,” Winkelmann said. “We are here for the reopening of this dealership, and it’s an important event also because Silicon Valley is a vibrant place in the world, which is very much future oriented.”
Winkelmann will be attending Monterey Car Week later this week before Lamborghini’s global announcement about its latest model, the Huracán Tecnica.
“We are building the dreams. It’s not that you need a car like this, but this is something that you buy to fulfill you may have had since you were a child,” Winkelmann said. “And that’s what we have to keep alive in this business.”
