Is Lambo on the way out..?

It isnt just @ Lambo apparently

Ferrari idling engine plants and laying off workers

Autoblog

All is not well in Maranello. It would appear that the ripples of the global recession have finally reached mighty Ferrari. According to Bloomberg, the Italian supercar manufacturer has decided to cool production and send a healthy handful of workers packing amidst the announcement that production targets have been nearly halved for 2011. The report points the blame directly at Maserati. Ferrari's sister company has scaled back its orders for Ferrari-built engines, leaving both companies' coffers light.

Ferrari is contemplating drastic moves in order to maintain its profitability, including nixing 120 office positions and 150 factory jobs. The company also wants to idle its production facility for a full week – effectively laying off nearly 600 workers in the process.

Needless to say, the announcement has led to unrest, and workers walked out in protest for four hours yesterday. But numbers are numbers, and Ferrari has said that it will cut production from 20,000 units this year to 11,100. For what it's worth, last year, the company built 4,500 engines for Maserati – exactly half of what it built for 2008.

 

Probably true. I don't think niche car makers can do this on their own anymore. The old days of making a heavy V12 monster by hand are numbered. If the Porsche 918 really is as fast as claimed, and meets mpg requirements, it probably points the way to future supercars.

See for example Lotus, prior to the Elise. I think they were only moving a few hundred Esprits a year. You sometimes had to go to the next state to find one or get it serviced.

It does sort of reinforce the gold chain/pick-up-chicks image that dogs the Lamborghini marque.

Which is a shame, because I think the Gallardo Spyder is a handsome car. I would enjoy owning one, but I don't think the brand is quite what it once was.

 

They just need to come out with new models. The Gallardo and Murci have been around forever..

In the time the Murci has been around Ferrari has had three models.

 

Dear Lamborghini,

Bawhhahaha!

C'on...not one gold chain or black silk shirt was shown in the pix !

....they were kept where they belong.....in the tool kit.


Shamile

Freeze....Miami Vice !

 

Keith there is no question that contemporary Lamborghinis have an image issue that stunts their marketability to some serious car collectors.

 

A pity because the G is a truly fantastic piece of engineering and I actually find it more tidy than the 36o/430 insofar as the air inlets, lights and other bits seem more integrated and less "added on" than the Ferrari. Plus, when I was shopping new exotics I got the red-headed stepchild treatment by Ferrari.

Some kind of market contraction is no doubt on the horizon, as I don't know that there is enough demand to absorb exotics from Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, McLaren, Lotus, and support stand-alone dealers for each marque.

 

I wasn't even born

but I guess the same thing happened with the Miura in it's prime

or am I dead wrong ?

 

Yes and clearly you never meet a ******bag driving an F car.

 

Lamborghini was a boutique/niche company back then, with total model output in the hundreds. The rarity and audacity of the cars was probably enough. The Miura was effectively a bespoke car.

I don't think you can compare the modern company, which is effectively an arm of Audi. When the Audi TT, R8 and Lambo Gallardo share components, it gets harder to rationalize Lamborghini as an exotic. The fact that we can discuss the Audi R8 and Gallardo in the same conversation kind of sums it up. The Countach used to be so far off the charts of performance and normality that the only production car to line up against it was the Ferrari 512 BB.

 

I wonder what the effect will be when, and if, Lotus introduces the 'next' Lotus Esprit ? Especially, if they position the price correctly and do not attempt to be "piggish" from the get-go.

 

Keith, I think the manufacturers will soon be looking at new markets, such as the Far East (China, Hong Kong). I never thought I would be sending USA spec cars there, but, times are changing.

 

I think you missed the word 'some' in my post, and assumed I meant 'all'. Not so.

 

Correct.

 

Agreed as well. I think the Estoque may be something Lamborghini can effectively use to help their sales.

I mean, if Porsche can bring in a SUV & a 4-door (remembering that people scoffed at the idea of Porsche doing so) at prices similar to the 911 range, and then have both suddenly become the highest selling cars, why not Lamborghini? Yeah, it may not sit well with the die hard Lamborghini guys to watch Lambo "sell out" & bring a 4-door, but if it can support the development of the other cars, I'd be for it.

My 2 cents.

 

+1, they may have little choice but to bring out an SUV and/or sedan.

I think they also ought to have a strong motor-sports presence (even though the marque was founded for the road - times have changed) and I think they need to actively market to motor-sports enthusiasts.

 

Joe what's really strange to me is how they're concentrating the racing effort you think is needed, and I agree totally with you, on Audi. Tomorrow there's a great Sports Car Race The 24 Hours of Nurburgring:

http://adac.24h-rennen.de/Home.168.0.html?&L=1

where next year I'll be racing P 4/5 Competizione. Look at the Pole sitter and top qualifiers,the Audi version of the G! This would be a perfect venue for Lambo and would get it huge publicity and they make no official effort at all. Also true of Le Mans. Crazy.

 

Jim, in recent years I have just been baffled.

 

Lamborghini to me has never gotten out of "Countach" mode. Every car since seems to be related to it somehow. And, for sure right now they are suffering from a lack of new product development.

What they needed desparately was a new Espada using the 10 cylinder motor. They need something more than a two 2 seater exotics to sell.

Complain all you want about Ferrari but the line up they have from the 2 plus 2 California convertible to the F430/458 Italia to the 599 to the 612 to the "super" limited cars give them a broad appeal to different people -- and therefore more sales. Sure, 2 seat sports cars are Ferrari's bread and butter but it takes more than that too keep a factory running.

Lastly, Ferrari involvement in racing is an unbroken chain while it constantly brings racing technology into their cars. Lamborghini may have the same technology but people are more wowed by the extreme body design or the glaring color schemes. That's great... but like any style you eventually go out of fashion. That's why Lamborghini's sales are now weak... there's a lack of passion created from "been there/seen that" syndrone.

Can they get their mojo back? Sure. It's a great brand. They just need new products that stretch their product portfolio out into a broader base. They need to keep that edgy-ness without relying on the past. They need to be the future --like the Muira and Countach were in their day. Of course, that's easy to say and difficult to do but that's what made Lambo's so great -- breaking the mold and being outrageous. Hey... if little ol' Pagani can do it, so can Lambo.

When I saw the new Muira concept, I thought it was horrific. The Muira is a icon. Don't try to improve on it because you can't. I felt the same way when Ford made a "new" 427 Cobra concept. Leave icons alone and create new ones for a modern age. That's how Lamborghini can grow. I just don't know if Audi has the brass balls to do it.

 

It not just Lamborghini. I grew up in the hotrod time, cars were everything, they were in movies, they were a culture, not now. Young people I talk to today say your cars are nice but I'd rather have car that has more use. They are leaning towards being green, and think a cube car is cooler than a Lambo or a Ferrari. I have teenage neigbors and very very few of their friends I speak to say they aspire to own a car like any of mine. Keep in mind where I live most of the kids come from money, and they know about high end cars. When I was younger everyone wanted a Porsche or Lambo, or Ferrari someday. Not so now, as Bob said, the times they are a changin

 

This is VERY true.

Best

 

I believe someone in another thread on fchat said things cycle every 30 years or so.

Wasn't this similar to the 70s during the gas crisis the focus shifted on car ownership and only the die+hard car guys still kept the moment going and aspired to own their dream ride? I'm an 80s child so I don't know if this is true or not.

 

Dear Lamborghinisti,

I don't know if I really agree with that. Everywhere I go...people freak-out on the Lamborghini. They are so awed by the car because it's so "in your face" and since most kids grow up with 4 cylinders these days....a big 12 is just toooo much. Most people count the spark plugs because they can't believe it.

Most kids don't really think about owning one, one day...to far in the future for thinking....but they still think it's "way cool"


Shamile

Freeze....Miami Vice !

 

Dear Lamborghinisti,

I really don't see how you get the blow-off from Ferrari.

Forgetting about the few Ferrari supercars, Lamborghini is a more prestigious marque as a Lamborghini costs way more to purchase and more rare than the average Ferrari. Many times I've been in the Ferrari and the "dis" is " sooo...couldn't afford a Lamborghini"....that's the public perception....and one I hold.

I've always loved Lamborghinis precisely for their over the top designs....finishing with the Diablo series. It's automotive art to the extreme. It's not a "super sports car" like a Ferrari, it's a rolling piece of artwork....and the response I get from the Lamborghini compared to the Ferrari reinforces that.

I was invited to an invitation-only unveiling of the new Ferrari 458 Italia at my Ferrari dealer. I brought my "A game" and drove my Lamborghini Diablo VT Roadster....a far more extreme car than any "run of the mill" F430. The only thing that could even compare would be an F 40, 50 or Enzo....which none were to be found.

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=283946

While the 458 was really nice....it just wasn't as exotic as a Diablo....that's what I want in a car...EXOTIC !!

Perhaps with the G, they've made too many and too long. It has more of an association with Audi than Lamborghini and the "wow" factor is long gone. In the time the Murci and G have been around, how many new F models have there been? While I don't like any current F car, you have to give it to Ferrari for keeping things fresh.

I'll keep my Lamborghini Diablo any day to a Ferrari... but that's just me.

...even forget about the chicks for a moment....I just love the Lamborghini Period !

Even the old stereotypes, I think were more of the Countach era. Most people I run into at the gas station don't even know that. To them, it's just the height of automotive design.


Shamile

Freeze...Miami Vice !

 

Without a doubt, Lamborghini has evolved into a 'look at me' car. It has no heritage either racing or otherwise. Since the Miura, which was one of the most beautiful car's of it's time, Lambo has played on radical design and HP for it's selling points. HP that isn't needed for road driving........most people I know don't track their Lambos, so why do so many owners refer to performance which they'll never use.

So c'mon, fess up, why did you buy your Countach, Diablo, Gallardo or Murci....because it gets you noticed or,should I say, the car gets noticed.

I've owned a Countach and a Diablo and I must say they weren't really a great driving experience, other than the looks I, or most likely, the car got!!!

The Countach was hellish on a hot day with mediocre A/C and windows that only opened a few inches, and the Diablo gave me headaches every time my head hit the upper A-pillar when going over a bump in the road.

No, Lambos today are made to attract attention, and that eventually will put the company in ruin unless it changes its ways.

People who claim they bought their Lambo for performance are totally misqued in my mind!

YMMV

 

Nothing quite like coming over and sh*tting in the Lamborghini sandbox.

Now where's my pooper scooper?

Bob S.