What was most surprising is how much traction the idea of a Lamborghini hybrid got when the automaker revealed the Asterion concept car. What is not so surprising is that any hopes of a production model are dead in the water.
Speaking to Autocar, Lamborghini CEO Stephan Winklemann said that the hybrid was built to demonstrate what would be possible from the exotic supercar maker if emission regulations forced them to move towards a partially electric powertrain. “A Lamborghini super-sports car is driven maybe 3,000 miles a year, not every day, so the electrification has to offer an added intensity to justify its inclusion.”
Lamborghini unveiled the concept at last year’s Paris Auto Show, where the hybrid concept boasted 610 horsepower from a 5.2-liter V10 engine, combining with three electric motors that would boost the output to 910 hp. With this kind of power, the Asterion would’ve been able to leap from zero to 60 in three seconds flat, topping out at 198 mph.
Three of the world’s top performing supercars all feature a hybrid layout, like Porsche’s 918 and the McLaren P1, but the Asterion would be much lower-tiered and priced at around $400,000.
In its place, Lamborghini will be moving forward with the Urus SUV, going from concept to production by 2018. Little is still known about the upcoming utility vehicle, but it will presumably share a platform with the Audi Q7 and the upcoming Bentley Bentayga, all of which are built by VW group. Power output is unknown, but Lamborghini is shooting for a target of “around 600 bhp” and a top speed of at least 186 mph. If that seems specific, its because that’s the fastest speed most tire makers guarantee for 4×4’s.
While we wait for Urus details, we’ll just imagine the Asterion concept being packed in a crate and sent to the same expansive warehouse the Ark of the Covenant was shipped to at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.