Lamborghini introduces its fifth incarnation of the epochal 60-degree V12 since 1963. No special tricks here, just brute horsepower for its new Murciélago replacement. Is this the last-ever V12 or a pointer to the future?
In the beginning, there was the V12. Designed by Giotto Bizzarrini for ambitious tractor magnate Ferruccio Lamborghini, Bizzarini's V12 was fitted to the first Lamborghini, the handsome 1963 350GT. Was that first Lamborghini engine based on Bizzarrini's 1.5-liter Grand Prix screamer, or Honda's similar unit, as suggested by L.J.K. Setright in 1973? Does it matter? And, besides, who would dare ask?
"I know Giotto," said Maurizio Reggiani, Lamborghini's R&D chief. "I've never asked him—there's a thing about respect..."
Reggiani was introducing the new V12, fifth in line from that Bizzarrini original, which has been progressively redesigned over the years and fitted to Formula One cars, offshore-racing powerboats and successive Lamborghini supercars: the Miura, the Countach, the Diablo and the Murciélago.
The new engine follows the pattern of a 60-degree V12 with double overhead camshafts, but the car it will be fitted into, the Murciélago replacement, won't be seen until next spring's Geneva Motor Show. We have a clue as to what it will look like, however, with the all-carbon-fiber Sesto Elemento (Sixth Element) concept car from September's Paris Motor Salon.
"With this new V12, we are heralding a technological leap that encompasses all areas of the company and our future model range," said Stephan Winkelmann, president and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini. "Lamborghini will redefine the future of the super–sports car. This 700-hp engine, together with an all-new concept gearbox, will be at the heart of the Murciélago successor next year."
The Specs
While the novelty of an all-new V12 engine is intriguing, especially in this age of tighter fuel-economy regulations, the really startling thing about this unit is that Lamborghini has unapologetically stayed with a naturally aspirated engine with conventional port fuel injection rather than adopting the direct injection route taken by its VW-owned sister company, Audi. In other words, at a time when rivals such as Ferrari are seriously talking about smaller-displacement turbocharged, direct-fuel-injected engines, Lamborghini is not just producing a naturally aspirated V12, but it is also an old-school, short-stroke, big-block screamer. The introduction to the engine consisted of a video of the unit singing its heart out at 8,500 rpm on the dynamometer at the company's base in Sant'Agata, near Bologna, Italy. This was a mechanical aria of a premier engine.
The new engine is made of aluminium–silicon alloy, with an open-deck construction and steel cylinder liners. It has a forged steel crankshaft, with twin overhead camshafts and variable timing. At the top end, inlet air is drawn through four throttle bodies into a plenum chamber with internal valves that change the volume, optimizing airflow at a variety of engine speeds. There are two cooling circuits: a small volume system to speed warmup and reduce cold-start emissions, and a larger system for high-temperature control. The exhaust also has valves that open at high revs to divert the flow through a low-restriction (and noisier) muffler.
With a 95-millimeter bore and 76.4-millimeter stroke (the old engine measured 88 and 89 millimeters, respectively), the new motor displaces 6.5 liters. The short-stroke design means this engine was made to rev, and its 700-hp power peak spikes at a lofty 8250 rpm. Torque is likewise strong—509 lb-ft—but that figure also occurs high up in the rev range, 5500 rpm.
Lamborghini claims a "clean sheet" design for the engine, which used several bits of interesting technology. Each pair of pistons runs in its own sealed chamber, which is served by its own scavenge pump—there are eight in all. Each chamber acts as its own air spring, so the downward movement of one piston pushes the opposing piston on the same crankpin upward in opposing vee, reducing frictional losses. It's also a dry-sump design so the engine could be mounted lower in the frame, improving weight distribution for better handling.
Of course, modern electronics are part of the package. And the computer controls nearly everything, including the throttle and even the robotized six-speed transmission and clutch.
The Transmission
Like the Murciélago, the new supercar will be four-wheel drive, via a central electrohydraulically controlled Haldex center coupling. Unlike Ferrari and the VW Group, which utilize dual-clutch automated gearboxes (DSG), Lamborghini is persevering with a robotized single-clutch manual transmission made by Graziano that's operated either automatically or via steering-wheel- mounted paddles. While Lamborghini claims this transmission is lighter and more compact, we generally prefer the smoothness of DSGs. Known as the ISR (independent shifting rods) transmission, the seven-speed (plus reverse) gearbox uses integral plumbing in the casing to actuate shifts. The unit has carbon-fiber synchros. Shift times have been reduced by up to 50 percent, and Lamborghini claims that in its fastest, or Corsa mode, shift times can be as low as 50 milliseconds.
The Bottom Line
While the rest of the world contemplates life without even V8 engines, Lamborghini is unveiling its most outrageous power unit yet. What's more, the company claims the unit will meet all current and next-generation emissions and fuel-consumption regulations. It wouldn't be an option available to a mass-market carmaker, of course, but we're delighted that this motorsport- inspired V12 is far from dead. Giotto Bizzarrini must be delighted.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/industry/lamborghini-brings-back-the-v12
