The 830 HP Essenza SCV12 is the most powerful Lamborghini ever built…
Forty extremely lucky buyers are about to join one of the most exclusive automotive clubs in the world, paying US$3.5 million for the privilege of owning Lamborghini’s first-ever track-only production supercar — the Essenza SCV12, which is also the most powerful Lamborghini ever built. With a V12 engine capable of producing over 830 horsepower, it was developed by Lamborghini Squadra Corse, the company’s racing division, and designed from the ground up by Lamborghini’s Centro Stile in-house studio.
While the Essenza SCV12 isn’t street legal, customers will have plenty to keep them occupied. The car comes with its own racing gram att the most prestigious FIA racetracks around the world, and also includes storage service in a new hangar at Lamborghini’s legendary headquarters in Sant’Agata Bolognese dedicated to the Essenza SCV12 Club. Each car will have a personalised garage while the facility will also house the Lamborghini Squadra Corse Driver’s Lab, offering athletic training programs similar to those used by Lamborghini’s official racing drivers.
The design of the car pays homage to iconic prototypes such as the Miura Jota and Diablo GTR, and though the result is unmistakably Lamborghini, it’s unlike anything the marque has produced so far. The Essenza SCV12 was photographed exclusively for MAXIM at the Pirelli HangarBicocca in Milan, a “valuable example of industrial archaeology, a place born to produce mechanical objects that is now an artistic space that hosts contemporary masterpieces” like Lamborghini’s latest hypercar. We spoke with Maurizio Reggiani, Lamborghini’s Chief Technical Officer about the eye-popping Essenza.
What is the key to the success of the Essenza’s design?
Our Centro Stile department worked together with engineering and integrated with the aerodynamics team in order to design a pure Lamborghini, but also one that takes into account the premises of aerodynamics that are fundamental when you need to steer this amount of horsepower…. The designers were able to perfectly incorporate aerodynamics and create an aesthetical feature in every single detail. [And] they were able to avoid making any compromises in order to guarantee the perfect balance of the car.
Have Lamborghini clients been asking for a multimillion-dollar track-only hypercar?
If you are Lamborghini, you cannot wait until the customer asks for something. Lamborghini must be a provocateur. I think it’s important to constantly have new ideas, new business plans and products. This project gave us the freedom to invent and to propose something truly unique. And based on this, you can then decide and define the price. It’s not important for it to be street legal; what’s fundamental is the kind of environment you offer together with the car, what kind of engagement the car can offer our customers, who then become part of a special club.
Will the Essenza SCV12 ever get the chance to compete against other track cars like the Ferrari FXX-K Evo and the McLaren Senna GTR?
The target of the Essenza SCV12 is not to compete with other cars, but rather to live in a special place where the members of this exclusive Lamborghini club can converse and evaluate the various ways to use and treat the car. And this is exactly what we will offer to our SCV12 customers. If a customer wants to go and have fun racing with a friend, they are entitled to that freedom; however, Squadra Corse will not organise races against other brands.
Is this the swan song for Lamborghini’s legendary V12 engine?
The V12 will have a long life in the future. Our brand was born with a V12 engine. The success of the Aventador today was made with the V12, and its eventual replacement will incorporate a V12 engine. It’s clear we need to support the V12 in terms of electrification in the future, but the sound responsiveness and combination of torque and power of the V12 will remain a part of our DNA. This means you will continue to see the V12 in Lamborghini’s pinnacle cars…. For example, all of our one-off and limited-edition vehicles, like the Sían, Centenario, Veneno, and our entire heritage are based on the V12. It is the crown of our product line-up and remains our masterpiece in terms of engineering. Our most extreme cars will always be built around the V12. ■
By JARED PAUL STERN
Photography by WOLFANGO SPACCARELLI SUPERCAR
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