THAT’S MORE like it. No more spikey wedges aimed at nouveau riche. Lamborghini is tapping into the Matt Monro-filled alpine hedonism of the Muira with the rather splendid Asterion. You would still need to be riche to afford one, but now its decided less nouveau. A more horizontal gesture banishes (almost) the wedge to bedroom walls, reminding of the sublime Espada. It is still visually potent–this is a Lamborghini, after all–but there is now a gentlemanly poise to the Asterion. It is more dignified, more assured, and with 910PS one can understand why.
An electric motor in the Lamborghini Asterion is the main benefactor of this output, though the battery is not the only thing that makes it a hybrid. The name speaks of the unspeakable between an Opel Astra and a Mitsubishi Starion.
Thankfully the nomenclature is as far as their genes spread (though it is conceivable that the Mitsubishi Starion, properly managed, could have been a contender in another life. Instead we got the Colt).
The Asterion marries a long wheelbase, big wheels, upright-ish screen and distinct bonnet. I love those headlamps perched above the bonnet, and though the tail-lamps are a little tech-y for me, their broad badge-framing layout is certainly attractive. The crest of the bodyside vent slightly over-reaches the core line, matching the cavity in the front fender, and the wheels are spectacular: just the right amount of detail to contrast the clean body. Simple designs can easily to slip into banality, but these deft touches keep this Lamborghini special.
The interior is beautifully finished and the design well-resolved. The warm colours remind me of the 2001 Audi Avantissimo concept, another brand shaper, and make a welcome change from cool greys. Along with the VW Taigun, it is another sign that Volkswagen Group interiors are becoming less austere. However the overall theme is quite conservative. A little too little. I get the suave businessman aesthetic with his select symbols of distinction, but looking at the interior I see the fuss-free Italian suit, not the nacre collar-bones.
In the Asterion, Lamborghini has produced their most believable and desirable concept yet. No word on when it might be made, but with body-side vents that large and such neatly integrated details, it has clearly been created with production in mind. Start counting your lucky stars.
Honestly I would feel like such a goofball driving that, I’d have to sneer at myself. Good thing I’m not riche.
Now an Espada on the other hand, I could do that. Would have to be lime green with a slightly worn interior though…
Cool… It finally looks like a classy, normal looking car, like a mix of a Miura and Espada, with a hint of Uracco and Silhouette.
I think every Lamborghini made after the Diablo, looks like a friggin door stop.
Ferrari needs to take a look at this concept and go back to the drawing board… Because their latest cars look like wads of chewing gum with a “prancing horse” stuck to the front. Eww.
I like it…they’d gone as far as they could in the current styling idiom, I think. This is a nice change to more organic shapes. And I actually quite like the simplicity of the interior.
I disagree with your “could have been a contender” assessment of the Starion though! Pretty impressive car, especially in the later wide-body variant… Maybe “could have been a champion” is more appropriate had certain things been better executed. But that’s beside the point…
The new Ford GT should have looked more like this (but with round taillights) instead of being festooned with so much gingerbread. Aaron posted pictures here if anyone hasn’t seen it:
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/car-show/the-2015-north-american-international-auto-show-a-biased-viewpoint-from-an-opinionated-man-part-i/
This is a link to the Ford GT website where more pictures are available for download should anyone be interested
A Lamborgini is supposed to be outrageous. That’s generally been the only reason to choose one over a Ferrari for the past 40+ years. Take that away and you have just another coupe that could be made by anybody. The only thing noteworthy on this design is the octagon rear window, which looks like something from an 80’s house. Interior is forgettable.
Of course, that’s just my opinion. And since I will never be buying one, that doesn’t count for much.
That front end has me thinking “smiling shark”.
I think the front reminds me of a De Tomaso more than anything else.
Yeah, I thought of a De Tomaso GT40. Which is not a bad thing.
I love the clean overall look. Not sure about that shark like front end. But to me it does look better than anything Lamborghini has built in a long time, including the Countach. That car was a horrible mismatch of round and square. But I hybrid? That would definitely leave me out no matter how much money I had. If I were wealthy, I would probably go for a seriously souped up mid ’60s Sting Ray. I think it would be a lot more fun.
I’m not the biggest fan of the hips on the rear, but the front looks great to me!
I think that I’m a little out of the market on price, though. 😉
I utterly hate it, leave organic to Ferrari, wild styling IS Lamborghini. The Miura was what started Lamborghini’s wild styling, there was nothing practical or conventional in it’s design at that time, if you consider that thing classy compared to the wedgy cars to follow you’re diluting yourself. This looks like a supercar Volkswagon would come up with…. Oh wait, it is…
One of the key cool features of the Espada is it’s VERY low and long, and laden with all kinds of wild (borderline tacky) details like the naca ducts and random vents. This is hardly evoking even a smidgen of that. This is modern day automotive blanding at it’s very worst, and it’s a hybrid, goodie, the 1% can feel less guilty.
agreed. i think top gear nailed it. there wouldn’t be anything wrong with it as a high end audi, etc. but it’s doesn’t fit within the lamborghini heritage.
Yeah I saw that, Ironically I thought they were being much too hard on the Huracan in that segment by applying that criticism to it. The Gallardo was hardly ever the wild crazy space ship Lambo the V12 cars were, it looked more like an established Ferrari design(picture a Testarossa without side stakes) than a Lambo, and even had conventional doors. On the streets they were/are certainly thicker on the ground than the Murcielago and Aventador with celebrities. To say Lamborghini went soft with the Huracan from that seems like a real stretch, and I personally think the styling is more on par with what I expect with a Lamborghini than the Gallardo even in it’s wildest form.
I really haven’t been top of current events in the automotive world(hence why I like it here so much) so I don’t know how long the Asterion concept has been in circulation but it seems to me that this is the Lambo that would have planted the seeds of doubt in Lamborghini’s direction in the minds of the Top Gear personalities, not the Huracan. It just seems to have served as the vehicle(no pun intended) to express those troubling thoughts to the public.
I feel similarly. I’m a little torn because in isolation I don’t dislike this design: It’s neatly rendered, tasteful, obviously expensive, etc., but, well… it looks like a car designed by Germans. Considered as a Lamborghini — and a Lamborghini show car — it just doesn’t move the needle at all.
Since the original Miura, Italian exotics have been about pushing the styling envelope. They haven’t necessarily been practical or even tasteful, but they’ve been out there redefining the edges of the contemporary automotive aesthetic and making small children goggle-eyed. If the best we can expect from a high-end Italian show car is a fairly bland shape and a few “heritage design cues,” what’s the point? For that, I could just buy a new Mustang.
Reminds me of a more sporty version of the Ferrari 456. Maybe a little tame for Lamborghini, but a nice, classy shape. The video-game styling trend of current supercars is getting really stale.
I can’t agree with the “Lambo must have wild styling” meme. To me, the Miura is the definitive Lamborghini, not the Countach: the Miura defined the whole concept of mid-engine exotic. IMHO the Miura is better looking than any Ferrari, and this at least has the same basic shape and proportions, though it lacks some of the cool styling details of the original.
The thing is, the Miura was a wild design. There was a sort of prevailing aesthetic among high-end exotic cars that was really pretty conformist and the Miura threw a monkey wrench into that. It was not as cartoonish as the Countach, but it was a major departure stylistically from the mid-60s mainstream.
The Miura was a wild design, back in it’s day. Not so much today. It has nice rounded styling, instead of being all straight and angular. I never liked the Countach, and to me the Aventador is even worse, with the Veneno being downright hideous.
I do agree with those who feel Lamborghini should stick with it’s roots, I feel the same way about American muscle cars. I was horrified by the 2015 Mustang, and it appears the Camaro and Challenger may go that way soon as well. But then I’ve never really been a Lamborghini fan. My favorite Italian car of all time was the Ferrari 308GTB. That is the Ferrari I grew up with. It had a very “pure” bodystyle, compared to the botched up look of the Countach, where the body lines just did not fit together. I like nice flowing bodylines that make the car look like it is all one piece, rather than a bunch of mismatched parts stuck together.
Looks like a great Ford concept, but as Lambo it’s rather anodyne. Needs more ray guns and triangles.
the front end just looks like a shark. love it.
Luvverly !
The side tratment has hints of Ferrari 456 – or classic mellow Pininfarina lines, if you like.
Definitely more “real” than any other recent Lambo.
(sorry Mike G., I red your comment only after replying, but I’m glad I’m not the only one under this impression.)