2009 Lamborghini Murciélago LP 670-4 SV
Lamborghini's next Murciélago will be lighter, cleaner, and roomier than the current 2010 Lamborghini Murciélago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce, shown here. See pictures of the 2010 Lamborghini Gallardo.

Consumer Guide's Impressions of the 2012 Lamborghini Murciélago

Attention teenagers and wealthy speed-freaks: Lamborghini is about to unleash an even faster, sexier top-line supercar. But the redesigned Murciélago also promises to be lighter, cleaner, and roomier. So it's more practical, right? Ha!

What We Know About the 2012 Lamborghini Murciélago

Automobili Ferruccio Lamborghini has been building high-performance four-wheel fantasies for nearly 50 years, Italian thoroughbreds to trump the best Ferraris, Porsches, and any other supercars you could name. From the 1980s Countach to the 1990s Diablo and on to the new-millennium Murciélago, Lambos are the poster cars of choice for teenage gearheads and the ultimate bling machines for monied grownups with a need for speed.

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Now, just in time for its golden anniversary, Lamborghini is preparing a redesigned replacement for its uplevel supercar, the Murciélago, which has been around since 2002. The new version is expected as a 2012 model arriving in calendar 2011, with the March Geneva Auto Salon in Switzerland rumored as the coming-out venue. Britain's Autocar magazine, citing a company source, says the name will likely be Jota. The late Ferruccio Lamborghini was fond of bullfighting, and most Lamborghini model names have been drawn from that sport (however obscure the connections to non-aficionados). But until the name change is official, we'll refer to the "Jota" as the 2012 Lamborghini Murciélago.

Like the car it replaces, the 2012 Lamborghini Murciélago will be a burly, low-slung two-seat coupe and Spyder convertible (the latter due a year or two into the program) with a big-power V12 lurking behind the cockpit and driving all four wheels. The AWD reflects the influence of Volkswagen Group's Audi Division, which has owned the legendary Sant' Agata-based sportscar maker since 1998 (the latest of several proprietors that includes the former Chrysler Corporation).

In other respects, this is a clean-sheet design, though it builds on the final iteration of the outgoing Murciélago, the recently announced LP670-4 SV (for SuperVeloce, "super fast"), slated for just 350 copies at around $450,000 a pop. Key goals for the SV were less weight and more power for enhanced performance, high-speed stability, and handling prowess. The 2012 Lamborghini Murciélago will doubtless take these measures a few steps further.

The changes begin with the structure, which goes from a steel-tube latticework with carbon-fiber addenda to an Audi-style aluminum spaceframe paneled in alloy and carbon fiber. We estimate this and other weight-saving measures will make the new Murciélago some 200 pounds lighter than the SV, which itself scales 220 pounds below the "standard" LP640 coupe.

A speculative computer graphic published by Road & Track suggests the new architecture will also bring markedly altered proportions, with a shorter nose, a longer tail, a definite "cab-forward" profile, and a roof sharply peaked just aft of the windshield. Styling, too, should mark a clean break from today's Murciélago, with a crisp, stealth-fighter look a la the recent limited-edition Murciélago-based Reventon coupe, especially in front. Pivot-up "scissor" doors, a big-Lambo trademark since the Countach, are certain to continue. The added rear body length implies a possible speed-linked motorized spoiler as a new feature. Wheelbase looks to be stretched some 3 inches, judging by R&T's illustration, which would jibe with the magazine's forecast of a roomier cockpit. (Some find today's Murciélago rather limited for head- and legroom.) R&T also predicts broader axle tracks, which could add 2 inches or more to the current car's formidable 81-inch overall width.

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