History 1990s: NSX, updates

In 1991, five years after the debut of the Legend and Integra, Acura introduced the NSX, a midship V6 powered, rear-wheel-drive sports car. The NSX, an acronym for "New Sports eXperimental", was billed as the first Japanese car capable of competing with Ferrari and Porsche. This vehicle served as a "image car" for the Acura brand, heralding the introduction of Honda's VTEC technology. The NSX was the world's first all-aluminum production car, and was also marketed and viewed by some as the "Everyday Supercar" thanks in part to its ease of use, quality and reliability, traits that were unheard of in the supercar segment at the time. With the release of the NSX, Acura introduced the "A-badge", a stylized drafting compass used by mechanical engineers and architects to imply that Acura vehicles are built to precise and demanding standards.

Despite a strong start in market acceptance for the Acura brand, sales suffered in the mid-to-late 1990s. Some critics attributed this decline in part to less inspiring designs, which were re-branded Japanese-spec Hondas, such as the Acura Vigor in 1992, a response to the Lexus ES and Infiniti J30. Additionally, during this time Acura switched to an alphanumeric nomenclature formula, dropping the Legend, Vigor and Integra titles, following the lead of the NSX sportscar. The 1996 3.5 RL, which replaced the popular Legend, and the Vigor became the 2.5 TL and 3.2 TL, and was regarded by many as the epitome of this problem, namely because the alphanumeric designations were more anonymous than the former Legend, Vigor and Integra titles, which had grown into their own cult followings.[5] Also, the RL's 210 horsepower (160 kW) V6 (later increased to 225 hp), together with a high price and styling that cautiously copied the larger rear wheel drive and V-8 powered Lexus LS 400, did little against BMW, Audi, Lexus, and other competitors.

During this time, the NSX also lost sales as Acura made few changes from its original 1989 trim. A year later, the Integra sedan was withdrawn from the Canadian market, replaced by the market-exclusive Acura 1.6EL, a rebadged Honda Civic. The Integra sedan continued to be sold in the United States until 2001 (in name only, the model it was replaced with, the RSX, was simply a rebadged left-hand-drive version of the JDM DC5 Honda Integra).

Despite these letdowns, Acura gained prominence in the 1990s with a young group of customers: "tuner" enthusiasts. Parent company Honda's reputation with this demographic as a maker of "easy-to-tune" and "rev-happy" engines rubbed off onto Acura, and the Integra became a popular tuner car.

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History of Acura 1980s: The Acura brand

Following a decade of research, Honda opened 60 new dealerships in North America, by 1986, to support its Acura automobile division. Acura was the first Japanese luxury brand to be introduced, and its initial offering consisted of two models: the executive class Legend, a V6-powered sedan, and the compact class Integra, available as a five-door and three-door hatchback. The Legend was the result of Project XX, a joint venture Honda entered into with the Austin Rover Group of Great Britain and was mechanically related to the Rover 800 series, and the Integra was an improvement of the Honda Quint hatchback. The success of these models, particularly the Legend, led to competing Japanese luxury brand ventures (Toyota's Lexus that began development in 1983 as the F1 project, and Nissan's Infiniti who began development in 1985 by revising their Japan-only flagship Nissan President; in the late 1990s Mazda planned but never launched its own Amati luxury division). The goal of the Legend was to compete with rivals Toyota Crown and the Nissan Cedric and Gloria, but due to its 1986 introduction worldwide, Toyota, Nissan and other companies like Lincoln took notice of the markets reaction to the Legend and later the Vigor and offered vehicles that addressed the executive size car. Toyota introduced the Lexus ES, Nissan introduced the Infiniti J30 and Lincoln utilized the Taurus platform and named their new sedan the Continental.

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Acura

Acura is the luxury vehicle division of Japanese automaker Honda Motor Company. The Acura brand has been used in the US, Canada, and Hong Kong since March 1986 to market Honda's luxury and performance vehicles and near-performance vehicles. The Acura brand was introduced to North America partly because Japan imposed Voluntary Export Restraints for the USA market, and it presented an opportunity for Japanese manufacturers to export more expensive cars.

The brand was introduced to Mexico in 2004 and to China in 2006. Honda's plans to introduce Acura to the Japanese market have been repeatedly delayed: the 2008 launch date was put back to 2010[2] and then in a December 17, 2008 announcement[3] from Takeo Fukui, CEO of Honda, it was postponed to an undetermined date.

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Motorsport

In contrast to his rival Enzo Ferrari, Ferruccio Lamborghini had decided early on that there would be no factory-supported racing of Lamborghinis, viewing motorsport as too expensive and too draining on company resources.[citation needed] This was unusual for the time, as many sports car manufacturers sought to demonstrate the speed, reliability, and technical superiority through motorsport participation. Enzo Ferrari in particular was known for considering his road car business merely a source of funding for his participation in motor racing. Ferrucio's policy led to tensions between him and his engineers, many of whom were racing enthusiasts; some had previously worked at Ferrari. When Dallara, Stanzani, and Wallace began dedicating their spare time to the development of the P400 prototype, they designed it to be a road car with racing potential, one that could win on the track and also be driven on the road by enthusiasts. When Ferruccio discovered the project, he allowed them to go ahead, seeing it as a potential marketing device for the company, while insisting that it would not be raced. The P400 went on to become the Miura. The closest the company came to building a true race car under Lamborghini's supervision were a few highly modified prototypes, including those built by factory test driver Bob Wallace, such as the Miura SV-based "Jota" and the Jarama S-based "Bob Wallace Special".

Under the management of Georges-Henri Rossetti, Lamborghini entered into an agreement with BMW to build a production racing car in sufficient quantity for homologation. However, Lamborghini was unable to fulfill its part of the agreement. The car was eventually developed in-house by the BMW Motorsport Division, and was manufactured and sold as the BMW M1.
The 1991 Lotus 102B, which featured a Judd V8 in place of the unreliable Lamborghini V12 used in the original 102.

In the 1980s, Lamborghini developed the QVX for the 1986 Group C championship season. One car was built, but lack of sponsorship caused it to miss the season. The QVX competed in only one race, the non-championship 1986 Southern Suns 500 km race at Kyalami in South Africa, driven by Tiff Needell. Despite the car finishing better than it started, sponsorship could once again not be found and the program was cancelled.

Lamborghini was an engine supplier in Formula One between the 1989 and 1993 Formula One seasons. It supplied engines to Larrousse (1989–1990,1992–1993), Lotus (1990), Ligier (1991), Minardi (1992), and to the Modena team in 1991. While the latter is commonly referred to as a factory team, the company saw themselves as a supplier, not a backer. The 1992 Larrousse–Lamborghini was largely uncompetitive but noteworthy in its tendency to spew oil from its exhaust system. Cars following closely behind the Larrousse were commonly colored yellowish-brown by the end of the race.

In late 1991, a Lamborghini Formula One motor was used in the Konrad KM-011 Group C sports car, but the car only lasted a few races before the project was canceled. The same engine, re-badged a Chrysler, Lamborghini's then-parent company, was tested by McLaren towards the end of the 1993 season, with the intent of using it during the 1994 season. Although driver Ayrton Senna was reportedly impressed with the engine's performance, McLaren pulled out of negotiations, choosing a Peugeot engine instead, and Chrysler ended the project.
A Murcielago R-GT participating in the FIA GT Championship at Silverstone in 2006.

Two racing versions of the Diablo were built for the Diablo Supertrophy, a single-model racing series held annually from 1996 to 1999. In the first year, the model used in the series was the Diablo SVR, while the Diablo 6.0 GTR was used for the remaining three years. Lamborghini developed the Murciélago R-GT as a production racing car to compete in the FIA GT Championship, the Super GT Championship and the American Le Mans Series in 2004. The car's highest placing in any race that year was the opening round of the FIA GT Championship at Valencia, where the car entered by Reiter Engineering finished third from a fifth-place start. In 2006, during the opening round of the Super GT championship at Suzuka, a car run by the Japan Lamborghini Owners Club garnered the first victory (in class) by an R-GT. A GT3 version of the Gallardo has been developed by Reiter Engineering.[70] A Murciélago R-GT entered by All-Inkl.com racing, driven by Christophe Bouchut and Stefan Mücke, won the opening round of the FIA GT Championship held at Zhuhai International Circuit, achieving the first major international race victory for Lamborghini.
Source: wikipedia.org

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Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4

The Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 specs have just leaked online, and it looks like the new Italian supercar will offer an impressive level of performance.

We also found out that Lamborghini's Murcielago replacement could actually be called Emilia even though nothing was confirmed yet. We suspect that the Italian manufcaturer will go with the Aventador as it will probably keep its tradition of naming its supercars after Spanish bulls.

So powered by a 6.5-litre V12 engine which will deliver 700 HP to all four wheels via a new, 7-speed automatic transmission with ISR (Independent Shifting Rods) that can change gears in 50 milliseconds, the new Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 will only need 2.9 seconds to accelerate from 0 to 100 Km/h (0 to 62 mph).

Tipping the scale at just 1575 Kg, with the weight distribution between the axles beeing 43:57, the Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 will be able to reach top speeds of 350 Km/h, and if you do the math, the car's power-to-weight ratio is 2.25 Kg/hp.

As far as dimensions, the Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 is 4,78 meters long, 2,03 meters wide and 1.14 meters tall (3 cm less than the Murcielago).

Further details also indicate that the Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 will have a fuel tank with a capacity of 90 litres, 19 inch rims front and 20 inch rims at the rear (tires 255/35 and 335/30) plus carbon ceramic brakes with six-piston calipers as standard.

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2011 Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 Bicolore

Lamborghini presents the Gallardo LP 560-4 Bicolore – An extreme look for a Special Edition supersports car. Just a month before the world debut at Geneva Motor Show of its V12 replacement for the Murcielago, Automobili Lamborghini is presenting at the 2011 Qatar Motor Show a highly exclusive and appealing vehicle makin g its world premiere.

Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560-4 is a two-tone Special Edition super sports car, designed to hit the Asia-Pacific and European markets, with the LP 550-2 version available for the U.S. market, with intention while offering an exclusive look striking design. The car offers a full range of standard equipment and, as has been implied by its name, a set of two-tone interior features a wonderfully described aggressive personality.

Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Automobile Lamborghini said “With the Gallardo LP 560-4 Bicolore, Lamborghini demonstrates once again the extreme, uncompromising and unmistakably Italian nature of our brand. The super sports cars from Lamborghini combine volcanic energy with design that is as unique as it is stylish,”

Clean lines and dynamic Gallardo LP 560-4 has been highlighted by a refined contrast between the black roof and body color. The intense experience of the explosive dynamics and absolute control is provided by the brutal power of 560 hp V10 engine and managed to demonstrate once again the extreme, uncompromising and unequivocal character of the Italian brand.

Aluminum alloy wheels with 15 spokes fine Skorpius improve the outward appearance, while the air intakes and the front spoiler has a glossy black color. The most beautiful “Nero Perseus” was used for leather seats inside the dashboard, door panels and other items in the cabin. A long list of optional equipment and accessories such as satellite navigation system, rearview camera, heated seats, allowing the vehicle customization. Vast experience in carbon fiber for light engineering has allowed the weight of the Lamborghini will be reduced by another 70 kg. The Spyder Gallardo LP 560-4 attracts pilots with extreme driving pleasure, combining maximum protection with a similar trip to a hurricane.

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