Photo credit: Lamborghini, Wheelsage
For a small manufacturer of passionate dreams, switching to a four-door model means radically changing market positioning and production volumes. After it was bought by the Audi Group in the 2000s, Lamborghini had this objective in its sights, planning to complement the 10- and 12-cylinder Berlinettas with a third model.
The Urus SUV project was among the hypotheses taken into consideration. The alternative was a four-door saloon with a powerful heart – the tried and tested V12 engine – that celebrated Ferruccio Lamborghini’s original idea: to build a perfect car both in terms of comfort as in performance.
In 2008, the creative team in Sant’Agata, led by the very talented designer Filippo Perini, presented the Estoque, a front-engined, four-door, four-seater saloon car, measuring 5.15 metres in length with an abundance of harmony and elegance.
One may ask: why did they do this when they knew that the disruptive path of the Urus was already taking shape? Probably, and we speak with a certain degree of knowledge of the facts, they needed a backup plan in case the Urus wasn’t approved by Audi, and had that been the case, this would have been the third model of the range.
Instead, the Urus got a resounding “yes” and the beautiful Estoque which, among other things, could have upset its cousin, the Porsche Panamera, was forced to join the large group of… fallen stars.
