Automobile Lamborghini S.p.A. is an Italian brand and producer of luxury supercars, sports cars and SUVs based in Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy. The company is owned by the Volkswagen Group through its subsidiary Audi. Ferruccio Lamborghini, an Italian manufacturing magnate, founded Automobili Ferruccio Lamborghini S.p.A. in 1963 to compete with established marques, including Ferrari. The company gained wide acclaim in 1966 for the Miura sports coupé, which established rear mid-engine, rear wheel drive as the standard layout for high-performance cars of the era. Lamborghini grew rapidly during its first decade, but sales plunged in the wake of the 1973 worldwide financial downturn and the oil crisis. In 1998, Mycom Setdco and V'Power sold Lamborghini to the Volkswagen Group where it was placed under the control of the group's Audi division.
Lamborghini grew rapidly during its first ten years, but sales plunged in the wake of the 1973 worldwide financial downturn and the oil crisis. Ferruccio Lamborghini sold ownership of the company to Georges-Henri Rossetti and René Leimer and retired in 1974. The company went bankrupt in 1978, and was placed in the receivership of brothers Jean-Claude and Patrick Mimran in 1980. The Mimran's purchased the company out of receivership by 1984 and invested heavily in the company's expansion. Under the Mimran's' management, Lamborghini's model line was expanded from the Countach to include the Jalpa sports car and the LM002 high performance off-road vehicle.
As of the 2017 model year, Lamborghini's automobile product range consists of two model lines, both of which are mid-engine two-seat sports cars. The V12-powered Aventador line consists of the LP 700–4 coupé and roadster. The V10-powered Huracán line currently includes the all-wheel-drive LP 610-4 coupé and roadster, as well as the less powerful rear-wheel-drive LP 580-2 coupé. Lamborghini intends to double its car production by producing as many SUVs by 2018 as sports cars. Motori Marini Lamborghini produces a large V12 marine engine block for use in World Offshore Series Class 1 powerboats. A Lamborghini branded marine engine displaces approximately 8,171 cc (499 cu in) and outputs approximately 940 hp (700 kW).
In the mid-1980s, Lamborghini produced a limited-production run of a 1,000 cc sports motorcycle. UK weekly newspaper Motorcycle News reported in 1994 – when featuring an example available through an Essex motorcycle retailer – that 24 examples were produced with a Lamborghini alloy frame having adjustable steering head angle, Kawasaki GPz1000RX engine/transmission unit, Ceriani front forks and Marvic wheels.The motorcycles were designed by Lamborghini stylists and produced by French business Boxer Bikes. Lamborghini licenses its brand to manufacturers that produce a variety of Lamborghini-branded consumer goods including scale models, clothing, accessories, bags, electronics and laptop computers.
