Lamborghini expects to sell more than 8,000 cars in 2019, CEO Stefano Domenicali said. But the maker of supercars might have reached a self-imposed ceiling.
"We must not go on growing forever. We now have to consolidate these results and preserve exclusivity," Domenicali said at an event on Tuesday for the inauguration of the new paint shop inside its Sant’Agata Bolognese plant in Italy.
The 2019 sales level is "the right dimension of our company with our current product portfolio," Domenicali said.
That does not exclude growth from opening new markets. A possible increase of Lamborghini sales to 10,000 units a year could happen only with the addition of a fourth model, Domenicali said. That would have to be discussed with shareholders, he said.
Thanks to the significant increase in sales, Lamborghini forecasts an increase of 2019 revenue to 1.7 billion euros ($1.92 billion) from 1.42 billion ($1.6 billion) in 2018, CFO Paolo Poma said. That, in turn, will help profit margins, with return on sales forecast to jump this year to around 12 percent — comparable to Lamborghini’s best competitors, Poma said.
What’s not in Lamborghini’s plans is an electric supercar, he said, as "our customers are currently not interested" in such products.
Lamborghini's whole range will be hybridized by 2025 as the brand seeks to lower CO2 emissions to meet market trends and tougher regulations.
The Urus SUV will not add the V-10 and V-12 engines of the sports cars to its current V-8 turbocharged engine. As for possible less powerful engines, the future Huracan successor could possibly use a turbocharged engine, said Domenicali, but not the Aventador.
On the track, Lamborghini is involved in GT3 and Super Trofeo racing competitions. Formula One involvement is not in the plans because the investment would be too high, Domenicali said, but Lamborghini is evaluating other racing platforms such as hypercar.
