By Andreas Cremer
PARIS, Sept 27 (Reuters) – Italian super sports car maker
Lamborghini is bracing for flat vehicle sales next year as the
global economic slowdown weighs on luxury purchases in key
markets including China.
Lamborghini, owned by the German Volkswagen
automotive group, expects 2012 sales of its two model lines, the
new Aventador and the Gallardo, to post double-digit growth from
last year’s 1,602 global deliveries, Chief Executive Stephan
Winkelmann told Reuters at the Paris auto show on Thursday.
Sant’Agata-based Lamborghini, part of VW’s ultra-luxury
stable with Bugatti and Bentley Motors, sees signs that the rich
are holding back on purchases in China, the brand’s No. 2 market
after the United States, Winkelmann said.
Conversely, the United States, the Middle East, Southeast
Asia and parts of Europe are adding momentum to sales, the CEO
said. The current order bank for the Aventador accounts for 15
months’ production, according to Winkelmann.
Lamborghini still awaits a final decision from parent VW to
produce its first sport-utility vehicle in almost two decades.
The so-called Urus model, unveiled in Beijing in April, is
designed to tap rising demand for SUVs in emerging markets.
Winkelmann, who sees potential for about 3,000 unit sales of
the Urus per year, said that even if approved by VW, the model
wouldn’t hit showrooms until 2017.
(Reporting By Andreas Cremer)
