Lamborghini capping production in 2020

Demand is outpacing supply.

Lamborghini is facing a problem many car manufacturers would like to have. Demand for its super-sports cars outpaces supply. The company has decided to cap production in order to maintain a high degree of exclusivity.

Company CEO Stefano Domenicali revealed Lamborghini will only build 8,000 cars in 2020. Australian website CarAdvice reports the Urus SUV will represent half of those units. The remaining 4,000 will be split between the Huracan Evo and the Aventador S; the V10-powered model will represent about two-thirds of the mix.

"The other factor that I'm very proud of is the fact that the Lamborghini brand is growing stronger and stronger with the younger generation. It's one of the reasons why we have to be at the right level when it comes to exclusivity," Domenicali explained.

He added the time customers spend waiting for a car is part of the experience of buying a high-end model like a Lamborghini. And, in a bid to become more tech-savvy, the company developed an app called Lamborghini Unica that lets buyers keep track of the production process. It even sends them a photo of their Urus when it's ready to roll off the assembly line. 

But, as Lamborghini's customer base gets younger, Domenicali stressed dealers need to be prepared to cater to more impulsive motorists who buy a car because it's cool, not because of the heritage of the brand that makes it. 70 percent of Urus buyers are new to the brand, so executives are still learning what they expect from the brand.

8,000 cars is a rounding error for a larger automaker like Ford or Chevrolet, but it's a significant increase for a small company like Lamborghini. The Italian firm sold 1,302 cars in 2010, 3,815 cars in 2017, and 5,750 in 2018.

Photo by Ronan Glon.