Lamborghini Sian makes dynamic debut with limited-run Ducati

The new Lamborghini Sián - a hybrid hypercar packing 808bhp from an electrified V12 - has been shown on the move for the first time as subsidiary company Ducati unwrapped a matching version of its Diavel 1260 sports motorbike. 

Limited to 630 units, the Diavel 1260 Lamborghini is finished in the same Verde Gea and Oro Electrum livery as the Sián and swaps a number of standard components for lightweight, performance-focused items, including forged wheels and carbonfibre bodywork elements. Hexagonal exhaust tips and a subtle Y-shaped motif on the saddle are nods to some of Lamborghini's characteristic modern styling cues. 

While the Sián sports the number 37, in reference to the birth year of the late Volkswagen Group chairman Ferdinand Piech, the bike wears the number 63 in reference to 1963, the year Ducati was founded. The two models can be seen together in the below video. 

Mitja Borkert, Lamborghini's head of design, said: “We are convinced that our design is strong and one of the most recognisable in the automotive sector. The unique silhouette, clean but extremely distinguished, defines the base of our design language.

"Our visionary design approach allows us to transfer our DNA to other products: this was achieved through strong teamwork, sharing our style and the advantage of being two brands inspired by the same values and a commitment to ‘fun to drive’."

The Sián is the most powerful and fastest-accelerating car Lamborghini has produced. 

When the model appeared in the flesh for the first time last year, Lamborghini announced it would enter production as the Sián FKP 37 as a tribute to ex-Volkswagen Group boss Ferdinand Karl Piëch, who died the previous month. Born in 1937, Piech was instrumental in bringing Lamborghini under the VW Group umbrella in 1998, helping the Italian maker to bring its pivotal Murciélago supercar to market.

Lamborghini CEO Stefano Domenicali said: "Prof Dr Piëch innately understood the attraction and potential of the Lamborghini brand and how it could fit within the Volkswagen Group, whilst retaining its unique Italian super-sports car identity and design and engineering DNA.

"Prof Dr Piëch was an engineer and an innovator, particularly appreciating the appeal of the iconic Lamborghini V12 powertrain on which today the Sián FKP 37 combines pioneering hybrid technologies."

The Aventador SVJ’s naturally aspirated 6.5-litre 12-cylinder unit has been uprated from 759 to 774bhp with the addition of titanium intake valves and is mated to a 48V electric motor producing 34bhp, for a combined total output of 808bhp. In what Lamborghini claims is a first for low-voltage hybrid powertrains, the electric motor is integrated into the gearbox and connected to the wheels for low-speed reversing and parking manoeuvres. The charismatic sound of the V12, Lamborghini assures, has been preserved.