Lamborghini has long held mythic sway over car aficionados. Its exotic flying-saucer design, its horsepower on steroids, and its deafening engines have been a powerful draw for fans such as comedian Jay Leno and actor Jamie Foxx. But for years, Lamborghini suffered from financial woes and quality problems. The Italian super-sports-car maker went through six owners in 16 years and spent 1978-81 in bankruptcy. So for most of Lamborghini's 44-year history, it has been a mere speck in Ferrari's rearview mirror, selling just about 250 cars a year.
Now an infusion of German cash is helping Lamborghini burn rubber. In 1998, automaker Audi bought the company. After spending some $500 million revamping production and developing models, Lamborghini has the scale to mount a real challenge to Ferrari. In 2006, Lamborghini says it sold more than 2,000 cars, and sales in the U.S. shot up 48% in the first 10 months alone. The company today has about 100 showrooms worldwide, up from only 45 in 1998. Ferrari still has roughly twice as many dealers, but in 2007 Lamborghini plans to add 10 more in such far-flung locales as Mumbai and Kiev.
Besieged with orders, Lamborghini's factory in Sant'Agata Bolognese, near Modena, is running full tilt, turning out 10 cars daily. That's brisk, considering it takes a worker an entire day just to cut and hand-stitch one leather seat. Still, it's not fast enough for all the Lamborghini lovers getting in line. Both the 640 hp Murcielago and the 520 hp Gallardo have a one-year waiting list. "Lamborghini was always a hotter brand than Ferrari," says Garel Rhys, a professor of automotive economics at Cardiff University in Wales. "But it never translated into higher sales."
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