Lamborghini Kills Its First EV, Calls Them An 'Expensive Hobby'

It’s been nearly three years since Lamborghini did the unthinkable and took the wraps off an electric car. Although it was only a concept, the Lanzador was presented as a window into Sant’Agata Bolognese’s EV future, with plans to launch a production version in 2028. However, it didn’t take long for the exotic Italian marque to realize that high-end customers would be reluctant to buy a car without a combustion engine.

In late 2024, the model’s launch was pushed back by a full year to 2029. Now, the all-electric Lanzador has been canceled. Lamborghini CEO Stephan Winkelmann admitted in an interview with The Sunday Times (subscription required) that the firm’s target audience has little desire to make the switch to EVs, saying interest in a raging bull without a V8 or a V12 is "close to zero."

The head honcho admits Lamborghini needed more than a year to decide whether the Lanzador should reach the assembly line. After extensive internal debates and meetings with customers and dealers, the company chose to pull the plug at the end of 2025. The 61-year-old German executive sees EVs as an "expensive hobby," requiring a significant financial outlay with little return.

'Investing heavily in full-EV development when the market and customer base are not ready would be an expensive hobby, and financially irresponsible towards shareholders, customers [and] to our employees and their families.'

But the Lanzador isn’t entirely dead. The Audi-owned brand intends to launch a plug-in hybrid version with a gas engine by the end of the decade. Similarly, the next-generation Urus won’t go fully electric either, with Winkelmann claiming that Lamborghini "couldn’t risk [a Urus EV]" for fear it wouldn’t sell. Instead, the new Urus, arriving around the same time as the Lanzador, will retain a plug-in hybrid setup.

Although the EU is pressuring automakers to pursue electric vehicles and decarbonize their lineups, Lamborghini is holding tightly to combustion engines. Winkelmann argues that EVs fail to deliver the “emotional connection” of a gas-powered car. Going the plug-in hybrid route is viewed as the best compromise, satisfying both regulators and buyers.