Lamborghini to update the Huracan with rear-wheel steering and 48-volt electrical subsystem

Lamborghini had been expected to refresh its entry-level model – the Lamborghini Huracan – in late 2018 or early 2019. But here is some good news for fans of the Lamborghini Huracan: the new sports car would be updated beyond just a typical refresh.

According to a report by Car and Driver, citing a senior engineer at Lamborghini, the Italian carmaker plans to give the 2019 Huracan a rear-wheel steering capability as well as a higher voltage electrical subsystem. These updates should improve the Huracan’s capabilities for greater levels of on-the-road performance.

The first of the updates involves having the new Lamborghini Huracan adopt a rear-wheel steering system from its larger sibling, the Lamborghini Aventador S. In the Aventador S, this rear-wheel steering system managed to reduce its wide, truck-like footprint to that of smaller sports car.

This rear-wheel steering system is expected to have the same effect on the Huracan once implemented, resulting to better maneuverability at low speeds and sharper handling. This because a rear-wheel steering system has the rear wheels turn in the same direction as the front wheels, resulting to greater stability at higher speeds. At low speeds, the system has the rear wheels turn in the opposite direction as the front wheels, resulting to a tighter turning circle.

However, adopting the rear-wheel steering system could result to higher cost. This has executives at Lamborghini thinking twice about adopting the system on the Huracan, since it is supposed to be the sports car maker’s “entry level” model.

Meanwhile, the other update pertains to the addition of a 48-volt electrical subsystem like the ones employed on its cousins, the Audi SQ7 and Bentley Bentayga. This 48-volt electrical subsystem will serve as a complementary unit to Lamborghini’s primary 12-volt system.

It is expected that Lamborghini will adopt adaptive anti-roll bars that will twist with the help of high-powered electric motors. These adaptive anti-roll bars are currently employed by Bentley on its Bentayga SUV. Furthermore, Lamborghini is expected to adopt electric rotary dampers from Audi. Both of these technologies would allow the new Lamborghini Huracan to offer greater levels of cornering performance.

Citing its source, Car and Driver also reported that Lamborghini will still employ the current 5.2 liter V-10 engine on the new 2019 Huracan. However, the source disclosed that Lamborghini might not be able to squeeze out more power from the V-10 engine, which reached its peak output (631 hp or 470 kW) in the Huracan Performante.

As fitted in the base Huracan, this V-10 engine delivers 602 hp (448 kW) of output and allows the model to sprint from zero to 62 mph (100 km/h) in just 3.2 seconds. Nonetheless, Lamborghini might release two faster versions of the Huracan – a GT3 and a road-going Superleggera.