Bentley said on Tuesday that it had its best year ever in terms of sales, and then Lamborghini, which also makes very expensive cars, said it did, too, selling ten percent more cars globally in 2022 versus 2021, or 9,233 cars, an all-time high. That’s more evidence, if you needed it, that while volume sales are still struggling, automakers that sell to rich people are doing just fine.
Lamborghini sold all those cars last year, in large part due to the Urus, its SUV, which accounted for 5,367 sold cars, which was seven percent more Uruses sold than in 2021. Beyond that, Lamborghini said it sold 3,113 Huracáns and 753 Aventadors, which are the last Aventadors.
Lamborghini’s breakdown of where those cars were sold is also interesting, especially the sales in Japan jumping so much:
The United States remains in the top spot (2,721 cars delivered, up 10% over the previous year), followed by Chinese Mainland, Hong Kong & Macau (1,018 cars delivered, up 9% over the previous year), Germany (808 cars delivered, up 14% over the previous year), United Kingdom (650 cars delivered, up 15% over the previous year) and Japan (546 cars delivered, up 22% over the previous year).
Stephan Winkelmann, who is Lamborghini’s CEO, also said, somewhat confusingly, that all of this growth was actually good for the exclusivity of the Lamborghini brand, which I guess is meant to wave away all the haters who said that the Urus would ruin Lambo’s brand or something.
“We have been able to carefully and meticulously manage an extraordinary order intake, pursuing a clear strategy with the primary objective of maintaining controlled growth to protect the exclusivity of our brand,” Winkelmann said in a release, before spiking the football a bit. “We now have the opportunity to focus on our next objectives also thanks to an 18-month waiting list, which enables us to look to the future and the upcoming goals with confidence.”
To be fair, Lamborghini is in a strong position, though the next big test is just around the corner as it transitions to hybrid Lambos and, eventually, all-electric ones, too. The appetite for those cars remains to be seen, but something tells me Lambo will make out just fine.