Lamborghini Highlights Commitment to Carbon Fiber with Mitsubishi Deal

Lamborghini has demonstrated its commitment to carbon fiber through announcement of backing for Mitsubishi Rayon. The announcement of the deal was made at an industry event in Japan.

Mitsubishi Rayon is one of the key manufacturers of carbon fiber in Japan and is a textile company that is owned by Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings, which is the largest manufacturer of acrylic fibers in Japan.

As part of the deal, Lamborghini will provide financial support to Mitsubishi Rayon for further research and development with regard to techniques for large scale manufacture of both vehicle shells and carbon fiber panels.

Lamborghini has been using carbon fiber as a component in its vehicles for the past 30 years, long before other automotive manufacturers considered using carbon fiber in order to reduce vehicle weight and thus maximize fuel efficiency. Currently, Lamborghini uses ‘regular’ carbon fiber panels as well as forged carbon composite which is used as a component in the Centenario and for a few optional parts that are available for the Huracan and the Aventador.

While regular carbon fiber is in the form of sheets of carbon fiber, forged carbon composite takes the form of a paste of carbon fibers. This paste can be easily molded into a wide range of shapes. As an outcome of the partnership with Mitsubishi Rayon, Lamborghini is hoping to strengthen its expertise in the use of carbon fiber to make vehicles that are more lightweight and technologically advanced.

According to Lamborghini’s board member for research and development, Maurizio Reggiani, “By continuing to develop our patented Forged Composite materials, we are able to create a product that can enhance Lamborghini super sports cars in both their performance and their appearance.”