"NARRATOR:" "An Italian factory builds a legendary super sports car." "They build it almost entirely by hand, body, paint, assembly and a massive 12-cylinder engine." "MAN:" "There's nothing better than a 12-cylinder engine." "The sound, the power." "All that work eventually pays off in a driver's hands." "The Lamborghini Murcielago SV is the most extreme and the fastest" "Lamborghini we've ever made so far." "Murcielago." "Murcielago." "Murcielago, very best." "NARRATOR:" "To build the Lamborghini Murcielago SV, you need a mega factory." "There are several super sports car makers in the world." "But Lamborghini believes its cars stand out." "Lamborghinis, they always have to be extreme, uncompromising and Italian." "They are louder, they are larger and they are sharper designed than the competitors." "Our cars will always be the bad boys amongst the super sports car business." "Those super sports cars are a rare sight on roads anywhere in the world, except near the village of Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy, about 32 kilometres north of the city of Bologna." "This rural farming community is home to Automobili Lamborghini SpA, the factory that has crafted legendary super sports cars since 1963." "In 2008, this factory produced a record 2,430 vehicles." "Almost 1800 were the company's bestselling car, the Gallardo." "But just over 630 of them were the company's flagship model, the Murcielago." "One automotive journalist described the Murcielago's power as apocalyptic." "Zero to 100 kilometres per hour in 3.4 seconds." "A top speed of 340 kilometres per hour." "The power comes from a 640-horsepower V12 engine." "Harnessed by an all-wheel drive system for tenacious handling." "And that power delivers more speed because the car weighs less." "Most of its body is lightweight carbon fibre." "It's one of the world's fastest super cars." "But now Lamborghini has topped it with a new version, the Murcielago SV." "SV stands for "super veloce" which means, in English, super fast." "NARRATOR:" "The SV is super fast from a boost of 30 more horsepower and a weight reduction of 100 kilograms." "There are also several performance and cosmetic modifications." "The factory is producing a limited number of these vehicles." "We will only make 350 Murcielago SV, because this is increasing the exclusivity of this car." "NARRATOR:" "The price of that exclusivity is high." "The Murcielago SV sells for 300,000 euros." "So now workers on the Murcielago line must build the SV in addition to the standard coupé and roadster versions of the car." "On top of all that, every car on the line is custom built to a customer's specific order." "Mass-produced cars may have 100 or more assembly stations." "The Murcielago line has just 14." "Every worker on the line must memorise a complicated two-and-half-hour work sequence for their station." "The people which are working on the Murcielago are our best specialists, basically." "NARRATOR:" "About 130 people work on the factory floor, on the assembly lines, in the upholstery shop where the Murcielago's interior is hand crafted and on the engine assembly line where the car's engine is hand-built." "On the engine line, eight technicians working at eight stations will give the Murcielago SV its 670 horsepower." "It will take 12 hours to make one engine." "All Murcielagos get their power from a 6.5-litre V12 engine." "To professional drivers, the benefits of a 12-cylinder engine are obvious." "I prefer the 12 cylinders because you can have the best torque and power available." "NARRATOR:" "The engine's heart is its crankcase." "It has two banks of six cylinders that hold 12 pistons." "But first the engine block has to be flipped and the bottom removed, so the crankshaft can be installed." "With the crankshaft installed, it's time to prepare the cylinders for piston installation." "First, the cylinders are misted with lubrication." "Next, each piston is oiled around the piston rings." "The fit between the piston and cylinder wall is tight." "Care must be taken not to scratch the cylinders with the edges of the piston head." "That's why a round metal guide and plunger tool are used to gently seat the pistons." "Further down the line, a metal and silicon gasket is put on top of the cylinders." "It's all in preparation for the installation of the cylinder heads." "They hold the four valves per cylinder that will let air and fuel into the cylinders and take exhaust out." "The cylinder heads are then torqued down." "The intake manifold is a major reason why the SV engine generates 30 more horsepower." "The manifold is redesigned to allow for more air and fuel intake than the standard Murcielago engine." "The exhaust manifolds are the last major parts to be attached." "Now the engine is complete and ready for testing." "The test checks the engine's mechanical linkages, its seals and its ability to withstand heat." "During the test, the engine reaches a temperature of 850 degrees Celsius." "After it cools down, the engine is attached to its six-speed transmission, rear gearbox and drive shaft, forming the drive train." "The most powerful production engine in Lamborghini history is finished." "Just six hours before it's needed for installation on the main assembly line." "The Lamborghini Murcielago's 12-cylinder engine gives it the power to be one of the fastest cars in the world." "But every super sports car that rolls out of this Italian factory owes its existence to something as slow as a farm tractor and an ambitious man named Ferruccio Lamborghini." "Well, Ferruccio Lamborghini was... was practically a farmer." "NARRATOR:" "By the mid 1950s, that farmer had built an industrial empire by manufacturing farm tractors." "With his wealth, Ferruccio Lamborghini bought a Ferrari." "But Mr Lamborghini found himself needing frequent clutch repairs on his Ferrari." "He had his tractor mechanic look at the problem and discovered his Ferrari used the same clutch as his tractor." "You know, he was putting tractor parts on his beautiful Ferrari." "NARRATOR:" "Soon afterwards, Ferruccio Lamborghini confronted Enzo Ferrari about the perceived clutch problem." "BALBONI:" "Ferrari told him, "You are a farmer." "Keep driving your tractors and don't complain about my... my cars."" "NARRATOR:" "Enzo Ferrari's words ignited a fiery Italian rivalry." "BALBONI:" "Ferruccio Lamborghini was very upset about that and he told Ferrari," ""I will show you how to make a sport car."" "NARRATOR:" "In 1963, Ferruccio Lamborghini had built a new factory and was producing his first car, the 350 GT." "It had a 12-cylinder 280-horsepower engine." "In 1966, Lamborghini introduced what some consider the world's first super car, the Miura." "Its 12-cylinder engine was moved to the mid-rear position for improved handling." "Ferruccio Lamborghini reinvented the super sports car business with the Miura." "He was a trendsetter, a clear trendsetter." "NARRATOR:" "Ferruccio Lamborghini had plans to follow the Miura with a bold new car." "But before he could see his new car come to life, he sold his company in 1972, due to financial difficulties in his tractor business and the OPEC oil crisis." "Two years later, in 1974, the car Ferruccio Lamborghini envisaged was released." "It was called the Countach." "The whole aspect of the car, so brutal, aggressive, you know, was... was fantastic." "NARRATOR: it marked the début of the famous Lamborghini scissor doors." "The Countach was replaced by the Diablo in 1990." "In 1998, Lamborghini was acquired by Audi." "The first car released under new ownership was the Murcielago." "Just beneath the car's paint is something Ferruccio Lamborghini had never had the opportunity to work with, carbon fibre." "The entire body is made of carbon fibre except for the steel roof and doors." "Painting the Murcielago's carbon fibre body is challenging." "With two production lines taking up most of its space, the factory doesn't have room for a paint shop." "So they send the unpainted body shells 35 kilometres away to the town of Mirandola." "Autocarrozzeria Imperiale has painted many models of Lamborghinis since the early 1970s." "All of the carbon fibre parts of the body must be sanded to rough up the surface so the paint will stick to it." "The sanding process also smoothes out any blemishes on the carbon fibre surface." "Before the car gets its colour, it must be primed." "It's painted entirely by hand." "With just 2. 7 of these vehicles being painted a day, there isn't enough volume to justify the expense and time to program robots." "The primer is beige in colour and applied in two coats." "The paint is cured in a 70 degree Celsius heated room for two hours." "After the primer dries, the surface is wet with a special solvent that helps reveal minor flaws that are visible only to trained eyes." "When the flaws are spotted, the craftsmen carefully sand them away." "Now the car is ready for its colour." "Hand-painting the colour coat is a two-man job." "One painter paints only the interior side of the body parts, like the inside of the door." "The other painter paints the exterior, the outside of the door." "There's a good reason why." "No two painters can paint exactly alike." "Even trained to paint in the same way, every painter still has subtle variations in his technique." "The finished product will only appear flawless if a surface is painted with the same technique by the same painter throughout the colour process." "The final step in the painting process is polishing." "More than 50 hours of polishing ensures that this shade of orange will never have the texture of orange peel." "It takes about 250 hours of hand craftsmanship for the Murcielago to be painted any colour, including white." "Now the painted body is ready to return to Lamborghini's mega factory in Sant'Agata, where it will enter the main assembly line." "The Lamborghini Murcielago enters the main assembly line." "Beneath the plastic, it's hard to tell if this body is a standard Murcielago coupé or the limited edition SV." "With the plastic off, a tell-tale sign is revealed, identifying this car as an SV." "In the front end of the car we have broken up the surfaces to get a totally different visual impact." "NARRATOR:" "It's just one of dozens of major differences both on the surface and beneath the surface that will become apparent during the assembly process." "The differences are more than skin deep." "They're also functional." "With a lighter and more powerful vehicle, engineers also wanted to channel airflow through the car to increase down force." "Air must push down the car." "Otherwise, you risk to create an airplane instead of a car." "NARRATOR:" "The engineering need for improved airflow had a direct impact on the aesthetic design of the car." "Every designer has to know exactly how the airflow works." "We have to let the air go in and out through the car in an easy way." "It's very important for performance." "As you can see, the mirror, for example, every detail is designed to reduce the drag coefficient." "In the rear, there is a big engine bonnet with a lot of air outlet." "This is to reduce the temperature of this engine bay." "The rear wing is improving the down force." "NARRATOR:" "The engineers' and designers' vision for the SV has to be realised on the assembly line." "Fewer than 30 people in the world can lay claim to assembling the beastly bull that is the Murcielago." "We are a few people here working to build a car which has to fulfil all the quality standards of a special car." "In the end, we are building few cars a month but with really high, high standards." "NARRATOR:" "The line's 14 stations are split into two rows." "The SV now begins a five-day journey through the assembly line." "At station one, a technician installs two radiators for liquid cooling of the engine." "Then sound-absorbing material is applied throughout the interior to reduce road and engine noise." "The narrow rear window is then installed using silicone-based glue." "Finally, station one is where the car gets its identity or serial number." "A computer programs the etching machine to carve the serial number onto the car's space frame." "The last four digits keep tally of the number of Murcielagos produced." "This car is only the 3, 765th Murcielago made since 2001." "In the high-end, high-priced super sports car business, mass production is not part of the Lamborghini business model." "It's not about volume but it's about profit and the emotions we are giving to our customers." "NARRATOR:" "The Lamborghini Murcielago moves to station two, where workers have a special name for it." "INTERPRETER:" "This section is called the spit roaster because, let's say, it reminds us of barbecuing." "This is because it allows for a vehicle rotation of 90 degrees, more or less." "The rotation in this workstation enables a very ergonomic work situation." "NARRATOR:" "With the car on its side, technicians install heat shielding to help keep drive-train heat outside the cabin." "Brake lines are installed." "This is also where a technician installs the first drive-train component, the front differential." "The front differential will take power distributed from the gearbox and apply it to the front wheels." "Every Murcielago has an all-wheel drive system with good reason." "When you have all this power, the main problem is to be able to transmit the power to the street." "NARRATOR:" "The all-wheel drive system mixes the power between the rear and front wheels depending on where it's needed." "When you accelerate the car, it's important to have torque in the rear, because you load the car in the rear." "When you brake or you arrive in the corner, normally load the front, and you must be able to transmit the torque in the front." "NARRATOR:" "With the front differential in place, the car is tilted into a normal position where its front axles are installed." "As the car moves to station three a mass of wires are snaked through the vehicle to deliver power to its electrical systems." "While one technician wrestles with the electrics another installs the 100-litre fuel tank." "The Murcielago gets just 5.5 kilometres per litre on the motorway." "Opposite the fuel tank on the left side, the dry sump oil tank is fitted." "Back inside the car, a technician installs the beginning of the steering column including the paddle shifters that drivers will use to shift the six-speed transmission." "As the car moves to station four, it gets a functional body part, the driver-side rocker panel." "The panel funnels air to the side of the car where it cools the oil radiator." "Station five is where the front end of the body is finished." "First, the technician attaches the front compartment cover." "With the big engine taking up the entire rear of the car, this is all the room for luggage the car has." "If you need to have space, I think it's better if you buy a Bentley." "NARRATOR:" "Under the protective wrap on the luggage-compartment cover, the famous bull logo." "The logo is so cherished and prized that it's kept under lock and key until it's ready to be installed." "As it is an icon and symbol for this brand, it's something that is very sought after and therefore we tend to take very, very good care of these iconic symbols." "NARRATOR:" "The bull logo was chosen by Ferruccio Lamborghini because his astrological sign was Taurus, and the symbol of that sign is the bull." "The factory also names many of its cars after fighting bulls, including the Miura, Diablo, Gallardo and the Murcielago." "The famous bull logo is attached to the front cover in a pre-assembly area using both screws and glue." "After the luggage compartment is installed, another major SV specific part, the front bumper." "The SV's carbon fibre front bumper has a spoiler, which is the first place the car makes contact with the air." "The front spoiler adds down force as the car speeds forward." "Finally, the vehicle's headlights are added." "The Murcielago has more than 70 upholstered parts." "And those parts are upholstered in the selleria," "Italian for saddlery, right next to the assembly line." "The work is done almost entirely by hand." "25 craftspeople cut, stitch, glue, sew and stretch material to upholster seats, dashes and dozens of other parts." "Standard Murcielagos are typically upholstered in leather." "But leather is only half the story in Lamborghini's selleria." "The other half involves a hi-tech synthetic fabric called alcantara." "Some customers choose to order their cars upholstered in alcantara because it weighs just one third the weight of leather." "The alcantara is a more extreme material for this kind of car." "NARRATOR:" "Alcantara starts out as a bolt of fabric." "About seven square metres are cut for each car." "Then the fabric is placed on a computerised cutting machine." "The computer projects a pattern for the upholstered parts." "Then the machine uses a metal blade to precision-cut all the pieces." "Five minutes later, 70 pieces of alcantara are ready to be upholstered." "The SV's dashboard is upholstered in half alcantara and half leather." "The leather half is necessary to meet specifications for the SRS passenger airbag." "The hybrid dash begins by sewing together both alcantara fabric and leather." "A craftsperson applies glue to the dashboard frame and to the fabric." "Then the craftsperson has to wrestle the fabric onto the frame." "Ripples, bubbles or anything less than a perfect fit is unacceptable." "The trouble is leather and alcantara require different approaches." "Leather can be manipulated with heat and a heated weight." "But alcantara requires steam to perfect its fit." "When the wrestling match with the alcantara and leather is finally won, the dash is placed on a cart destined for a Murcielago SV." "That dash is then installed at station six." "Meanwhile, several assembly stations rely on parts supplied from the pre-assembly areas next to the main line." "Here the cars' carbon ceramic brakes are put together just in time for installation." "Those brakes are installed at station seven." "This is also the place where the car gets one of its more unusual engine cooling features." "Side air vents automatically open depending on the engine's water temperature and the outside air temperature." "The vents are powered by electric motors, which the technician installs and tests." "After station seven, the car is halfway through the assembly line." "Now it travels to the second half of the line, where it will get its massive power train." "INTERPRETER:" "Sliding the engine inside the Lamborghini is out of this world because you are basically placing the heart of the vehicle." "NARRATOR:" "At Lamborghini's mega factory in Sant'Agata, Italy, the Murcielago SV is at the halfway point in the assembly line." "Now, at station eight, the Murcielago line's most critical operation takes place, installing the massive power train." "The engine is installed, gearbox first, in a position engineers call longitudinal posterior or LP." "This position helps distribute the engine's weight more evenly for better handling." "It's the positioning of our power train that is really the exclusivity of Lamborghini." "It's a position where we have the engine in a longitudinal position and it's in the middle of the car." "NARRATOR:" "Just two technicians perform the installation." "One guides the engine toward the car." "The other preps the vehicle's engine bay." "Now it's time to place that power train in its longitudinal posterior position." "The actual placing of the engine takes under two minutes." "But connecting all the mechanical linkages, hoses and electronic systems takes more than two hours." "With the power train in place, technicians can now connect it to the front differential." "As the SV leaves station eight, it has a 670-horsepower engine, a six-speed gearbox and its all-wheel drive system in place." "The next station is where the car gets most of its glass." "First, a technician applies a ribbon of silicone glue to the windscreen." "Then it's placed on the vehicle using suction cups." "Additional sealer completes the job." "As the vehicle moves through station ten, additional interior parts are installed." "At station 11, the seats go in." "This is also where technicians install one of the Murcielago's most distinctive features, the famous scissor doors." "Technicians install the scissor doors by bolting a hinge to the body and then connecting a lift strut." "Besides allowing for a dramatic entrance and exit, drivers found a practical purpose for scissor doors, improving rear visibility." "NARRATOR:" "Station 12." "This super sports car is getting ready to roll." "Wheels on the car are very significant, are very, very important." "They give the final look to the vehicle." "NARRATOR:" "SV wheels are 16% lighter than standard Murcielago wheels." "The lighter wheels shave eight kilograms of weight, contributing to the SV's overall 100-kilogram weight reduction." "The wheels are designed by Lamborghini in Sant'Agata." "But they're made an ocean away in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, by Alcoa." "The wheels are made entirely of lightweight aluminium." "But the manufacturing process makes them even lighter." "The Murcielago's SV's wheels are forged, a process invented by Alcoa in 1948." "With forging, aluminium is not melted into a liquid like casting." "Instead, it's stamped by a mould." "Forging makes a stronger, lighter wheel than casting because it has less imperfections inside the material." "I could have a thinner cross section, make a lighter part with the same final mechanical properties." "NARRATOR:" "The process begins with what look like logs of aluminium." "Then a steel-bladed saw, spinning at 450 revs per minute, cuts the aluminium into 45-kilogram pieces called billets." "These pieces will eventually become Lamborghini wheels." "Next, those aluminium billets go into a furnace." "The billets are heated to over 400 degrees Celsius." "That heat softens the aluminium so it can be forged." "The hot billets are picked up and placed into the first of three steel moulds." "Oil lubricant is sprayed onto the mould and ignites because of the heat." "The oil keeps the aluminium from sticking to the steel mould." "Then 4.5 million kilograms of pressure slam down on the wheel from high above, shaping the aluminium into something resembling a wheel." "The aluminium then goes to a second mould to refine its shape further, with another 4.5 million kilograms of pressure." "And finally to a third mould with reduced pressure, where additional detail is added to the shape and the centre is punched out." "The forging process is complete." "But at this point these wheels hardly look like they belong on a super sports car." "That's because they haven't been machined yet." "Alcoa ships the Murcielago SV wheels 20 kilometres away to K-M-S Machining in Middleburg Heights, Ohio." "Here the distinctive five double-spoke design is carved into the wheel." "Technicians program a computer to cut the design into the aluminium." "Then the wheels are loaded into a milling press." "The machine uses carbide drill bits to carve away aluminium." "First, the five lug-nut holes are drilled." "Then the five double-spoke shape is carved into the wheel." "It takes 45 minutes to machine the 20-centimetre-deep front wheels and 90 minutes to machine the 33-centimetre-deep rear wheels." "The finished wheels emerge, carved from a single piece of aluminium that began as a billet." "There's not a single weld or screw holding it together." "It's all one weight-saving piece." "The rear wheel is very light at 27.2 pounds." "The front wheel is even lighter at 19.6 pounds." "NARRATOR:" "Alcoa has the wheels painted black before they're sent to Lamborghini." "Back in Sant'Agata, Italy, on the main assembly line, a technician installs the wheels onto the Murcielago SV." "Now the car is almost ready to roll." "The Lamborghini Murcielago SV has its wheels and is ready to stand on its own for the first time." "With the car on the ground, a technician installs the steering wheel." "Then he adds a critical safety feature, the driver-side airbag." "Many front-engine cars rely partially on the engine to absorb frontal impact." "But the Murcielago's engine is behind the driver, so the vehicle depends on its space frame and the driver-side airbag to absorb any frontal impact." "The airbag is in place and the steering linkage is checked." "It works." "Now when the car is pushed, it's rolled on its wheels." "Station 13." "The car gets many of its fluids, including transmission fluid and five litres of oil." "This is also where the SV version of the car gets its special carbon fibre bonnet." "Now technicians install the rear-wing assembly, giving the SV one of the most prominent features distinguishing it from the standard Murcielago." "The difference is both visual and functional." "The rear big wing gives the possibility to have an increase of down force of something in the rear of the car of something like 180 kilos." "NARRATOR:" "The rear-wing assembly is the last major part put on the car." "Station 14, the last stop on the assembly line." "The car is fuelled with almost 25 litres of petrol." "But before the SV is started, hoses descend from above." "They funnel exhaust fumes and noise outside the factory." "INTERPRETER:" "When the vehicle is fired up for the first time, it is like blood flowing through the veins of a living body." "NARRATOR:" "Then the moment of truth." "As the engine runs, the car's mechanical and electronic systems are checked." "So far, so good." "But how does the SV roll?" "To find out, technicians subject every Murcielago to a 40-minute roll-booth test." "They check the car's braking, transmission and ability to handle speed." "Technicians will take the car to speeds of over 135 kilometres per hour." "Even in the roll booth, the SV's additional 30 horsepower is noticeable." "INTERPRETER:" "The SV's more powerful than the regular Murcielago." "You feel the power inside." "NARRATOR:" "After the roll booth, a two-hour quality inspection to go over every part of the car." "Then Murcielagos leave the factory and head onto public streets for a 60-kilometre road test." "The factory has no official test track, so they road-test every car on public streets." "We must remember that all the other cars on the public road are not Lamborghini cars." "NARRATOR:" "The test drivers have a saying." ""Every Lamborghini comes with two problems.." "The speed limit and the police."" " Apro?" " Si." "SANNA:" "We have a good relationship with the police around the factory." "But, in any case, we must respect the public road code." "NARRATOR:" "More than three decades after he sold his factory," "Ferruccio Lamborghini's vision for extreme and exclusive super sports cars is still embodied in the cars that bear his name." "BALBONI:" "Ferruccio Lamborghini was very, very impulsive and demanding." "Our cars today, they still reflect his character, temperament and personality, which is extremely strong." "NARRATOR:" "Friday afternoon." "As 5pm approaches, the siren sounds the end of a shift and the end of a week of hard work." "INTERPRETER:" "These people put their hearts into it." "This enables top quality." "That's how we get that monster, the SV." "NARRATOR:" "With bare hands, the factory's workers build only a few cars a day." "But the car they build is known worldwide as one of the most extreme sports cars on the road today." " Murcielago." " Murcielago." "Murcielago." "Bellissimo." "NARRATOR:" "Automobili Lamborghini SpA in Bolognese, Italy, is a true mega factory."