Lamborghini thrust itself into the supercar battle at the Geneva Motor Show as it unleashed the ultimate version of the Murciélago the 670 bhp SuperVeloce resplendent in bright yellow and with an unmissable huge rear wing.

Lamborghini thrust itself into the supercar battle in Geneva as it unleashed the ultimate version of the Murciélago, the 670 bhp SuperVeloce. Resplendent in bright yellow and with an unmissable huge rear wing the Murciélago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce dominated the raging bull's stand where it was flanked by a pair of Gallardos.

President and CEO Stephan Winkelmann announced the LP670-4 SuperVeloce during a press conference in Geneva on Tuesday. Although he believes Lamborghini is in a solid position (it has stated plans to become the world's most profitable sports car maker) the current global financial crisis that is battering all automakers will contribute to a fall in sales this year. "We aim to be in the black this year," Winkelmann Reuters in Geneva. "This is the big challenge." He believes that luxury car sales have fallen around 40 percent in recent months, the crisis "is affecting everyone," he said. "There is no immunity for luxury brands."

In recent weeks Lamborghini has also idled its production lines, sending 300 of its 1,000 staff home for two weeks. "We will do it again if needed," Winkelmann told Reuters. Customers have been choosing to forfeit deposits as they have failed to collect completed cars from the showrooms. Winkelmann won't dump cars on the market either: "You can get better financial results but you will put the brand at risk." He also will continue to spend around 10 percent of the company's revenue on Research & Development, to keep to the one new model a year philosophy and allow the firm to be strongly placed for the upturn.

The Murciélago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce is the final incarnation of the V12 supercar line and will be limited to 350 individually-numbered units (with the showcar bearing a plaque mounted on the cockpit firewall that read: 1/350). 100 orders were taken before the car was shown in Geneva yesterday. This most extreme version of the now ageing Murciélago sports car will, when the final unit is built, denote the first full model lifecycle under Audi ownership which bought the Sant'Agata Bologna based sports car maker in 1998. The Murciélago was introduced two years later.

However the firm is confident that it will find buyers for the Murciélago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce which clearly builds on the outgoing Murciélago LP 640. Visually its styling has been beefed up to give it a much more aggressive look, mostly at the front and rear, changes which are topped off by the eye-catching new rear wing that Lamborghini say is necessary to extract its full performance. New bonnet air vents and greater use of carbon fibre feature. Inside the Alcantara-trimmed cockpit has been stitched in orange to compliment the lurid exterior colour scheme. Increased use of carbon fibre trim's add to the weight reduction. The new designation 'SV' (SuperVeloce) is stitched into the door pillows.

Under the skin the 6.5-litre V12 engine now boasts an extra 30 bhp and with the car's overall weight being shaved down by 100 kg a power-to-weight ratio of 2.3 kg per bhp is now achieved. This means that a top speed of 342 km/h [or 337 km/h with the big 'Aeropack' wing] and a 0-100 km/h time of 3.2 seconds can be achieved. The whole car has been extensively reworked across other key areas such as the transmission and suspension.