The archive · Design & Visual · Product decision · 2025–2026
Lamborghini Fenomeno: a 29-unit 'design manifesto' wins Red Dot Best of the Best 2026
Lamborghini's 29-unit Fenomeno is a drivable design manifesto for Centro Stile's 20th year — freer than a production car, more real than a concept.
Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A.
What it had to solve
Lamborghini's in-house studio Centro Stile turned 20, and design director Mitja Borkert wanted a car that could push the brand's visual identity further than a normal production model allows. Instead of a pure concept, the team chose a few-off series of 29 cars that had to be feasible, functional and drivable while acting as a statement of where Lamborghini design is heading.
How it works
When Lamborghini Centro Stile reached its 20th anniversary, design director Mitja Borkert wanted more than a celebratory model: he wanted a 'design manifesto' — a car that distils the studio's principles into one object and shows where the brand's design language is heading. Rather than a pure concept, the team chose a few-off of only 29 cars, a space Borkert describes as giving more freedom than a production car while still demanding the feasibility and functionality a concept never needs.
The Fenomeno translates the manifesto into form: a flat front and an elongated long tail shift visual focus to the rear, and the powertrain's position is legible in the side profile. Every intake, channel and surface follows one functional logic — 'formal clarity' — while the single centre line, hexagons and Y-shaped signature are reinterpreted progressively. Engineering follows the same brief: a carbon-fibre monofuselage, Lamborghini's most powerful V12 with three electric motors for 1,080 CV, and door shapes that lift side-cooling efficiency by over 30% versus a series V12.
The car was unveiled during Monterey Car Week 2025 and took the highest honour of the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2026, 'Red Dot: Best of the Best'. The jury praised its 'incredible proportions' and said the model achieved a new level of elegance and perfection for a brand known for bold styling. Borkert framed the award as confirmation of the design DNA being shaped at Centro Stile and of Lamborghini's future strategy — with the 29-unit Fenomeno serving as a bridge between heritage and the brand's next chapter.
Why it lands
- The few-off format is the idea: more creative freedom than a production car, but enough feasibility that the manifesto is a real, drivable object rather than a show car.
- The long tail is not decoration — aerodynamics and thermal management are expressed as proportion, giving the future design language a functional reason to exist.
- Making the statement scarce (29 units) turns a design direction into an exclusive, collectible commitment instead of an abstract vision deck.
- Reinterpreting signature elements like the Y shape and hexagons rather than discarding them keeps the next chapter recognisably Lamborghini.
What it did
The Fenomeno received 'Red Dot: Best of the Best' in the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2026, with the jury praising its 'incredible proportions' and a new level of elegance and perfection for the brand. Borkert called the award confirmation of the design DNA the team is shaping and of Lamborghini's future strategy; only 29 cars are being built.
What you can take
To change a brand's direction, commit through a rare but real object: a 29-unit series gave designers a concept's freedom and a production car's discipline.
Since then
Unveiled at Monterey Car Week in August 2025, the Fenomeno was the most powerful V12 road car in Lamborghini history; in 2026 it took 'Red Dot: Best of the Best' in the Product Design competition, with the ceremony held in Essen on 7 July. Borkert called the award confirmation of the design DNA he and Centro Stile are shaping, and the jury called the car a clear next step in the brand's evolution. With only 29 examples planned, the few-off now serves as the reference point for where Lamborghini's design language goes next.
Sources
- Red Dot Design Award: Lamborghini Fenomeno
- Lamborghini Fenomeno Sets a New Bar for the Hybrid V12
- Lamborghini Fenomeno wins Red Dot Best of the Best 2026 award
- Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. Interview with Mitja Borkert
spotted an error? The archive wants to know.
Your turn
You just read one. Describe the brief you are staring at, and see who has been given the same problem.
Free account · 3 free questions · no card