IP Law Daily, TRADE SECRETS NEWS: Prema Engineering sues Lamborghini alleging theft of multiple versions of Hypercar steering wheel setups, (Apr 23, 2025)

By Carolin Dennis, B.Sc., LL.B., LL.M.

The complaint alleges that Lamborghini stole multiple versions of Prema Engineering’s steering wheel setups from the Iron Lynx racing team’s Lamborghini-manufactured Hypercar throughout the 2024 World Endurance Championship season.

Prema Engineering filed a lawsuit against Lamborghini accusing it of theft of trade secrets and copyright infringement while Prema Engineering was providing technical support services to the Iron Lynx racing team. According to the complaint, Lamborghini intentionally stole the steering wheel setups so that Lamborghini and Riley Motorsport could use Prema Engineering’s know-how, and research and development, to put together a car that would be ready to compete for the 2025 season (Prema Engineering S.r.l. v. Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A., No. 1:25-cv-00602-ADA-SH (W.D. Tex. Apr. 21, 2025)).

Prema Engineering S.r.l. (Prema Engineering) provides third-party engineering and technical expertise and support services to international motorsports teams. During the 2024 racing season, in partnership with Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. and Automobili Lamborghini America, LLC (collectively, Lamborghini), the Iron Lynx racing team ran Lamborghini-manufactured LMDh Hypercars which Iron Lynx had purchased from Lamborghini in both the Fédération International de l’Automobile (FIA) World Endurance Championship (WEC) and the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (IMSA Championship), the two top international endurance racing series. Prema Engineering provided engineering and technical support to the Iron Lynx racing team in the 2024 racing season. Prema Engineering’s strategies and Setups were used for every session, either testing or racing, of the Iron Lynx team’s Lamborghini-model Hypercar.

In the context of endurance racing, the steering wheel is a highly advanced computer, one of the “brains” that runs the car throughout the grueling hours of each race. Programming and configuring these steering wheels to effectively operate the cars and act as the primary interface through which drivers communicate with the car; receive essential data from the car and the team’s engineers; and control the car, allowing the drivers to make adjustments as needed to maximize performance therefore requires extensive technical expertise and development time. Accordingly, the steering wheel and a racing team’s proprietary Setups for the steering wheel are absolutely essential to the success of the drivers and the team competing in endurance racing. Prema Engineering was responsible for maintaining and programming the Setups and configurations of the LMDh Steering Wheel, something that was essential for the Iron Lynx LMDh Hypercar to operate effectively on track. The proprietary nature of the information contained in the Setups, gathered over years of development and testing, was the main reason that Prema Engineering was so protective over the Setups and the LMDh Steering Wheels. Prema Engineering exclusively owned and controlled the proprietary information and interface of the steering wheels used by the Iron Lynx racing team. Lamborghini had no right at any point to take, possess, or use this setup data without express permission from Prema Engineering.

According to Prema Engineering, instead of focusing its efforts on helping its exclusive racing partner Iron Lynx win races throughout 2024, Lamborghini was secretly courting partnerships with Iron Lynx’s competitors for the same WEC and IMSA Championship series. Iron Lynx and Prema Engineering contended that they became aware of this when they discovered that Lamborghini had stolen Prema Engineering’s steering wheel setups in order to develop its own racing simulator to facilitate testing Lamborghini Hypercars outside of the partnership with Iron Lynx and test and race Lamborghini Hypercars with a competitor team in the 2025 IMSA Championship. Within months after first stealing a version of Prema Engineering’s steering wheel Setups while the teams were in Austin, Texas, Lamborghini terminated its partnership with Iron Lynx and partnered with a new racing team for the 2025 IMSA Championship season.

In its complaint, Prema Engineering pointed out that Lamborghini had physical access to Prema Engineering’s trade secret information only while Prema Engineering was providing support services to Lamborghini while on track for testing and racing events associated with WEC and the IMSA Championship. Prema Engineering therefore claimed that Lamborghini unlawfully copied Prema Engineering’s trade secret information when the parties were physically present together on track at these testing and racing events associated with WEC and the IMSA Championship, including at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas on July 27, 2024.

Prema Engineering emphasized that Lamborghini violated Prema Engineering’s repeated reminders that the trade secret information was proprietary to Prema Engineering and that Lamborghini had no permission to use it outside of the testing and racing activities associated with WEC and the IMSA Championship. The complaint also noted that by misappropriating the trade secrets and infringing copyrights belonging to Prema Engineering, Lamborghini has unfairly benefitted from the time and money Prema Engineering invested in developing its Setups.

Claims, remedies sought. Prema Engineering asserts five causes of action: (1) misappropriation of Prema Engineering’s trade secrets under the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), (2) intentional access of a computer without authorization or in excess of authorized access under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), (3) copyright infringement, (4) misappropriation of Prema Engineering’s trade secrets under the Texas Uniform Trade Secrets Act (TUTSA), and (5) intentional access of a computer without authorization or in excess of authorized access under the Texas Harmful Access by Computer Act (THACA).

Among other relief, Prema Engineering is seeking a jury trial, and asks the court to award exemplary damages pursuant to the DTSA and TUTSA; permanent injunctive relief prohibiting Lamborghini from possessing, copying, using, transmitting, or disclosing any of Prema Engineering’s trade secret and copyright information, or any derivatives thereof; compensatory damages; exemplary damages; and reasonable attorney fees, costs, and expenses incurred in connection with this action.

This case is No. 1:25-cv-00602-ADA-SH.

Attorneys: James G. Ruiz (Winstead PC) and Christopher N. LaVigne (Withers Bergman LLP) for Prema Engineering S.r.l.

Companies: Prema Engineering S.r.l.; Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A.; Automobili Lamborghini America, LLC

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