Lamborghini was clearly ahead of the curve when it came to the SUV trend. Back in 1986 Lamborghini launched the LM002, a forerunner of the high-powered SUVs that we take for granted today.
It all started in 1977 when Lamborghini built a vehicle as a military prototype known as the Cheetah. The Lamborghini Cheetah was never actually tested or even owned by the military, but demonstration runs for military personnel were in fact conducted. Lamborghini was not able to put together a new model lineup based on the Cheetah back, so the Cheetah got sold to another company and slowly got forgotten but the off-road adventure was far from over for Automobili Lamborghini.
After the Cheetah was sent back to the United States in late 1977 the option of adding an off-road model to the lineup at Lamborghini kept lurking in the back of their heads, and three years later, in 1981 the Geneva Auto Show was the scene for an evolution of the idea in the shape of the LM001.
By the mid-1980s, with the wealthy Swiss Mirman family taking over the company in 1984, the dream continued. Born out of the Lamborghini LM 001 project and the previous Cheetah, the Lamborghini LM 002 was the first real off-road vehicle to be unveiled by Automobili Lamborghini at the Geneva Auto Show in 1982. Its production started in 1986.
There wasn't anything quite like the LM002 when it came out. Lamborghini got rid of the rear-engine layout and opted for a traditional up-front install. The V12 was the same four-valve 5.2-liter unit used in the Countach Quattrovalvole and it was good for 450 horsepower and was mated to a five-speed dogleg manual transmission. That made the LM002 among the most powerful vehicles sold at the time. In total, the LM002 weighed nearly three tons and had specially designed Pirelli Scorpion run-flat tires. The LM 002 was built on a rock-solid aluminum and fiberglass body.
Despite the considerable weight, the performance of the LM002 was on par with the supercars of the day and the interior was more luxurious than you would expect. With its powerful V12 engine and all-wheel drive, the LM 002 could climb a 120% gradient and reached a top speed of 130mph with an acceleration of 0 to 100 in 7.8 seconds. No wind-tunnel testing here, this wall all brute force.
Over the years a few special edition LM002s were built by both the factory and third parties. Most famously, an "estate" version with a full trunk was created for the Sultan of Brunei and it was known as the LM002 Estate. There was also the LM004 with the normal 4.8 liter engine replaced by a more interesting 7.0 liter version.
Years: 1986–1992
Production: 328 produced
Assembly: Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy
Engine: 5.2 L V12, 7.2 L V12
Curb weight: 5,952 lb
Values for the LM002 have risen in the last decade. Values are bouncing between the US$250,000 and US$350,000 range. The main driver appears to be an increase in interest from major collectors. Lamborghini has fixed the parts supply issue and even offers restoration services at the factory (it is not cheap).
More: Recent Auction Results
Back in 1976, a small American defense contractor, MTI, approached Lamborghini with a design for an all-terrain vehicle that might have military applications.
Type: Production
Year: 1986 - 1992
Engine: 5.2L Naturally Aspirated V12
Power: 450 hp @ 6,800 rpm
Torque: 369 lb-ft @ 4,500 rpm
0-60 mph: 7.8 seconds
Top Speed: 130 mph
Lamborghini LM002. The first off-road Lamborghini was not the Urus, it was the LM002. The four-valve DOHC V12 engine had 450 hp with 6 Weber carburetors, five-speed manual transmission, independent suspension. Imagine a massive off-road vehicle with a Countach V12 engine up front meet the Lamborghini LM002.
Type: Factory Special
Year: 1984
Engine: 7L Naturally Aspirated V12
Power: 420 hp @ 5,400 rpm
Torque: 435 lb-ft @ 3,500 rpm
0-60 mph: 8.5 seconds
Top Speed: 128 mph
Type: Factory Race Special
Year: 1987-1988
Engine: 5.2 L Naturally Aspirated V12
Power: 475 hp / 600 hp
Torque: N/A
0-60 mph: N/A
Top Speed: N/A
Lamborghini LM002 Paris Dakar. The mid-Eighties it was deemed the right time had come to enter the notorious Paris Dakar rally using the only model in the lineup that could finish the powerful four-wheel drive LM002. Work began to convert a regular 455hp V12 into a rally-ready 600hp.
Type: 3rd Party Special
Year: 1986
Engine: 5.2L Naturally Aspirated V12
Power: 450 hp @ 6,800 rpm
Torque: 369 lb-ft @ 4,500 rpm
0-60 mph: 7.8 seconds
Top Speed: 130 mph
Lamborghini LM002 Estate. The most exclusive LM002 ever made has to be the one presented on this page, none other than the Sultan of Brunei is believed to have put in an order for an LM002 Estate version at a Turin based body shop. They created a fully closed version (it normally had an open deck).
Type: Concept/Prototype
Year: 1977
Engine: 5.9L Chrysler V8
Power: 183 hp @ 4,000 rpm
Torque: 231 lb-ft @ 3,500 rpm
0-60 mph: 9 seconds
Top Speed: 104 mph
Lamborghini Cheetah. The first off-road car that was related to Lamborghini without being a tractor, was the 1977 Cheetah, starting out as an attempt to get a contract from the US military to buy it in large numbers, the Cheetah was designed by Rodney Pharis. Lamborghini had the Cheetah shown to the public in 1977.
Type: Concept/Prototype
Year: 1981
Engine: AMC V-8 (V12 Optional)
Power: 180 hp @ 4,000 rpm
Torque: 267 lb-ft @ 2,500 rpm
0-60 mph: N/A
Top Speed: 99 mph
Lamborghini LM001. Lamborghini Militaria number 1 as it is otherwise known. After the Cheetah was sent back to the United States in late 1977 the option of adding an off-road model. If you compare the Cheetah with the LM001 you can hardly call the latter an evolution of the Cheetah, instead it was more a revolution.
Type: Concept/Prototype
Year: 1982
Engine: 4.8 L Naturally Aspirated V12
Power: 332 hp @ 6,000 rpm
Torque: 314 lb-ft @ 4,500 rpm
0-60 mph: N/A
Top Speed: 117 mph
Lamborghini LMA002.The LMA-002 (with the 'A' for Antiore) was the logical follow up of the LM-001, because on the latter one, the engine was in the back, its road holding was terrible, but on the LMA-002 the engine was moved to the front. This time it was a Lamborghini V-12, very much like the unit used in the Countach LP 500S.
The Rambo Lambo is the most sensational outré vehicle to hit the road we suggest that you do anything to obtain the $120,000 necessary for the purchase
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