Rambo’s Lambos

Supposedly, the original was developed as a mid-engined prototype called the Cheetah by a California firm called Mobility Technology International for the US military with a 5.9 liter Chrysler V8 drivetrain. One source says four rear-engined prototypes were made from 1977 to 1983. Though this writer heard before it had a Chrysler drivetrain, another source says it was an AMC V-8 that powered the LM001.

Rumor is that at least one prototype was destroyed in testing.

Apparently the US Army thought it a bit rich for their blood. Or just not good enough.

Lambo then thought, “What the hell do we do with it?” and then, when getting ready for an auto show figured they should put their own engine in it. So it was that a mid-engine version with a 332-hp. Lamborghini V-12 was displayed at the 1981 Geneva Auto Show. But mid-engine designs are hard to do and have light steering, so a front engined “production” version, the LM002, came out a year later, but production didn’t start until four years later. The production LM002 made its introduction at the Detroit Auto Show in 1992 with a model called the LM/American. Roughly 60 of these were made. LM stood for either Lamborghini Military or perhaps Lamborghini Mimran, while some sources have the ‘A’ for ‘Anteriore’ vs American. Or both.

The model for America boasted stripes, a more slanted bonnet, additional badging, an upgraded interior, chrome bumpers, ground effects and MSW/OZ 8-spoke racing wheels. The American version had fuel injection, so the engine was more Diablo than Countach-derived.

The engine was a 60-deg. 5167 cc V-12 rated at 450 hp. with 368 ft-lbs of torque. The gearbox was a ZF from Germany,a model S5/24/3 5-speed with a two-speed transfer case and locking hubs. The chassis was tubular and the bodywork fiberglass and aluminum.

There was 76 gallons of fuel in the tank which you needed, not only for desert travel where it’s long way between gas stations, but because it was extremely fuel-greedy, as it tipped the scales at 5700 lbs. Even with all that weight it could go 0-60 mph in 7.8 seconds and top 120 mph. There’s a rumor that Muammar al-Qaddafi of Libya, purchased 100 for his country’s military.

The bodywork was as far from exotic as you can get, and produced offsite in Spain. The car was, for one brief shining moment, sort of the car to own among Arab sheiks, but one wonders how many are still in service or left by the side of the road now that the ashtrays are full. (and didn’t Saddam Hussein’s LM002 die a dusty death when it was used by US troops for target practice?).

Lambo had tried to make a version with some measure of practicality—there was the LM003 with a 3- liter turbo diesel six cylinder by VM. The appeal was limited since with only 150 hp it probably couldn’t pull the skin off a grape. In the mid-1980s, an LM004 was made with a Lambo V-12 boat racing engine… a full 7.3 liter monster with 420 bhp. This engine had nothing in common with the smaller V-12s, as they were designed specifically for boat racing by Paolo Stanzani and developed by Giulio Alfieri. (Read about Daniele Audetto and the LM002.)Some sources claim only one LM 004 was ever made.

Some websites claim 328 units were made in total. Another source says 301 and still another 230. The only production figure all the so-called experts agree on is that 60 were made of the American-spec version.

Over in England, some students more recently designed a prototype called the LM400. That was done by Rene Harrigan in December 2005 at Coventry University, and was a good idea because it was based on the existing Audi Q7 platform and, as every Lambo fan knows, Audi owns Lamborghini. Their designs included four different body styles; an entry-level LM V-8, a sporty LM-S, a luxury LM-400 V-10 and a high performance LMR, powered by a V-12 engine delivering 600 hp.

Estimated prices from the designers ranged from about $54,000 for the entry-level to over $230,000 for the top-of-the-line LMR V-12. While this writer thinks their entry level price is no longer possible, for a top of the line model, you could build a case for a $230,000 version.

Why? Because as exotic car sales are proving, with new areas like China and Russia, the demand for exotics is growing in some places with some formidable terrain. The LM002 gave you exotic sounds with over-rough-road capability. Of course you could argue some roadside mechanic is going to faint dead away when asked to fix a 12 cylinder Lamborghini, but we’ll worry about service later…

My own experience with an LM002 was short but sweet—I had a test ride in one when Lee Iacocca convinced Chrysler to buy Lamborghini, and had one at the test track for reporters to try out. I was impressed by the wood and leather and how civilized it was in the interior. Years later, after being given a ride in the original Humvee, I realized how far the US Army had gone afield from what Lambo had started with.

And I still remember being on Rodeo Drive once in Beverly Hills and, hearing the snarl of a V-12 Lamborghini engine, turned expecting to see a Miura or Countach but instead seeing only a dark blue LM002 with dark tinted windows cruise by. I thought whoever it was, he had the most subtle exotic in town…

Dave Robertson, an exotic car maven in Los Angeles, once showed me his LM002 and said he liked to sneak over to Malibu on a dark night and take a run at speed up the beach. Think of it, you’d hear a Lamborghini but the sound would be coming from the ocean….

Ah, Dave, dammit, you do have all the fun…

All photos found on the Internet.