This story contains CarScoops illustrations that are neither related to nor endorsed by Lamborghini
This is not a Lamborghini Urus bashing post. While I, like many, find the idea of a puffed up Audi Q8 to be an odd fit for the brand, buyers disagree, and more power to them. But as a fan of the classics and an admirer of truly purpose-built vehicles, we can’t help but wonder what it would have been like if Lamborghini had made a real followup to the legendary LM002.
Produced between 1986 and 1993, the so-called “Rambo Lambo” featured rugged proportions and sharply creased body panels, as was typical of the brand’s design in the era. Effectively a military vehicle designed for sandy conditions and powered by the Lamborghini Countach’s V12, the SUV was certainly an oddity for the brand, but fit in with its over-the-top aesthetics and intense performance.
A successor to that vehicle, an LM003, if you will, would certainly need to be just as over-the-top and spectacularly rugged, almost military-like on the outside. The speculative renderings, created with our guidance and input through digital software and the help of artificial intelligence, incorporate those design elements. Featuring both rugged off-road characteristics and Lamborghini sharpness, this model would have made an impact when it launched.
Read: What If The Ford Mustang Mach SUV Was Designed In The 1970s?
Starting from the bottom, our LM003 has big wide tires, much like the LM002. This rendering also has plenty of ground clearance, as well as impressive approach and departure angles thanks to Lamborghini’s angular design cues.
Speaking of which, the sharp lines and steep angles of the body really recall the Lamborghini Countach, which is well-timed since the brand just celebrated the legendary supercar’s 50th anniversary.
Thanks to the upright windshield and the pickup bed, though, the LM003 has some Hummer-like qualities. With both the VW Group and GM showing that they are willing to share electric platforms, we can’t help but wish that they would get together to make this vehicle on the Ultium platform.
Inside the cabin of the LM003, meanwhile, we went for a pleasing mix of old and new. There’s something about a vast array of physical buttons that feels reassuring in the context of a rugged vehicle like this one. And there’s real world precedent for that, such as the RS Q e-tron, Audi’s Dakar racer, which has an intimidating collection of buttons like this render. In combination with a pair of screens, this vehicle combines the best of old and new.
What do you think? Should Lamborghini have made the LM003 instead of the Urus , powered by a monster V12 engine? Or should it make an all-electric LM003 as part of its first wave of electrified vehicles?
