SANTAGATA BOLOGNESE, Italy Before Hummer became an American icon for glorious excess, before Jeep started supercharging Grand Cherokees into supercar territory, and positively eons before the Urus was even a twinkle in Lamborghini CEO Stefano Domenicalis eyes, there was this, the LM002, the worlds first super SUV.It almost wasnt meant to be. Originally concocted as a military vehicle Lamborghini even built a rear-engined HUMVEE-like berm buster called the Cheetah the Rambo Lambo, as it became affectionately known, was never intended to be a civilian vehicle. Lamborghini, in another one of its down cycles, dreamt of military procurement visions of $10,000 toilet seats no doubt dancing like sugar plums in their heads and never intended to peddle the LM (Lamborghini Militaria) to civilians. Indeed, the first prototype, trying to appear practical, was powered by a common, everyday Chrysler V8. Only when it became obvious that armed forces were not going to buy thousands upon thousands of Jeeps from a quirky Italian supercar maker with a reputation for, shall we say, intense maintenance needs imagine, just for a moment, a 19-year-old, fresh-out-of-high-school conscript servicing a Countach in barren Afghanistan for some idea of the ensuing nightmare were dreams of huge Pentagon contracts scuppered. Then those crazy Italians and Lord, let us all give thanks for the lunatics from Lamborghini had a brilliant idea. Why not take the 5.2-litre V12 you know, the one from the mad-as-a-hatter Countach and shoehorn it into the engine bay of their giant Rat Patrol-like desert sled? Then, fit some monster tires, outfit the interior fit for a prince, and then sell the thing for about US$120,000 quite literally a kings ransom in 1986. For a little context here, a Jeep Cherokee of the same vintage started at US$10,336 and was powered by a not-quite-as-inspiring 117-horsepower, 2.5-litre inline four.Everything about the Rambo Lambo was outrageous. With around 450 horsepower, that big, quad-cam V12 would accelerate the LM002 from zero to 100 km/h in about seven seconds and top out at over 200 km/h. Yes, I know the new Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk destroys those numbers and a modern Urus will drive rings around an LM002. But in its day, the Rambo Lambo was the biggest, baddest, most outrageous vehicle on the planet.Everything about the LM002 was outsized. It weighted about three tons, carbon fibre still the stuff of aerospace lore. It ran on the biggest and rarest Scorpion off-road tires 345/60VR17s Pirelli had ever produced. And it stood some 300 millimetres off terra firma, no doubt the result of its military vehicle roots. No other car no, not even the Countach was considered as outlandish. Now that the entire automotive marketplace has gone fully sport-brute, the Rambo Lambo may seem but a quaint anachronism, but 35 years ago, let me assure you, it was the maddest thing on four wheels. Which makes my first few kilometres behind the wheel an absolute surprise. What I thought would be a fussy, bouncy four-wheeled trial-by-ordeal proved sophisticated, bordering on the, dare I say it, modern. Oh, the steering was heavy and more than a tad ponderous. And Lord save us all from those who remember the glory years of manual transmissions: The Lambos was the very definition of a rock crusher, the throws long, gear engagement temperamental, and the clutch worthy of a Schwarzenegger leg routine.But Lordy, the engine was hell, still is a beaut. For all its fearsome reputation, the Countach-sourced V12 is a pussycat. Oh, a quad-cam, 48-valve, 12-pistoned pussycat that just happens to sound ready for a Formula One grid, but a pussycat nonetheless. Yes, even in SUVd LM002 form, the big V12 screams for revs like an unthrottled racecar, but poodling around town, the LM002s 12 pistons are the model of civility, all delicate throttle control and oodles, just oodles of low end torque. Lamborghini LM002 Handout / Lamborghini Indeed, the engine made the crunchy transmission almost bearable, it being easy to skip first altogether and, if you revved it high enough Clara (Lamborghinis long-suffering PR manager), I was just trying to save the transmission you could skip all the way from second to fifth. I realize this will be considered sacrilege, but you could mate the LM002 to one of those ancient two-speed Powerglide automatics you know, the ones where first gear went all the way to 100 km/h and the big 5.2L would barely notice. My God, what a gem this engine is, by far my most impressive walk down internal combustions memory lane to date.The other big surprise again, considering its fearsome rep is that the big Lambos comportment also borders on the modern. Yes, as I mentioned, the steering was Mack truck heavy. But the actual road-holding? Excellent. There was little wander up front despite riding on the biggest front tires I have ever seen body roll was very well contained and, other than having to
Origin: Before the Lamborghini Urus, there was the ‘Rambo Lambo’