Italian supercar maker Lamborghini has confirmed it will re-enter the 4x4 market with an all-new, three-door SUV, due to be unveiled at the Beijing Motor Show in April. The model is the spiritual successor to the LM002 of the eighties, and will be called the MLC.
The Lamborghini SUV is the firm's second attempt at a third model line, and it had been desperate to keep details of the SUV under wraps. But leaks from parent company Audi have forced it to admit to the concept car's existence. Yet Lamborghini insiders also admit that the SUV project has gone beyond being a simple concept car, and is almost certainly bound for production in 2015.
The SUV will be based on a platform that will also be used on the Audi Q7, Porsche Cayenne, VW Touareg and new Bentley SUV. However, Lamborghini has been given free reign to modify the platform to bring the car's kerbweight down.
To that end, engineers who worked on the carbon-fibre construction of the Aventador have been developing carbon fibre versions of key cabin structures, such as the dash bracing and the full-length transmission tunnel. As a result, Lamborghini has already pulled 400kg out of the car's total mass already, and it's keen to keep the final figure below 2,000kg.
Unlike the Aventador and Gallardo, the new SUV will be front engined. Power is likely to come from a 584bhp version of the 5.2-litre V10 from the Gallardo, which will produce more torque from low revs.
Not only will this be Lambo's first SUV, but it's also likely to be offered as the firm's first hybrid model. The layout will be able to accommodate an electric motor and lthium-ion battery pack, which will boost power over 600bhp.
People who have seen sketches of the SUV concept suggest that its nose looks a lot like a high-rise version of the Estoque, the luxury saloon Lamborghini, which was shown at the 2008 Paris Motor Show. The three-door layout further enhances the aggressive look, and the car will have flared rear wheelarches.
Lamborghini will introduce the SUV concept to the developing Chinese market first, and the expectation is that it will join the Aventador and next-generation Gallardo in 2015 or 2016. Lambo is predicting global sales in the region of 1,500 cars a year, most of which will be in the US and China.
With a price tag of around USD200,000, it will clearly sit above current fast SUVs such as the Porsche Cayenne Turbo, BMW X6M and upcoming Maserati Kubang.
While the SUV is a near certainty, there's still hope for a production version of the Estoque saloon. Sources insist the four-door is still in the product planning mix, and could be fast-tracked into production by using a lower-riding version of the MLC's platform, in much the same way as Porsche has done with the Cayenne and Panamera models.
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What market is Lamborghini going after here?
A American rich hillbilly pick-up truck market driver named Jed who has accidentally struck black gold.
This pick-up looks like it was designed knocked up by a group of 9 year olds on scrap heap challenge.
Unlike the Aventador and Gallardo, the new SUV will be front engined.
Its an SUV for christ sake so of course it will be front engined. I mean come on AE your starting to really show your self up now
Sorry mate but this car is not the new Lambo but the LM002 as described in the heading. It was powered by the Countach engine and came out in the 80's. Not your fault as the heading is a bit deceiving.
Glad to see a car company finding a use for all those empty tins throw away.
What was the LM002 then ?
And that's what your photograph here shows anyway.
"Successor to ..." means by definition that there was one before.
Come on Auto Express, stop scrambling for sensational headlines just before your deadline, and stick to the facts.
"Just give me the facts, Ma'am"
(Jack Webb's Sgt Joe Friday, 'Dragnet', early 1950s)
while the common people have to suffer the ridiculous taxes for suv's, the rich and corrupted are busy ruining the earth in these
Cripes!!! Now I'm confused. So the pic above is in fact an LM0002, because I was going to crack its got front flared guards TOO. So the Aye-cenne, Toe-rag, and Q7.....the VAG all singing, all dancing, all unselling trifecta then?? Wonder why? Even after the intelligent application of the 'Polishing the T**d' theory, they didnt. They may have a place in a lunar landscape, they most certainly DO NOT have an earthly place. It is therefore with this in mind, I consider it close to the most hair-brained decision Audi [you dont think it was Lambo's decision do you] has ever made. This is slavish following at its all time worst. What it will do is dilute the value of the brand. Just another obscene gas-guzzler in a world of rapidly depleting oil. What gives first????? Profits, or the Planet??
Volkswagen is going to make an Touareg clone with the Italian badge on it.
RIP real Italian Lambo now you are just another german clone
The LM002 was big with the sheikhs and emirs who don't have a problem with either the consumption or price tag. Now that the Hummer is dead there is definitely a niche again for an in-yer-face monster offroader that's more rugged and expensive than a rangie, q7 or Cayenne.
firstly the pictures and infomation do not confuse AE clearly talks of the old car and says the new one will be a 3 door and the one iin the photo plainly has 4-5 doors
but more to the point this car had to be done if you consider the brands that simply compete on a price to price scale alternative marques of car would be along the lines of maserati, ferrari, bentley, all of which have a 4x4 on the way it would not make bussiness sense not to try and compete and of them if i had the money it wouild be the lambo as theres is likly to have the most unique style