Lambo's SUV: Fiction or Reality?

In the next few years you'll have a choice of a Bentley SUV, a Maserati SUV, even something called an Eterniti and possibly a Lamborghini SUV.  This wouldn't be their first attempt at off roading, though.

Believe it or not, this is a classic Lamborghini! It's called the LM002 (or 'Rambo Lambo') and it was originally built to sell to the US Army. There were two engines for it: the same 5.2 V12 that's in the Countach or a 7.2 'Marine' V12 and both sound great but the car was an epic failure. The US army invested in Hummers instead and then Lamborghini wanted to modify the car so it could enter the 1988 Dakar rally, except they ran out of money and missed the opportunity.

Now, rumours are flying around about its return. It's all thanks to the Italian Magazine, Quattroruote, who have announced that Lamborghini will be showcasing a couple of concepts, this SUV and possibly a tweaked Estoque Saloon, at the Beijing Motor Show in April. They also came up with what they think the big Lambo will look like.

I must stress, these aren't Lamborghini's drawings which means the concept at Beijing, if it turns up, could look totally different, but first impressions are promising. There are many touches of Aventador and Gallardo at the front but down the side it looks a tiny bit like the latest Ford Focus on stilts, or maybe it's just me. Nevertheless, it's probably going to be one mean looking 4x4 if rumours turn out to be true.

To move the mean machine, the new Rambo Lambo is reportedly getting the Gallardo's V10 but with an output of 575bhp. Other options being considered include a twin-turbo V8 and even a hybrid.

If I'm honest, I'm not the biggest fan of these new super off-roaders and I bet some of you aren't too. There's only one reason why manufacturers are considering building them and that is the Asian market. The demand for them is so vast that the magazine said orders for this LM002 successor, that doesn't even exist yet, are already flooding in!

Though, potential customers will be disappointed as Lamborghini said to Autocar that this is just speculation and the chances are this car will never exist. We'll just have to be a bit more patient before we know what they'll bring to Beijing this year.