The Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG is, at the moment, about the most exotic truck you can buy, a juiced-up former military vehicle that packs 536 hp and price tag deep in the six figures. Its reign will be short; soon Mercedes will unveil the G65 AMG, with a twin-turbo V-12 and a price that begins in Bentley territory. Speaking of Bentley, the Brits are readying their own swank 4x4, the Bentayga. Rolls-Royce recently confirmed that it’s working on an SUV. In a few years, nearly every exotic car company will offer an SUV. It seems like such an obvious move, you wonder why nobody did this sooner. Well, somebody did, way back in the ’80s: Lamborghini.
Lamborghini started building the LM002 in 1986. The LM, a nearly 7,000 lb. 4x4 powered by a Countach V-12, was conceived as the Italian Hummer but never quite caught on with either militaries or well-heeled civilians. Too expensive, too complicated—too far ahead of its time, really—America bought a total of 44 LMs. Fortunately, I happen to know one of those 44 forward-thinking individuals, and he agreed to let me drive his 1990 LM002. For someone who loves trucks, this is a like a McLaren F1-level opportunity. In terms of sheer outrageous presence, the LM is equal to anything Lamborghini has ever built. Which is saying something.
You can see why militaries balked at this thing. You need a special tool to lock the hubs. The V-12 has two check engine lights—one for each half of the engine. The Pirelli Scorpions failed long ago; their reinforced sidewalls parting ways with the tread after a session of off-roading. And yet, just look at how cool this thing is. This is the truck that would steal the Hummer H1’s girlfriend.
Like an H1, the LM has only four seats because the mechanicals are stuffed into a high-riding central tunnel, allowing a flat bottom and high ground clearance. Under the hood, exposed parts of the frame are painted NATO green, as if Lambo built this truck with an eye toward deployment in the European theater but then decided to throw in a red leather interior and sell it in Miami. Which is what happened. This LM did see some action during a hurricane, when its exterior spare tire helped prevent the garage door from blowing in; the door buckled until it hit the tire and the immovable object to which it is attached, thus saving a few other four-wheeled treasures from certain destruction.
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