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Lamborghini Urus SUV traces roots to a feline predecessor

The recently-revealed Urus isn't Lamborghini's first SUV. The LM002 pioneered the super-4x4 segment when it made its debut at the 1986 Brussels Auto Show. Tracing its history requires traveling to the mid-1970s, when Ferruccio Lamborghini sold the automaker that he founded and retired in the countryside to hunt and make wine. The new owners had practically no experience in building cars. Instead of expanding the lineup, they sought to land engineering and production contracts. Lamborghini teamed up with an American defense contractor named Mobility Technology International (MTI) to create an off-roader for the United States Army. The partnership spawned a vehicle named Cheetah, unveiled at the 1977 Geneva Auto Show. The Cheetah looked like a Meyers Manx buggy on steroids that ate Jeep CJ-7s for breakfast. The shape of the body gave it unusually high approach and departure angles, while the flat body panels facilitated the task of installing body armor. "Like the cat for which it is named, this high-performance vehicle has explosive acceleration, high speed and sure-footed agility over virtually all terrain," a period brochure claimed. The Cheetah could certainly tame Mother Nature's worst side, but the brochure exaggerated its performance credentials. Power came from the same 5.9-liter Chrysler 360 V8 engine found in Dodge's D-Series trucks. Lamborghini mounted it in the back, and its 183-horsepower rating contributed to a woeful power-to-weight ratio. The eight-cylinder spun all four wheels via an automatic transmission also found on Chrysler's parts shelf. Lamborghini didn't secure the Army's contract. The automaker stood on the brink of collapse. An Italian court took control of the company after it filed for bankruptcy in 1978, and a Swiss entrepreneur later came to the rescue. The new management saw an immense amount of potential in the Cheetah and relaunched the project. Decision-makers spotted an opportunity to enter the burgeoning leisure vehicle segment. Notably, they identified a market for a Cheetah-like car in the Middle East, where a Countach was unpractical at best and a Nissan Patrol was far too pedestrian for oil barons. Lamborghini unveiled a prototype named LM001 at the 1981 Geneva Auto Show. It took the Cheetah concept a step further with an updated look, though it retained the rear-mounted engine. Built as a development mule, it illustrated the limits of a rear-engine off-roader.

A new Lamborghini Countach is coming soon

Update: We received a tip in email that somebody posted an image online from Lamborghini's customer-only app, Lamborghini Unica. It reveals a teaser image of the Countach LPI 800-4 not previously made available to the public. The Instagram post also reveals that the Countach will be revealed during Monterey Car Week on August 15. The "LPI" moniker is the giveaway that this car will be a hybrid, as Lamborghini has used that term on the hybrid Asterion LPI 910-4 Concept. We also expect it to make 800 PS, which is about 789 horsepower. The "4" refers to it being all-wheel drive. You can check out the Instagram post and teaser photo below. It reveals the vents mounted on the side window and the vented intake behind it. Below this, we see what appears to be a gas cap. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The original post continues below. Lamborghini just announced that a new Countach is coming. Let us repeat. Lamborghini just announced that a new Countach is coming! OK. Let that soak in for a few seconds, or minutes, however long it takes. We’re a bit shocked over here, too. ThereÂ’s one teaser image to go off of, and Lamborghini hasnÂ’t let loose any details beyond giving us the name. You can see the car under a car cover and shrouded by haze in the photo above. However, thereÂ’s a video thatÂ’s been posted to Twitter that you can watch below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. We get some great engine noises, and the new Countach appears to be parked a long way away from the camera at the end of the video. It appears to be painted white, but thatÂ’s all we can tell about it from that distance. ThereÂ’s no doubt that Lamborghini is leaning heavily into nostalgic feelings, as you see original Countach posters pinned up to a kidÂ’s room in the video. Lamborghini seems intent on recapturing that wild, exotic magic that the old Countach brought to the supercar landscape. It's tough to say what the styling will be like besides being a wedge like most Lambos. It could be a very retro design, sort of like the Miura concept from over a decade ago. It could also be a thoroughly modern Lamborghini design that happens to have a classic nameplate attached. For what it's worth, Lamborghini's design boss seemed to be against anything overtly retro as of a few years ago.

Jay Leno holds Lamborghini showdown, compares Gallardo LP570-4 and LP550-2

Jay Leno's Garage welcomes two of our favorite Lamborghini models over for compare-and-contrast session, the Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera and Gallardo LP550-2. Note, however, that these are the 2012 coupes, not the 2013 models with their revised front and rear fascias.
Leno likes the size of the Gallardo over the Aventador, and between the two siblings, his philosophy leans heavily toward the rear-wheel drive and superior comfort of the LP550-2. With the help of Andrew Romanowski of the Lamborghini Club of America, Leno goes through little-known details like the LEDs in the engine bay and the particulars that distinguish the two vehicles like the Alcantara, polycarbonate windows and lighter tires on the Superleggera.
Then, doing something that he would never do with human guests on his television show, he takes his favorite out for the driving segment and leaves the all-wheel-drive coupe at the garage to pout. You can learn a few things yourself and listen to Jay sing hosannas about the overall build quality and rear-focused power of the LP550-2 in the entertaining video below.