In pictures: the glorious history of four-wheel-drive Lamborghinis

Ahead of the launch of the new Urus SUV, we celebrate the firm's love affair with driving all the wheels

Autocar

27 November 2017

Follow @@autocar

Slide of

Lamborghini is set to enter the high-performance SUV market shortly, with the Urus.

It’s going to be fast, luxurious and dramatic, but it’s not the first time the company has produced an SUV – and the company has been in the four-wheel-drive game since the beginning.
Slide of

Lamborghini 2R DT (1962)

It would be a while before Lamborghini produced its first four-wheel drive car, but as far back as 1962 it created its first four-wheel drive tractor, the air-cooled 2R DT with a 2194cc engine. It was the profits from his tractor empire that allowed Ferruccio Lamborghini to move into producing supercars.
Slide of

Lamborghini R 340 DT (1966)

The idea of a three-cylinder air-cooled Lamborghini might seem rather incongruous – especially one that’s powered by diesel, but this is what powered the R 340 DT, just like the 2R DT of 1962. If that seems crazy, in 1970 Lamborghini downsized even further and introduced the R 240 DT with a 1.9-litre two-cylinder air-cooled engine rated at 39bhp.
Slide of

Lamborghini Cheetah (1977)

Ferruccio Lamborghini sold his company in 1974 to Georges-Henri Rossetti and René Leimer. Soon after, the latter signed a contract with the US military to develop a five-seater all-terrain vehicle with a rear-mounted Chrysler 5.9-litre V8 and a three-speed automatic transmission. The result was the Cheetah prototype, unveiled at the 1977 Geneva motor show.
Slide of

Lamborghini Cheetah (1977)

The Cheetah aped the Ford XR 311 off-roader. The company that contracted Lamborghini to develop the prototype was Mobility Technology International (MTI), which came up with the design. Both Lamborghini and MTI were threatened with legal action by Ford but it never went to court.
Slide of

Lamborghini LM 001 (1981)

In August 1978 Lamborghini went into receivership and when the Syrian army showed interested in the still-born Cheetah, the project was revived under new owners in 1980. This time it was called the LM 001 (Lamborghini Militaria 1) and it made its debut at the 1981 Geneva motor show, with a 183bhp Chrysler 5898cc V8.
Slide of

Lamborghini LMA (1982)

Just a year later a completely redesigned LM broke cover. Now called the LMA, there was now a Lamborghini 4.75-litre V12 up front. Lamborghini also considered building a 3.6-litre diesel SUV (LM 003) and a 7.3-litre V12-powered model (LM004), but neither of these were made.
Slide of

Lamborghini LM 002 (1986)

What did make production – finally, in 1986 – was the LM 002.
Slide of

Lamborghini LM 002 (1986)

Fitted with a 5167cc Countach-sourced V12 in the nose, this is the only true predecessor of the Urus in that it’s the only production four-wheel drive SUV to appear in Lamborghini’s back catalogue.
Slide of

Lamborghini Diablo VT (1993)

The LM 002 remained in production until 1991; two years later came the company’s first four-wheel drive supercar. The VT stood for Viscous Traction, which referred to the central differential which could direct up to 25% of the available torque to the front wheels, as soon as the rear wheels lost grip.
Slide of

Lamborghini Premium 1050 (1995)

In 1973 Lamborghini Tractors was absorbed into the SAME (Società Accomandita Motori Endotermici) empire, where it flourished. Its model range got ever more impressive with several ranges introduced in the 1990s, including the Racing, Agile, Sprint and Champion – along with the Premium. This is the Premium 1050, powered by a 4.0-litre four-cylinder diesel engine rated at 103bhp and 280lb ft of torque. There was no V12 option...
Slide of

Lamborghini Zagato Raptor (1996)

Swiss bobsleigh champion Alain Wicki didn’t want a Diablo VT like everybody else’s – he wanted something unique. So he commissioned Zagato to come up with something dramatic and the Raptor was the result. Shown at the 1996 Geneva motor show, 550 people expressed an interest in buying one – but just the one prototype was built.
Slide of

Lamborghini Heuliez Pregunta (1998)

You might think that the Diablo VT was pretty good as it was, but French coachbuilder Heuliez reckoned it could improve on it. The result was the Pregunta, which means ‘question’ in Spanish. There were plenty of people who questioned how Heuliez could turn a silk purse into a sow’s ear.
Slide of

Lamborghini Murcielago (2001)

Audi’s ownership of Lamborghini was very apparent with an all-new V12-powered supercar that came only with four-wheel drive. In a nine-year production span a healthy 4,099 were built with power outputs ranging from 572bhp to 661bhp.
Slide of

Lamborghini Gallardo (2003)

When the original Gallardo arrived it featured a 493bhp V10 in the middle. The fitment of four-wheel drive helped to get that prodigious power down. Later there would be all sorts of limited edition Gallardos, some with rear-wheel drive only but most still with power going to each corner.
Slide of

Lamborghini Murcielago roadster (2004)

Lamborghini didn’t have much of a history of building open-topped cars; it had previously offered the targe-topped Silhouette and Jalpa in small quantities, along with the Diablo. But the company ramped things up with the introduction of the Murcielago roadster in 2004.
Slide of

Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder (2006)

We got our first glimpse of a drophead Gallardo in 2005, with the debut of the Concept S; the production car followed a year later. The Spyder borrowed its mechanicals from the Gallardo coupé, which meant a 513bhp V10 was fitted, as by now the closed car had been updated to pack more power.
Slide of

Lamborghini Reventon (2007)

When you base your low-volume special on a Murcielago you can’t help but come up with something that’s eye-poppingly fast – especially when it features a carbon fibre bodyshell. Just 21 were built, one of which was retained by Lamborghini for its museum. So if you want to see one, head to Sant’Agata – all of the others will be hidden away in high-security vaults
Slide of

Lamborghini Estoque (2008)

Lamborghini has never offered a four-door saloon, so when it unveiled the Estoque at the 2008 Paris motor show it broke fresh ground for the brand. Powered by the Gallardo’s 5.2-litre V10, its timing could hardly have been worse; Lehman Brothers had collapsed only a few weeks earlier and took much of the global economy with it – any ideas of production for the Estoque were quickly cancelled.
Slide of

Lamborghini Reventon roadster (2009)

With the Reventon coupé such a success, Lamborghini couldn’t resist offering an encore with this open-topped edition. This time just 15 examples were made (that recession of 2008 has a lot to answer for), each powered by a V12 from a Murcielago LP 670-4 Super Veloce.
Slide of

Lamborghini Sesto Elemento (2010)

Sesto Elemento means sixth element – a reference to the atomic number of carbon, which featured heavily in this V10-powered limited edition that made its debut at the 2010 Paris salon. Just 20 were built, each powered by a 570bhp 5.2-litre engine driving all four wheels via a six-speed sequential auto gearbox.
Slide of

Lamborghini Aventador (2011)

Taking over where the Murcielago left off, the Aventador finally ditched the Bizzarrini-designed V12 engine that had sustained Lamborghini since its earliest days. The new V12 produced 690bhp which was enough to take the Aventador to a claimed 220mph.
Slide of

Lamborghini Aventador J (2012)

Six months after the Aventador coupé first appeared, this was unveiled; a bonkers roofless version with the same 690bhp as the donor car. Just the one car was supposed to be built but Lamborghini’s arm was twisted to build another for a ludicrously rich sheikh who just had to have one. We wonder how many miles that car has done since it was delivered...
Slide of

Lamborghini Aventador roadster (2013)

For those who were concerned that they might not be seen when piloting their Aventador through the streets of Monaco, an open-topped version reached showrooms in 2013. But the top speed dropped dramatically compared with the coupé; by 217mph the roadster had run out of steam.
Slide of

Lamborghini Egoista (2013)

You could never accuse Lamborghini of lacking imagination or conviction. When the wraps were taken off the Gallardo-based Egoista it looked like it had escaped from the set of Batman. Built to mark Lamborghini’s 50th birthday, the car took its name from the Italian for ‘selfish’ on account of the car having just one seat. Lamborghini built just one example of the Egoista and it was retained for the company’s own museum.
Slide of

Lamborghini Veneno (2013)

Also created to celebrate Lamborghini’s 50th birthday was the Veneno, based on the Aventador and unveiled at the 2013 Geneva motor show. Five cars were built, three of which were sold.
Slide of

Lamborghini Asterion (2014)

Shelved so Lamborghini had the resources to develop the Urus, the Asterion showcased the hybrid technology at Lamborghini’s disposal. In the middle was a 602bhp V10 driving the rear wheels while the front wheels were driven by electric motors that developed up to 296bhp. Sadly, just the one prototype was built though, but isn't it lovely?
Slide of

Lamborghini Huracan (2014)

With more than 14,000 units shifted, the Gallardo proved a major money spinner for Lamborghini, so the Huracan has a lot to live up to. With 602bhp on tap it’s worthy of the Lamborghini name and no doubt over a decade or so of production we’ll get ever more outrageous versions of it.
Slide of

Lamborghini Veneno roadster (2014)

Lamborghini and its clients got a taste for ultra-exlusive hypercars which is why an open-topped Veneno arrived a year after the coupé. This time there were nine cars available, each of which sold immediately despite the €3.3m (US$3.94m and £2.95m) sticker price.
Slide of

Lamborghini Huracan Spyder (2015)

With the Gallardo Spyder having proved so popular it was inevitable that Lamborghini would introduce a similar option for its successor. Sure enough, a year after the arrival of the Huracan coupé the Spyder edition was unveiled at the Frankfurt motor show.
Slide of

Lamborghini Centenario (2016)

Ferruccio Lamborghini was born in 1916, so to celebrate what would have been his 100th birthday - he had died in 1993 - the Centenario was dreamed up. Using Aventador underpinnings, just 20 copies of this 759bhp V12-powered road-going missile were sold, at €2.2m apiece (US$2.6m and £2m).
Slide of

Lamborghini Centenario roadster (2016)

After its previous low-volume specials it was easy to predict that Lamborghini would offer a Centenario roadster, and sure enough, soon after the coupé had been revealed we got our first glimpse of the open-topped version. Once again just 20 examples were offered for sale.
Slide of

Lamborghini Urus (2018)

Designed to take on the Bentley Bentayga along with the forthcoming Rolls-Royce Cullinan and Aston Martin DBX, the Urus is set to be revealed to the world on 4 December. Alongside a twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 there will be a plug-in hybrid option. We’re not expecting either of them to be especially tame.

Close

Read time: 0 mins

Advertisement

First drives

The lowest-power diesel A3 delivers emissions of 99g/km and a claimed 74.3mpg

Audi A3 1.6 TDI Sport first drive
Most frugal model in the Audi A3 range thrills with impressive economy, but it lacks dynamic sparkle

Audi A3 1.6 TDI Sport first drive
The 2.0-litre TDI is the pick of the diesel range, with 148bhp, versus the 1.6-litre TDI's 103bhp

Audi A3 2.0 TDI Sport
Our first drive of the new Audi A3 in the UK has revealed it to be a good, capable companion if slightly lacking in ambition

Audi A3 2.0 TDI Sport
This is not a hot hatch, but it’s capable enough to entertain and a very effective mile compactor

Audi A3 1.8 TFSI Sport 2012 first drive
This powerful mid-range petrol version of the new A3 comes with a slightly flawed S-Tronic transmission

Audi A3 1.8 TFSI Sport 2012 first drive
All-new Audi A3 is the first VW group vehicle to use its latest, hi-tech MQB platform

Audi A3 2.0 TDI Sport S tronic
First drive review: All-new Audi A3 is one of the most rounded cars in this class

Audi A3 2.0 TDI Sport S tronic
Audi A3 Cabriolet 1.2 TFSI
Reduced-capacity A3 isn’t as satisfying to use as we’d hoped

Audi A3 Cabriolet 1.2 TFSI
The Audi A3 retains its character, but stop-start does bring compromises

Audi A3 1.6 TDI Sport
Stop-start aids economy, but the price conscious may prefer a VW

Audi A3 1.6 TDI Sport
Audi A3 1.4 TFSI Sportback
Cheapest Audi is fine quality but not that cheap

Audi A3 1.4 TFSI Sportback
Audi A3 Cabriolet 1.6
Entry-level engine doesn't live up to the promise of the rest of the car

Audi A3 Cabriolet 1.6
Audi A3 1.9 TDI Cabriolet
Base A3 soft-top is a good car in need of a better engine

Audi A3 1.9 TDI Cabriolet
Audi A3 Cabriolet 1.8 TFSI first drive
Entry-level A3 cab is a strong contender for those wanting style and low running costs

Audi A3 Cabriolet 1.8 TFSI first drive