Filed under: Concept Cars, SUVs, Lamborghini
Student-penned Lamborghini LM400 Concept
click above image to view more pics of the Lamborghini LM400 Concept
The original Lamborghini LM002 combined the qualities of a HUMMER (before there really was HUMMER) with a level of power and performance one would expect from a Italian exotic. It eschewed actual design for a slab-sided, utilitarian look, with a pair of round headlights that toned down its aggression so it looked safe to pet without getting bitten.
Of course, the LM002 missed out on the big SUV boom that saw luxury, high-performance SUVs like the Porsche Cayenne padding its parent company's pockets with big profits. But now that SUVs are truly mainstream and Lamborghini finds itself under the care of VW/Audi, design student Rene Harrigan thought it might be time to reconsider bringing this beast back to life. His idea, called the LM400 Concept, updates the old bruiser with a new Lamborghini-esque design that sits on an Audi Q7 platform. We like Harrigan's vision from the A-pillar back, but the front end lacks a strong visual connection with current Lambos and looks too anonymous to wear a Raging Bull badge. He says the LM400 would be powered by various V8, V10 and V12 engines plucked from the corporate parts bin, and be offered in four trim levels: the LM V8, sporty LM-S, luxurious LM400 V10 and the obscene LMR that sports a 600-hp V12.
The idea of a new LM for Lamborghini is fun, but in reality would say something about how far the brand has come from its many trips to the edge. Porsche got away with offering an SUV and not alienating its fanbase too much, so perhaps Lamborghini could do the same.
[Source: CarBodyDesign via CarScoop]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Will 2:50PM (6/01/2007)
The LM from Lambo was a mistake. Though this is a good looking render, I have to believe that Lambo/Audi would never entertain the idea of another SUV for the raging bull. That's almost as silly an idea as a Porsche SUV. Oh, wait...
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bmoredlj 3:12PM (6/01/2007)
If Lambo were to build an SUV, it probably wouldn't look to the past for inspiration That was the main reason the Miura concept didn't become a reality - the current Lamborghini design team is all about cutting-edge design, not retro style. I am not opposed to the idea of a Lambo SUV...or a Chassis Cab, for that matter.
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Jon 3:18PM (6/01/2007)
Why doesn't Ferrari just build an SUV too? This is getting ridiculous.
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Nellydesign 3:24PM (6/01/2007)
I love when "students" use a diliberately angular design language to hide the fact that they don't really know how to model very well. In reply to someone saying this is a good looking render, I would beg to differ. Whatever school this "student" is attending obviously hasn't taught him the basics of car design. Case in point, the A pillar/roof junction. Looks broken.
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Saabaru 3:33PM (6/01/2007)
I wish people would learn how to render if they plan on releasing their work to the public.
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Justin 3:45PM (6/01/2007)
Seriously...someone tell this guy that modern computers can handle more than 15 polygons on a screen at once... I'm an amateur 3d designer and I at least know how to render and create curves...
Autoblog, please stop posting crap like this. I can go home and shit out a concept car if you want...at least my turd will be hot.
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iamhoff 4:28PM (6/01/2007)
Well, duh! Of course it's angular! How else would you expect a Lambo SUV to look? For as much as the idea of a Porsche SUV is absurd, as much as possible it tries to look like it belongs in the Porsche family. The fact that Porsches are rounded and kind of "bulge-y" for lack of a better term makes the idea of an SUV with some curves to it (front end and rear hatch at least) doable. There is no way to make a reasonably useable SUV as sleek and swoopy as your stereotypical Lambo. So if you don't mimic the styling elements, you at least mimic the attitude behind it (and yes the front end does seem weak)...and that's outrageous aggression. The original LM002 was that way because it made sense. From that perspective, this one works, too. If Lambo had never done an SUV before, it would be laughed off as a joke. But the fact that they did it long before the Range Rover really came into vogue here in the US, long before the 'Slade and 'Gator came around, gives them cred.
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Don 5:39PM (6/01/2007)
Oh, that's exactly what we need...a 12-cylinder Lambo CUV.
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Justin 6:24PM (6/01/2007)
Watch Out! Attack of the render nerds! You guys are clearly to caught up in practicing your rendering *cough-World of Warcraft - cough* to realize that any homage to a LM400 would, by very definition, require that it be completely angular in nature. The LM400 was the one of the most angular vehicles ever created this side of the VW Thing. And that does not even take into account the highly angular nature of Lambo's current styling.
So next time, how about a little appreciation for the historical context. Or is it that you just want to slam it because all of the super-sweet renders you have surely created have never made it further than you MySpace page or Flikr account? Thats my bet...sour grapes.
That aside, I think its cool, but would have preferred a more LM400 color (ie red, black, or white)
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Justin 6:25PM (6/01/2007)
Please note I am a different and much cooler Justin than the other so called "Justin" that posted at 3:45
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Billy 6:51PM (6/01/2007)
"Please note I am a different and much cooler Justin than the other so called "Justin" that posted at 3:45"
Yeah. According to you.
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Nick 9:38PM (6/01/2007)
"The original Lamborghini LM002 combined the qualities of a HUMMER (before there really was HUMMER)"
Don't know if this was an oversight or not, but the Lamborghini LM002 was, in fact, built because Lambo submitted a vehicle for the US military's HMMV project. AM-General, obviously, won. Lamborghini took their LM001 and civilian-ized it... and the LM002 was born. Most definitely ahead of it's time!
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wolliam 11:40AM (6/02/2007)
i think they want a pimp ride, or a hummer....
http://clubvaio.blogspot.com/
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Nellydesign 10:00AM (6/04/2007)
Being someone who actually designs cars for a LIVING, I don't post my renders online. In fact I think most work done by amateur designers who work in 3D is crap. Mainly because they don't know how to sketch. Knowing how to use 3DSmax doesn't make you a designer any more than knowing how to swing a hammer makes you a contractor.
The problem here is using an angular design language (perfectly understandable for this vehicle) as an excuse for crappy surfacing. Even the most angular cars use basic surface continuity and filleting to create a unified surface. This vehicle does not. Period. When you can see each boundary of each individual patch on a 3D model, it means the modeler didn't spend enough time on it.
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