The Only 5 V12 (Or W12) SUVs Ever Sold New In America

The Story

Twelve cylinders, massive power, luxury. Uncover the story behind the only 5 V12 and W12 SUVs ever sold in America by Rolls-Royce, Ferrari, and Mercedes-AMG.

Rolls-Royce Add Jalopnik on Google: Preferred Source Google Discover It is no secret that SUVs are wildly popular and have been for some time, not just in the U.S., but also the world over. Models like the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V have been climbing the sales charts for years now, while models like the ’90s Ford Explorer paved the way for their success.

Advantageous ride heights, plenty of space inside for both cargo and occupants, plus the sense of adventure-readiness are just some of the attributes that make SUVs the popular choice they are today. Gargantuan 12-cylinder engines, on the other hand, just don’t sit within the average motorist’s ‘must-have’ list when buying an SUV.

Instead, such engines are more typically suited toward ultra-smooth luxo-barges, as the V12 is an inherently smooth engine with a high enough cylinder count and displacement to provide effortless, linear progress without stress. Or indeed they belong well beneath the hood of elaborate supercars, as the classic 12-pot shriek is a clear sign of exuberant excess and tire-shredding power.

As such, it likely comes as little surprise to discover that only 5 SUVs have ever made it across to American shores, some with V12s under the hood, while one goes with a W12 instead. Other examples, such as the W12-powered Volkswagen Touareg or laughably unnecessary diesel V12-powered Audi Q7, did make it through to production, but never for American markets.

So, from the Ferrari Purosangue to the Rolls-Royce Cullinan, via an old-school Lamborghini, W12-powered Bentley, and military-derived Mercedes-AMG, these are the only 5 12-cylinder-powered SUVs ever sold new in America, ranked by output from least to greatest.

Lamborghini Kicking things off, we find perhaps the most bizarre V12-powered SUV ever sold, Lamborghini’s LM002, produced between 1986 and ‘92. This remarkable creation stems from a one-off vehicle that was created prior, the Lamborghini Cheetah, which had military use in its sights. However, due to similarities to another military project in development, the build was scrapped, but the longing for a vehicle of this nature still lingered within Lamborghini’s factory gates.

These lingering desires eventually materialized as the LM002 — a monstrous SUV with a near 6,800-pound curb weight, fully independent suspension, low- and high-range four-wheel-drive system, and a rather un-SUV-like six-Weber-fed, four-cam, 5.2-liter V12 engine. In terms of the numbers, the Countach-powered LM002 provided 444 horsepower alongside 368 lb-ft of torque to the user’s right foot, which made for both an amazing and terrible ride – as we found out when getting to grips with one in Italy just last year.

This then acts as the first chapter in the remarkably short V12-SUV story. It’s a cool machine, that’s for sure, but given its obscurity and innate unusualness, it’s probably not a great surprise to hear that it took a number of decades before any other automaker was wild enough to give the recipe another try.

Taking care of all matters relating to propulsion is a twin-turbocharged 6.7-liter V12 engine, with 563 horsepower at its disposal – or 592 horsepower in the later Black Badge models, with 627 lb-ft of torque too, which comes in nice and low at just 1,600 rpm. Power is sent to all four wheels through an 8-speed automatic transmission, and its performance is really quite remarkable, considering its 6,086-pound curb weight. This super-suave SUV can rocket from 0 to 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds, and it will keep on motoring until it hits a governed limit of 151 mph.

In true Rolls-Royce style, the Cullinan is not marketed at the many like most SUVs, but to the few, and this is perhaps best demonstrated by its gargantuan sticker price, which happily crosses the half-million-dollar-mark in the right specification.

Why It Matters

Taking care of all matters relating to propulsion is a twin-turbocharged 6.7-liter V12 engine, with 563 horsepower at its disposal – or 592 horsepower in the later Black Badge models, with 627 lb-ft of torque too, which comes in nice and low at just 1,600 rpm.

CarMotion Daily’s Take

So, from the Ferrari Purosangue to the Rolls-Royce Cullinan, via an old-school Lamborghini, W12-powered Bentley, and military-derived Mercedes-AMG, these are the only 5 12-cylinder-powered SUVs ever sold new in America, ranked by output from least to greatest. The detail bears tracking. Electric momentum is uneven across the industry, and moves like this reshape how buyers compare EV lineups. Range, charging speed, and price still dominate EV shopping — every new entry forces competitors to either match or reposition. Watch for EPA range certifications and DC fast-charge benchmarks once independent tests land. Pricing tiers, software updates, and any regional trim adjustments will tell us how serious the launch intent is.