Patrick Mimram thought there could be some commercial prospect for the Cheetah and almost immediately resurrected the project after acquiring Lamborghini in 1980. Mimran installed Giulio Alfieri as head of the design and development team, the first prototype, the LM 001, retaining the rear-engined layout used for the Cheetah. However, the 5.9-litre Chrysler V8 engine was discarded in favour of a 332bhp Lamborghini V12. Shown at the 1981 Geneva Salon, four years after the Cheetah, some of the fundamental problems that had afflicted that car were still all to evident in the LM 001. Most notable were the unpredictable handling and ineffective steering, both of which were a consequence of the uneven weight distribution caused by the rear-mounted engine.