Which Apollo mission first used a lunar rover?

Apollo 15 was the first mission to use a lunar rover. The Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) was driven on the Moon for the first time on July 31, 1971, by astronauts David Scott and James Irwin.

The battery-powered, four-wheeled rover was designed by Boeing, with General Motors developing its wheels and mobility system. It allowed astronauts to travel much farther from the Lunar Module than earlier crews could manage on foot, expanding the area available for geological exploration and sample collection.

The LRV folded into a compartment on the Lunar Module and was deployed after landing. It was used on Apollo 15, Apollo 16, and Apollo 17—the final three crewed lunar-landing missions. Apollo 17 commander Eugene Cernan later reached an unofficial lunar speed record of about 11.2 miles per hour.

A common mix-up is Apollo 17, which made extensive use of the rover and carried the geologist Harrison Schmitt. However, Apollo 15 was the first mission to drive one on the lunar surface.