Interesting info on the capabilities of the LSAM vs the old LM:

http://www.thespacereview.com/article/502/1

...The LSAM is the ESAS’s version of the LM, and like the LM, has a descent stage, an ascent stage, and four legs. Once again, the similarities end there at the basic exterior shape, and in this case the differences are even greater than those between the CEV and the CSM. The LM could nominally support two men on the lunar surface for three days. The LSAM will be able to sustain a crew of four on the surface for periods of time ranging from four days to several months. The LSAM can comfortably house four astronauts on the lunar surface while the CEV orbits above, unoccupied. At this early stage, ideas call for the LSAM to carry two lunar rovers, so that the lunar surface teams can explore in two teams of two simultaneously. The LSAM will also include an airlock to keep the cabin free of pervasive lunar dust. The descent stage of the LSAM will be powered by a throttleable hydrogen/oxygen derivative of the venerable RL10 workhorse rocket engine, which will provide enough delta-v to allow the LSAM to land anywhere on the Moon (Apollo LMs could only land in the equatorial regions of the Moon’s near side). The LSAM’s ascent stage will be powered by the same storable-propellant methane engine as the CEV’s service module engine – a strategy that will save money by using a common engine.

OK, so the LSAM can support bigger crews at more locations on the moon than the LM. So what? The answer: The truly exciting thing about the LSAM is its payload capability to the lunar surface. Even in its most basic version, the LSAM can carry an astounding 2.2 metric tons of equipment to the lunar surface—about 10 times the mass of the Apollo lunar rover and all the Apollo scientific equipment put together. In a dedicated cargo mode, the LSAM can carry an astonishing 21 tons to the lunar surface—greater than the mass of the entire fuelled Apollo lunar module.

Clearly such a payload capability will easily lend itself to building a lunar outpost, as many tons of equipment can be brought to the Moon relatively easily, whether it consists of consumables, power equipment, or science tools. An initial base could be deployed by linking together several cargo and crew LSAMs; a huge amount of equipment can be brought to the lunar surface by just a few of them. In its initial missions, the extra payload capability can be used to take extra science equipment to the surface, or more consumables to allow the crew to spend long periods of time exploring the lunar surface. Once again we see that the similarities between the LSAM and LM run only skin-deep. The LM could land two astronauts on the equatorial near side of the Moon and support them for about three days. The LSAM will be able to land four astronauts anywhere on the Moon, and will support six months of lunar exploration with several tons of scientific equipment. The LSAM will have modern technology, will support crews in relative comfort, and will carry orders of magnitude more scientific equipment to the lunar surface than did the LM. The LSAM is far more suitable for supporting real long-term manned lunar exploration than the Apollo LM was. The LSAM is no LM. A long-term six-month mission with an LSAM and a crew of four could be accomplished a few years after the initial landings scheduled for 2018. Such a mission—one single mission—could enable more than 30 times the number of crew-hours on the lunar surface of the entire Apollo program, which was achieved with six heavy-lift Saturn 5s, 18 astronauts, and 12 spacecraft, over three years....