Mercedes-Benz Offers Assassination-Proof Car For VIPs

For some drivers, safety means more than airbags and assistance systems. For those with extra needs, Mercedes is offering its S-Class as a bulletproof, grenade-proof, you-name-it-proof saloon with its own fire extinguishing system, Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa) reported.

Photo Insert: The S-Class Guard can withstand not only explosive attacks but also hand grenades and sniper rifle bullet

The S-Class Guard fulfills the highest ballistic test level (protection class VPAM VR10) for civilian vehicles allowing it to withstand not only explosive attacks but also hand grenades and sniper rifle bullets, the manufacturer says.

Built for world leaders and members of royalty, the S-Class Guard uses a construction of overlapping armored steel and special fibers under an aluminum body, as well as thick-as-your-arm window panes with particularly robust foils in between.

Despite sounding like a tank, the car's thick protection is almost invisible from the outside. And yet all this safety comes at a price. Those who order the S 680 Guard in its home market in Europe will need to pay upwards of 547,400 euros ($650,000) to get this armored car.

At the same time, all this security also increases the weight, and because this car weighs more than four tons, the Guard version is only available as the S 680 with a V12 engine that produces the necessary 612 horsepower (hp).

That also means that top speed is limited to 210 km/h in consideration of the bullet-proof tires.

While Mercedes hardly makes any compromises when it comes to comfort equipment and adds most of the extras from the S-Class, the German manufacturer has also developed a few more added security features.

These features range from a discreetly hidden blue light to an integrated fire extinguishing system and the electric closing aid for the centimeter-thick armored doors, project manager Andreas Zygan says.

Mercedes says it does check the reputation of its customers and delivers most Guard models to high-level officials, notably members of government and royal families.

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