Mercedes-Benz has extensive experience in producing specialized vehicles to transport the head of the Catholic Church, the Pope. According to established tradition, the car should have a spacious transparent compartment for a high-ranking passenger. In the new version it became electric.
Image source: Mercedes-Benz
Since Mercedes-Benz has already prepared an electric version of the Gelandewagen SUV for mass production, it was taken as the basis for the new “dad car”. According to the manufacturer, the presence of a traction motor in the drive of each of the four wheels allows you to smoothly control the speed of movement of the precious passenger. The chair in the compartment for the Pope is equipped with a swivel mechanism, allowing you to always face the desired part of the audience during public appearances.
The history of cooperation between Mercedes-Benz and the Vatican in this area goes back almost 100 years, but this German manufacturer provided the head of the Catholic Church with only a third of special vehicles, since there were other partners over the years. The German auto giant worked with the Vatican on the current version of the Popemobile for about a year. The now bankrupt company Fisker also tried to offer the head of the Catholic Church an electric car based on the Ocean crossover, but its promises remained unfulfilled.