Pope Benedict XVI uses Mercedes popemobile for American trip

So Pope Benedict XVI has started his trip of America which means that he will travel around in his popemobile. So let us take a closer look at this Mercedes vehicle that will be used for this American trip. The car was shipped over more than two weeks ago from Rome, and you will notice that this vehicle does not look like any other Pope Mobiles that we have seen in the past, however none have ever been a Mercedes before.

No matter where the Pope goes in his car people will know it is him as the car has a six-foot tall glass enclosure that the pope stands up in. This is not any ordinary Mercedes though it is a Mercedes ML 430 which is custom built. On each door you will see the Vatican coat of arms as well as a special license plate which reads SCV 1; this is an acronym for the name of the Vatican in Italian.

The car is upholstered in white leather, but it is not all about comfort in the Popes car, the glass is double-pane and bulletproof. The pope can unwind the windows if he wishes, however I am sure that security official’s advice against it. As you would expect the Mercedes is heavy but the 272 horsepower engine with its automatic transmission will be more than powerful enough to pull the car along. However as you would expect the driver will not take the popemobile over 10mph.

Source – News Week