More often than not, if you see a Mercedes-Benz G-Class in a movie, it’s being driven by or chauffeuring around a villain. It’s just a rad, menacing-looking SUV, and what could make it more menacing than if it was seriously armored?
Armored G-wagens aren’t new, but not all armored vehicles are created equal. Many of them create a host of inconveniences for passengers and the security personnel who operate the vehicles. The armor plating reduces the interior volume and makes doors harder to get in and out of, for example. Armor plating is very heavy, so the vehicle is bound to handle poorly if the outfitter hasn’t addressed the suspension and chassis components. German Mercedes tuner Brabus is thinking things through a little more completely than that, though, with its Invicto line of armored vehicles.
As you’d expect, a company like Brabus, which built its reputation on absurdly overpowered and engineered tuned Mercedes and AMG products, isn’t going to take any half measures with its client’s safety and to show just how thorough its conversion process is; it allowed filmmakers from Welt Documentary in to film it.
The resulting documentary film is almost an hour long, but it’s fascinating. The way that the vehicle’s suspension has been re-engineered to handle an extra ton or more of weight is impressive, and the way that Brabus’ engineers were able to utilize the natural shape of the G-Class’ body to more tightly fit the armored safety cell without severely compromising the interior space is pretty wild too.
Even if you don’t have any future plans to become an extremely wealthy despot or a head of state somewhere, this documentary is worth a watch. When people talk about German engineering, this level of attention to detail and fastidiousness is what they’re talking about.
So, kick back, blow off the rest of the work day, and nerd out on armored cars with us.