Thick armor and their own blood supplies: This is how the state cars of the G7 leaders are equipped

Created: 06/21/2022, 14:18

By: Catherine Brown

"The Beast": US President Joe Biden's Cadillac One could also be used at the G7 summit.

© DPA

When politicians travel, they do so extravagantly.

The G7 heads of state are driven in these official cars.

They could also be used at the G7 summit in Elmau in 2022.

Munich – The transport of state guests is always a spectacle: motorcycle escorts, helicopter flights – and even cars you have brought with you.

At the past international summits in Germany, many heads of state had their own cars flown in.

It will not be revealed in advance whether this will also be the case at the G7 summit in Elmau in 2022 – the US embassy, ​​for example, is keeping such details top secret for security reasons, according to our newspaper.

But that would not be improbable: At the G7 summit in 2015, Barack Obama brought his own car to Elmau as a precaution – in case the helicopters shouldn't take off.

The Cadillac One aka "The Beast" is probably the most famous company car in the world.

The car giant General Motors built the black state limousine especially for the US President.

G7 summit 2022 in Elmau: These state cars drive the politicians

Obama got his “Beast” in 2009: The car is said to weigh eight tons and is made of steel, aluminum, titanium and a layer of ceramic.

The armored car is said to have even been equipped with tear gas cannons, oxygen and blood bags with the President's blood type.

The model that Joe Biden is now being driven in was made for ex-President Donald Trump in 2018.

Safety precautions have been modernized in such a way that the new "Beast" is also known as a rolling bunker.

The chancellor colossus: Olaf Scholz is chauffeured by a Mercedes S 680 Guard.

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French President Emmanuel Macron, on the other hand, is driven more inconspicuously: DS7 Crossback Élysée is the name of the luxury SUV in which Macron has been chauffeured for six months.

DS was originally a luxury label from Citroën, but became its own car brand in 2016.

This state car also has armor, is equipped for presidential use and has a huge folding roof so that the head of state can present himself to his people.

As a rule, Macron does not take the car with him on state visits.

Armored and explosive-proof company car: Everything for the safety of the G7 heads of government

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has two types of vehicles available as company cars: the Toyota Century and the Lexus LS600h L. "We do not know whether Prime Minister Kishida will travel to the G7 summit in his own car," the Japanese Embassy said.

"As a rule, however, it is not usual for the Japanese prime minister to bring his own car to meetings abroad - such as the upcoming G7 summit."

With folding roof: French President Macron in his DS7 Crossback Élysée.

© dpa

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson drives through the UK in a silver Jaguar XJ Sentinel - said to be grenade and explosives proof.

And Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz, like his predecessors, relies on a Mercedes as his company car: the S 680 Guard.

The armored S-Class weighs just over four tons and costs more than half a million euros.

When the car was checked, employees of the state bombardment office in Ulm fired 300 bullets at the Mercedes.

No hair was harmed to the dummies in the car.