German
firm Carmored makes armored cars. Their Smart line is represented by the
world’s smallest armored personal vehicles. Today, the company put the
protective plating on the Brabus 15th Anniversary.
The claimed protection class is B4,
which means protection from Magnum .44 bullets, among other things. The windows
are 22 mm thick, the cabin comes wrapped in a Kevlar ballistic
cocoon, and the battery boasts additional impact protection. The car provides
means of communications with the outside world, a fire extinguisher system, and
an emergency call beacon. It runs on the popular Run Flat tires that enable
driving long distances even after full depressurization.
At just 100 hp,
the engine may seem inadequate for the build, but consider that the ultralight
armor only adds 118 kilograms to the curb weight of the urban
subcompact. The compact ride primarily targets those not interested in
advertising their income, but willing to max out personal protection instead.
Rich people often buy such cars for their children. Aside from that, armored
Smarts are in high demand among diplomats around the world.
The baseline Carmored Smart is assembled
in Erfurt, Germany, and costs starting from € 45,000. The price tag of the
cladded Smart Brabus 15th Anniversary is not available at the time, but, given
that the limited edition consisted of only 150 copies, we’d expect it to be
around twice as high, if not higher.
