Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Rides of Heads of State (Part 12)

It's getting tougher and tougher to find leads. Yesterday, I had to resort to emailing Iceland's PM's office. I'll of course report any replies.

70. Mauritus. With recent economic problems, austerity is the operative word for this tiny Indian Ocean nation. PM Ramgoolam probably did not get the memo because late last year, he bought himself an Aston DB9. Bastard.

71. Sweden. With Saab in GM's hands and Volvo in Ford's, there is no point for Sweden's PM to ride in a Scandanavian sedan. Here he is in his black S-class. But Swedish culture and tradition is ever-present, as we see the PM riding with his seat belt securely fastened.

72. Oman. As is the case for nearly every state on the Arabian peninsula, the Maybach is the only choice. I'm tracking down the Kuwaiti emir's ride, but I am almost certain that it is going to be a Maybach as well.

73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79. Iran, Zambia, Liberia, Nigeria, Libya, Morocco, Uganda. The leaders of all of these countries ride in Merc S-classes. Providing executive vehicles is probably one of the few reasons DaimlerChrysler is not completely in a financial abyss.

Tally so far:
S-class: 27
7 series: 8
Land Cruiser: 6
Maybach: 5
Phaeton: 4
A8: 3
G-wagen: 2
Holden: 2
Jag: 2
ZIL: 2

One of each of the following: Lancia, Hyundai, Skoda, A6, Peugeot, Renault, Lincoln, VW van, Cadillac, London taxi, Daimler, Suburban, Toyota Century, Hongqi, Bentley, Rolls, Ford Fairlane, Aston Martin

CKY

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