Cars Democratic SA Presidents Drove In and What Makes them Interesting

• We look at two of the cars that Nelson Mandela and Cyril Ramaphosa experienced as democratic presidents of South Africa
• Nelson Mandela was given a red W126 S-Class as a gift by the workers of the Mercedes-Benz East London plant
• Ramaphosa has been driven around in an armoured BMW 7 Series High Security

Nelson Mandela is linked with a few cars during his time as president of South Africa.

One of the best stories involving Mandela and cars is the red Mercedes-Benz W126 S-Class that workers built at the German carmaker's East London plant, AutoPedigree reports.

The luxury sedan is red to symbolise the red used by the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA). The plant's workers raised money to buy parts and built the car outside normal shift hours.

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The second interesting car experienced by a democratic president in South Africa is a BMW 7 Series High Security.

BMW reports that the German luxury sedan has been designed to keep its occupants safe and well-protected. The engineers have modified the 7 Series with reinforced suspension, dampers and suspension strut top mountings.

There is special steel and armour plating for the doors and other strategic spots, including the roof, the pillars, the front footwell and the separation wall between passenger and luggage sections.

The 760Li High Security is powered by a 6.0-litre V12 engine with 400kW and 750Nm. The top speed is 210km/h.

4 Expensive presidential armoured limousine cars that protect Africa's most powerful leaders

Briefly News reported that countries' presidents are some of the most well-protected citizens paid for by taxpayers. In Africa, some leaders are transported in heavily-armoured vehicles, including countries such as South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Rwanda. We look deeper at what modifications these armoured cars are fitted with.

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We look at the cars that Presidents from Nigeria (Muhammadu Buhari), Kenya ( Uhuru Kenyatta), Rwanda (Paul Kagame), South Africa (Cyril Ramaphosa) and Uganda (Yoweri Museveni).

The Mercedes-Benz S600 Pullman is used by Uhuru Kenyatta, the president of Kenya. The car uses thicker doors and windows that are bulletproof and is powered by a 6.2-litre V8 engine.

Source: Briefly News