An Old School Limo Built To Last

Ten Little-Known Facts About the Mercedes-Benz 600

Historically owned by royalty, it has windows that will take your arm off, if you're not careful.

3. A window can take your arm off. The window switch, which makes it possible to take your arm off, costs $11,200.

The 600's windows are operated by a variable-rate switch—essentially a pressure-sensitive valve body that lives in the door and routes fluid to the window regulators.

When lowering the window, this switch acts in a simple on-off fashion; push it, the window moves at one speed. When raising the window, however, the switch offers a variable rate—pressing it gently creeps the glass up, but nailing it slams the window shut fast enough to slice off a body part. You can hear it whunk into the door. It sounds like a cleaver pounding into a chopping block.

For some ungodly reason, this switch, which also operates all four windows from the driver's side, currently retails for $11,200 from Mercedes-Benz. Fortunately, it can be repaired for a more reasonable price. The suspension-height switch—the cockpit valve that adjusts the 600's ride height—goes for a more manageable $1400.

And you thought your old S-class hoopty was a money hole.

7. History has seen stiffer, heavier, and more ridiculous private limousines. But this one was built out of industrial-grade, bunker-busting German bluster. Fittingly, it's all but indestructible.

Middelhauve on the 600's construction: "Because of the mass and the construction of the car, the [600's] plain chassis was stiffer than an entire [W112, 1961–1967] 300 sedan. You jack a wheel up at the front, the rear wheel goes off the ground, too. It's so stiff, so stable. As for the rest, the steel that's in there—I haven't seen a 600 where the rockers are rusted through. It just doesn't happen."

Complete list (Road&Track.com)