Zim's traffic cops get Mercs

News24 (SA) ^ | December 11, 2002

[Clive]

Johannesburg - Amid widespread famine and a fuel crisis, the Zimbabwean traffic authority has bought six luxury cars, worth at least R1.3m, for their highway-patrol service.

DaimlerChrysler South Africa confirmed on Tuesday that Zimbabwe’s traffic authority had bought six Mercedes-Benz C-class cars from them.

The six cars - priced at R231 000 at the lowest end of the range - are on their way to Harare.

In South Africa, standard fittings for the cars include leather upholstery, electronic climate control, ABS brakes, air bags for the driver and front passenger and power steering.

During the recent World Summit for Sustainable Development, held in Johannesburg in September, heads of state from around the world were transported to and from their hotels and the conference centre in Standton, in Mercedes C 240 models.

President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe was also at the conference.

DaimlerChrysler said on Tuesday it supported the European Union’s list of 79 blacklisted people with whom they refuse to trade. Mugabe’s name is on the list.

The car-maker pertinently said it would “not sell any goods to the Zimbabwean government”.

Earlier this year, through a go-between, Mugabe bought an armoured Mercedes S600 as his official vehicle.

[Clive]

Another example of German industrialists treating sanctions as just something to be gotten around.

[Clive]

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[Fudd]

And you can be sure that these won't be used for menial highway patrol or traffic duties, either.

[Wright is right!]

Mercedes-Benz makes a LOT of models that aren't marketed in the US. Anyone who travels to Europe will see just how common the Benz marque really is...everything from trucks to taxis. In fact, we've ridden in more Mercedes taxis in Europe than in any other kind. They're certainly not like the Benzes you get here - stick shift, diesel (of course), a fairly spartan interior, and built to last forever. These cars are apparently priced a LOT lower than the US Export models, because if ordinary cabbies can afford them....

And the MB penetration of the worldwide truck market is astounding. Even in the poorest 3rd-world countries, you still see lots of MB trucks. So they're obviously making a LOT of "entry-level" models that will never get exported to the US.

Anyone know what some of the non-US Benz models sell for?

Michael