Mercedes-Benz Opens Vatican Exhibition Featuring 8 Historic Popemobiles Since 1930

Mercedes-Benz is showcasing a century of papal motoring history with a special exhibition at the Vatican Museums, bringing together eight historic vehicles that trace the evolution of the Popemobile, from luxurious limousines to specially designed vehicles used by popes during public appearances since the 1930s.

Opened to visitors on October 29 in a glass pavilion near the Vatican Museums’ Pinacoteca, the exhibition, titled “Mercedes-Benz: A Century of Popemobiles,” runs until January 31, 2027. The partnership dates back to 1930, when Pope Pius XI received a Mercedes-Benz Nürburg 460, a luxurious Pullman limousine, as a gift from the then Daimler-Benz AG.

Among the vehicles on display is the 1960 Mercedes-Benz 300 d Landaulet supplied to Pope John XXIII. Also featured is the Mercedes-Benz 600 Pullman Landaulet, which was delivered to Pope Paul VI in 1965 with a specially configured individual seat.

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A major turning point came in 1980, when Mercedes-Benz developed a 230 G for Pope John Paul II’s visit to Germany. Featuring an elevated seating position and a transparent dome that allows crowds to see the pope clearly, the G-Class-based concept helped establish the modern Popemobile design.

Other exhibits include the S 500 long-wheelbase Landaulet (model series 140) from 1997, the ML 430 Popemobile used by John Paul II during World Youth Day in Toronto in 2002, which features a rear canopy covered by ballistic glass, and the ML 500, delivered to the Vatican in 2012 for Pope Benedict XVI.

The exhibition also features the 1886 Benz Patent-Motorwagen, widely recognised as the first automobile, alongside one of three current Mercedes-Benz S-Class model that toured six continents until mid-October as part of the “140 Places” tour.

While these eight vehicles on display connect the history of papal transportation with Mercedes-Benz’s 140th anniversary of automotive innovation, the fully electric G 580-based Popemobile, presented to Pope Francis in 2024, represents the latest chapter in its relationship with the Vatican.

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