The new popemobile will also be underpinned by a Mercedes-Benz M-Class - this time, it'll be the recently-unveiled 2012 model. Although Mercedes-Benz doesn't have immediate plans for an M-Class plug-in hybrid, the New York Times speculates that the pope's M-Class popemobile will use technology similar to that of the Vision S500 concept from the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show. With a 10 kWh lithium ion battery pack, a 60 horsepower electric motor and a V6 gas engine, the Vision had an 18.5 mile range on purely electric power.
But the pope isn't quite getting the popemobile of his dreams. Last year, a Vatican spokesman said that the pope wanted a solar-powered electric vehicle that would gain its propulsion from "the heavens."
References
1.'Pope likes electric...' view
