Dubai, United Arab Emirates - Meet what can probably correctly be called the ultimate in on and off-road travel. This Mercedes-Benz Unimog U 500, breathed on by Brabus and tagged the Black Edition, was launched at the recent Dubai auto show.
It's been tailored to meet the wishes of seriously rich (and there are quite few!) customers in the Gulf region with what Mercedes calls "outstanding off-road capabilities combined with refined elegance, inside and out".
Rich folk in Dubai do deserts like probably nobody else on earth - if you've ever flown into or out of Dubai airport in daylight you'll know that the sands come right up to the city and indeed some housing developments are struggling to keep the Sahara out of their swimming pools.
"The Unimog Black," Mercedes says, "is a combination of a day-to-day recreational and utility vehicle. Co-operation with Brabus in Bottrop, Germany has created a striking recreational vehicle for individualists that sets itself apart from other on or off-road vehicles."
High, truck-like seating gives the driver excellent all-round visibility but Mercedes says power-assisted steering and compact dimensions make the Black as manoeuvrable as a medium-sized car. Yeah, right - try parking this thing in your average downtown shopping-mall underground car park.
"Its exterior and interior have been completely revised," Mercedes adds. "Its elegant ( huh?) silhouette is characterised by both a platform with integral side panels and a new bumper.
"The robust, polished stainless-steel rollover bar and upswept chromed exhausts accentuate the sporty appearance."
Brabus has included 16 real carbon-fibre cabin features - instrument cluster, centre console, door and grab handles are examples - and the roof and A and B pillars are lined with Alcantara leather. The sports-style seats are upholstered in the finest leather and the footwells carpeted in soft velour - just the job for wiping mud-covered boots.
Black is the name and black is the colour - Henry Ford would have loved it - and the colour extends to the leather--wrapped steering wheel and aluminium pedals.
Technical highlights include Mercedes' Comand system from the S-class, with a 6.5" colour screen, DVD navigation, CD changer and a special compass. Two air-conditioning systems with their own controls are fitted, along with tinted glass and a first-class sound system.
The Unimog's 6.4-litre engine is capable of 205kW, which doesn't sound a lot, but its 1100Nm sure as hell does. And, even though it's primarily a desert dueller and weighs in at 12 tonnes, the Black can reach 120km/h.
It's rated for a gross payload of around 4.3 tonnes and is fitted with 455/70 radial tyres on 24" rims. Enough to turn desert sand into crushed glass and there's cabin-controlled tyre pressure control as well as a rear-mounted cable winch - note, rear-mounted. No Unimog driver ever accepts a tow.
Mercedes sees the Unimog Black as a desert fashion accessory ideal for excursions into rough mountain terrain, remote ski slopes (in Dubai?) or hot deserts. Or, of course, hauling the family yacht to the coast.
Price: If you can afford one, who the hell cares?