The Dubai police, famous for its stable of exotic supercar patrol vehicles, has decided to get serious about performance vehicles, with its latest acquisition - a 515kW Brabus B63S-700 Widestar, based on the Mercedes G63 AMG, itself an absolute sledgehammer of an SUV.
Serious, you ask? Yes, serious - and here's why.
Respected German tuning haus Brabus is an active member of Tune it! Safe!, an programme conducted under the auspices of the German ministry for transport, construction and urban development, and sponsored by the Association of Automobile Tuners and numerous partners from the industry, that has been successfully promoting a greater awareness of safety among tuners and providing important educational advice in Germany since 2005.
MORE MONEY THAN SENSE
Now the Dubai cops are bringing this concept to the United Arab Emirates, where a number of performance junkies with more petrodollars than engineering acumen have been persuading local tuners to modify existing supercars to the point where they are neither safe nor responsible.
The programme is being launched at the Dubai International Motor Show, on from 5 to 9 November in the Dubai World Trade Centre and, as in Germany, the central element of the initiative is a modified but still street-legal police vehicle, tuned to deliver eye-popping performance, 'safely and responsibly' - rolling proof that safe auto tuning and exciting driving need not be mutually exclusive.
And after the show the legally and safely tuned B63S will go on to routine patrol duties, taking the message to the streets of the city. As in Germany, where Tune It! Safe! has established itself as an information platform for all things relating to tuning, sporty automobile accessories and general traffic safety, the initiative is aimed at raising awareness in Dubai, so that safety is not forgotten when it comes to automobile tuning.
ROLLING BILLBOARD
The Brabus B63S-700 Widestar is based on the Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG, its hand-built 5461cc biturbo V8 amped up with bigger turbos, re-mapped ECU and a tuned sports exhaust system to deliver 515kW (that's 700 horsepower in the old terms, hence the model designation) and a take-no-prisoners 960Nm from 2000 to 4500rpm.
That'll launch this two-and-a-half-ton beetle-crusher to 100km/h in 4.9 seconds and on to 240km/h flat out.
It runs on 23" Brabus "Platinum Edition" monoblock forged-alloy rims wearing 305/35 gumballs, inside special Brabus Widestar wheel-arch flares, its suspension modulated by Brabus' in-house dynamic ride control system.
The Brabus B63S-700 'Dubai Police' Tune it! Safe! package also includes:
Door add-ons and LED side-step illumination.
Front spoiler with underbody bash plate and LED daytime running lights.
Front bumper add-on.
Rear bumper and underbody bash plate.
Roof spoiler with additional brake light.
Ride control comfort suspension with two settings (comfortable & sporty).
Valve-controlled sports exhaust system.
Sill plates with illuminated Brabus logo for all five doors.
Machined aluminium door-lock pins and pedal pads.
Brabus floor mats in black with leather edging.