Of all the limos in the world, the presidential “Beast” is the last one that you would expect to break down. That is exactly what happened though, just recently.
The details:
Where:
Israel. Not only does the Beast break down, this happens a great distance from home and a sense of safety. The President was reportedly visiting Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Ramallah, and in Jordan.
What:
The limo, known as the Beast, is an 8 ton caddy with a list of super secret extra’s. Some of the additions that we do know about are; a few inches of armor, bulletproof glass, and quick sealing doors and windows. There is not just one of these, but multiple identical copies. It was not the only vehicle that was shipped for the purpose of ferrying the President around. There were and always are several vehicles flown ahead to wherever he will be stopping for a visit.
Why:
There is some debate as to why the Beast broke down. Obviously no-one wants to be blamed for doing something stupid, such as putting the wrong fuel type into the car. The secret service claims that there was a mechanical issue. The Israeli’s though are sticking to their story that the wrong fuel was put into the vehicle and that was the cause for the whole mess. The fuel confusion was based on the Chevy chassis that the vehicle was built on, that comes from a vehicle that does take diesel. The limo supposedly does run on unleaded gas.
The outcome:
The president was still picked up, and gotten at the time that he should have been. He was not even in town when the vehicle was towed at around 10 am Israel time. He arrived a few hours later and probably didn’t even register the fact that he had to take another of the available vehicles.
