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SGS Royale
| |
| SGS Royale | |
|---|---|
| SGS | |
| aka | Styling Garage Royale |
| Production | 1985 |
| Class | Super Luxury |
| Body Style | Four-door Saloon |
| Length | 6195 mm |
| Width | 2016 mm |
| Height | 1530 mm |
| Wheelbase | 4130 mm |
| Weight | c. 3,000 kg |
| Transmission | Four-speed Automatic |
| Engine | 4973 cc V8, naturally aspirated |
| Power | 242 bhp |
| Similar | Mercedes 500 SEC |
| Designer | Christian Hahn |
The SGS Royale was Styling Garage's most outrageous project. The car was loosely based upon the Mercedes W126 S-Class, and featured similar mechanicals - the engine remained the same 5.0 litre V8, and the gearbox was also retained. The seating arrangement inside, along with the general cabin architecture remained the same - but this is where the similarities end. The Royale is a typical car of the 1980's 'greed is good' mindset, and was built for those who had decided that the biggest Mercedes-Benz just wasn't big enough.
Unconventional Coachwork
The Royale was a stretched S-Class Mercedes. So far, so boring. However, unlike any other faux-limo, the Royale was stretched not only in length, but in width and height too. The widening of the chassis, by 100 mm, allowed three full-size seats to be set side-by-side in the rear of the car - but if specified, the seat could be replaced by a large centre console which was large enough to accomodate a large television, along with a VHS player, and a sound system complete with graphics equalizer and amplifier.
The Royale was offered in three variations of stretch - the shortest was stretched by 300 mm, with 700 mm and 1200 mm stretches completing the range. Every other body component was enlarged too - the doors on all models were enlarged by 150 mm. The three-way stretching allowed the Royale to retain the proportions of the original Mercedes, but take on a size akin to a Hummer.
Of course, adding such bodywork and onboard fripperies in turn increased the weight of the car. To allow the chassis to cope, SGS fitted new suspension with self-levelling - but this was the extent of their mechanical fettling.
The cost? SGS quoted the price as being equal to 3.5 Mercedes W126s - about 350,000 DM or $925,000 in today's money. Needless to say, the Sultan of Brunei was the biggest customer, buying three of the six built.
