When it comes to people who own extremely unique, luxury, and expensive cars, there are only a few names which sit above the name of fugitive billionaire Vijay Mallya. Back when the “King of Good Times” stayed in India before fleeing to London, he had an extensive luxury car garage. Of all the cars he owned, one of his most prized and unique possessions was a Mercedes Benz 1000 SEL Limousine. Recently, after a very long time, this particular 1000 SEL has again been spotted on public roads.
The video showing Vijay Mallya’s Mercedes Benz 1000 SEL has been shared on YouTube by CS12 Vlogs on their channel. In this short clip, the Mercedes Benz 1000 SEL Limousine was seen being driven on a highway in Mumbai. This particular car still has the VIP registration number which Vijay Mallya used: “KA 03 MP 1111”.
This particular limousine recently took part in the “Mercedes Benz Classic Car Rally,” which was organised by Autocar India. A number of ultra-rare classic Mercedes Benz cars were present at the event. However, despite all of them being present at the show, the main highlight was Vijay Mallya's Mercedes Benz 1000 SEL.
It is finished in the classy dual-tone shade of black and silver. The bottom is finished in a deep metallic black color, and the top half is finished in silver. Additionally, it retains all the chrome elements and silver wheels, which give it an exquisite appearance. There are only two 1000 SEL Limousines in India.
One of them is Vijay Mallya's and the other one belonged to the popular spiritual guru Rajneesh, more commonly known as “Osho.” Both of these cars were seen side by side at the Mercedes Benz Classic Car Rally held in Mumbai.
The 1000 SEL Limousine, although it wears all the Mercedes Benz badges, was actually never made by Mercedes Benz. Rather, it was custom-ordered by ultra-wealthy individuals, mostly from the Middle East. The 1000 SEL was based on the Mercedes Benz 500 SEL, but after an owner got his 500 SEL customized, he highlighted that it is twice as good as the original car.
Hence, the name 1000 SEL was coined. This particular car was not made by any single company. Rather, various tuning and other companies made their own versions of the 1000 SEL. Each of these cars was custom-ordered and featured various different layouts. Vijay Mallya's 1000 SEL was optioned with a 5-seat layout in the rear with a television, champagne cooler, and other unique amenities.
As for the powerplant, almost all 1000 SELs utilized the same massive 5.0-litre naturally aspirated V8 motor as the original 500 SEL. This aluminium block engine was capable of producing power between 231 to 265 bhp and 400 Nm of torque, depending upon the series. This particular engine, despite such impressive numbers, was also very reliable.
Currently, another one of Vijay Mallya's prized possessions, his Maybach 62, is still available for sale. Big Boy Toyz last year quoted a price of Rs 2.49 crore for this particular sedan. Currently, the exact pricing will be revealed to interested buyers who call the dealership. It is finished in the classy shade of black and gold and still has the VIP registration number “9999.”
This particular Maybach has only done 33,971 km in total. Powering it is a 5.5-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine. This engine makes 543 bhp and an impressive 900 Nm of torque. As for the transmission, it gets a 5-speed automatic transmission, and all the power is sent to the rear wheels.