Mercedes attacked a $513,000 Maybach limo with an assault rifle

The Mercedes-Maybach S600 is one of the finest luxury limos money can buy.

The Maybach name returned last year after a brief hiatus as the flagship model of Mercedes' S-Class line instead of a stand alone brand.

Now, Mercedes has a new armored version of the Maybach called the "Guard" edition.

According to Mercedes, the Maybach Guard is the first civilian vehicle to be certified with VR10 level ballistics protection.

That means the Maybach's body and windows are designed to withstand hardened steel-core bullets fired from assault rifles.

And that's exactly what they did. The company published a photo of a bullet riddled test car this week complete with markers to identify each bullet hole.

What we don't have is a photo of the inside of the car after the barrage of gunfire. I guess the assumption here is that nothing got through.

It's the latest addition to Mercedes' Guard line of armored models which also includes offerings from the S-Class, G-Class and GLE-Class.

Mercedes isn't the only German automaker to offer armored luxury vehicles. BMW offers a line of High Security models which are designed with a "comprehensive system of protection against violent assault, kidnapping, and organized crime."

Although the armored Maybach may look the same as the posh runabouts Mercedes sell to the rich and famous, underneath, the Guard is very different.

That's because all of the Maybach Guard's safety features are integrated into the car itself.

Mercedes built in a layer of protective plating between the inner frame and the outer shell of the limo. Further, the company added overlapping protective material in the joints and seams where the armored plates meet to prevent any weak points.

In addition, the whole underbody of the Maybach is also fitted with armored plating.

The reinforced windows are coated with polycarbonate the prevent splintering from the glass. In addition to ballistic protection, the car is also designed to withstand attacks from explosive devices. According to Mercedes, the Guard's "comprehensive" protection system should be able to provide the same level of protection from a bomb detonation next to the car as a bomb which detonates underneath the car.

To compensate the for the added weight and stresses of the armored duty, Mercedes beefs up the Maybach's whole suspension and drive line.

In addition, runflat tires, air purification and fire suppression systems are also fitted to the Guard vehicles.

That's on top of the impressive set of luxury and technology features found in the standard Maybach.

The cost for all of this Rambo limo action? A cool $513,000.

So if you've got half a million bucks to spare and you are worried about being attacked by an assault rifle equipped hit squad or a roadside bomb, then there's no better way to get around town than the Mercedes-Maybach S600 Guard.