Bill Clinton’s 1996 armored Cadillac limo is going up for auction
There is no shortage of highly collectible new and classic cars available today. In fact, it has become increasingly challenging to stand out driving anything short of a personalized Bugatti. But, with this armored limo used by Bill Clinton during his presidential administration going up for sale at Mecum Auctions later this month, you can own this incredibly rare piece of history and show all those hypercar owners what a bespoke vehicle indeed looks like.
To date, this is the only full-armored Presidential limousine to make its way into the private sector, according to Mecum. One of the remaining two cars sits in the Clinton Museum, while the CIA has never released the third.
After Clinton was elected into office in 1992, it wasn’t long before GM, after securing the prestigious contract, began working on a modified version of its (then) new Fleetwood Brougham to escort the president wherever he may need to go safely, securely, and comfortably. No expense was spared in the Caddy’s development, as evidenced by the $6 million project cost to create just three examples of this executive ride. Remember that this was six million in 1993’s money, which, when adjusted for inflation, is approximately $13.1 million today.
To accommodate all of the added equipment and create a larger cabin, Cadillac began with a base Fleetwood and then stretched the wheelbase to 167.5 inches to make this Caddy about four feet longer while at the same time, raising the roof by three inches.
Not your father’s Cadillac, this Fleetwood had its entire body blast-proofed to B6 standards, including three-inch-thick bulletproof glass. This armor shields the precious presidential cargo from a handgun, shotgun, sniper/assault rifle, or AK-47 gunfire and can even sustain a bomb going off next to the vehicle.
A strobe light, public address system, and intercom were installed, operated by an analog set of red and black switches.
If things begin to get out of control and the limo finds itself in any sort of precarious situation, there is an onboard oxygen and fire suppression system to keep occupants as safe as possible.
A fluorescent halogen lighting system provides plenty of visibility. The lights are integrated nicely into the rear cabin, where a separate roof-mounted stereo head unit sits to handle whatever soundtrack felt right on the road to the White House.
The Fleetwood’s standard GM-issued 5.7-liter V-8 engine was ditched. In place of that vanilla small block was a massive 7.4-liter (454 cubic-inch) big block V-8 that was personally hand-built by (now) legendary tuner Jack Roush. Monitoring that massive mill was a set of custom-built gauges built by AC Delco. All of that horsepower was routed through a four-speed automatic transmission, complete with overdrive. While no official horsepower numbers have been released, it was enough to propel this elegant tank to a 142 mph top speed.
The auction for this once-in-a-lifetime piece of American history is set to cross the block at Mecum’s Kissimmee 2025 auction on Saturday, January 18th. With just 627 miles on the odometer and a clean CarFax report (seriously), this fabulous Fleetwood also comes with a copy of the press release sent out by Cadillac in 1993. So, if your bank account and security clearance are high enough, this exceptionally unique ride can be yours.
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