Well you can't accuse Brabus of not knowing its customers. Just announced at the Dubai motor show (held in the Dubai World Trade Centre), this is the
Rocket 900
Desert Edition. Nope, not a four-wheel drive S-Class with onboard supplies; Desert Edition refers to the gold paint...
It ain't subtle, as you might expect. This 'high-performance luxury liner' has more gold inside, on the 21-inch wheels and under the bonnet. Purely for heat reflection, you understand. In fact 300 parts of the interior are painted Desert Gold...
The carbon you can see amongst the gold serves an aerodynamic purpose, aiming to reduce lift front and rear. And provide a 'sporty contrast' to the gold, of course.
The increased aero is needed for the unbelievable speeds this S-Class can reach. Brabus takes an S65 - already a fairly rapid car - and takes its V12 to 6.3 litres with a longer stroke and increased bore, plus new pistons and con rods. The turbos are bigger, the exhausts are bigger, the intakes are bigger. You get the sense that more is better. The result is 900hp and a limited torque figure of 884lb ft. Apparently it can make 1,106lb ft. Brabus claims the Rocket 900 is capable of 0-124mph in 9.1 seconds, or eight tenths faster than a Lamborghini Huracan. Top speed is 'in excess of 217mph'... And it's still Euro 6 compliant.
Modifications elsewhere that claim some PH credibility back are the Brabus LSD with a 40 per cent locking rate, new Brabus air suspension with a 15mm lower ride height the fact the new wheels are forged. Even if they are huge. And have gold bits.
But if this is what customers want to buy, and it makes Brabus money, who are we to grumble? As long as those gorgeous Pagoda restorations can continue then we won't complain too much.