I BOUGHT AN ARMOURED CAR

As if by magic, there is one man you can turn to on the TopGear magazine team who probably has an example of something utterly ridiculous in his garage. And that man is photographer extraordinaire, Mark Riccioni. A man who, as well as owning several patently silly other cars, also happens to have an ex-Bulgarian government armoured E32 BMW 750iL knocking about the place. A car purportedly used to transport the Bulgarian finance minister, sporting a V12 and four-inchthick laminated glass, its own oxygen supply, a loudspeaker system and doors that weigh as much as a small hatchback. Officially designated as a ‘protection’ car (750iLP), it demonstrates how different bolted-on armour is to something bespoke like the SandCat. Essentially, in Mark’s Seven, there are literal metal armour plates welded into the silhouette of a 7-Series, plus the aforementioned laminates of the glassed areas – and even with all that, it’s not as secure as a bespoke build. And despite 295bhp and 332lb ft of torque from a 5.0-litre V12, it’s a terrifically heavy thing and not especially motivated – something modern, lightweight armour seeks to combat. As for why he happens to have an armoured car on the fleet, Riccioni simply responded with: “I have a slight obsession with weird cars and silly engines. This embodies both – many, many components to go wrong and a very silly purchase in a global pandemic. Which also made it the perfect choice...”