A company in Mogi das Cruzes, in the Greater São Paulo area, has built two popemobiles for Pope Leo XIV. The vehicles were completed in late October after a month of work that brought an unusual project to the company’s workshop, which also handles vehicles for police, firefighters, kennels and funeral services.
The two double-cab pickups were extensively modified to handle the pope’s journeys. Workers cut and rebuilt sections of the roof, sides and cargo bed, and reinforced the interiors so the vehicles could cope with different road conditions, including potholes and speed bumps, said special-vehicle coordinator Thiago Lima de Souza.
Standing about three metres tall, the vehicles feature access steps, support bars, seats covered in leather-like material and red carpets. Their details were made by hand, and the finished vehicles include the pope’s coat of arms and a steel protective structure.
The team also incorporated Pope Leo XIV’s motto, translated from Latin as “In Christ, we are one.” Mechanical engineer Edina Vizentin, the project’s sole woman and the engineer responsible for the adaptations, said she wanted to add a personal touch to the design.
The vehicles were transported overland from Mogi das Cruzes to Viracopos International Airport in Campinas, then flown to Lima, Peru. Project manager Danilo Machado said the work was gratifying and moving, noting the importance people attach to being near a vehicle used by the pope.
Sources: G1.