Benz Faqs

The Governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, Dr Gideon Gono, has said that it is news to him that he owns a Mercedes-Benz Brabus E V12 bi-turbo, adding that when the truth finally comes out, the court of public opinion will show who was fooling who.

He said he would be seeking the “active” assistance of the Commissioner-General of Zimra, police, State security, local agents of Mercedes-Benz and the manufacturers of the said Mercedes-Benz to establish the physical existence, importation, entry into the country as well as the payment of the said vehicle.

Last week The Standard newspaper published a story claiming that Dr Gono had acquired a Mercedes-Benz Brabus E V12 bi-turbo and since then the independent media has been awash with stories about the vehicle. Asked what type of car he drives, Dr Gono said while at the CBZ he had an Mercedes-Benz S500 and now he drives a Mercedes-Benz S600 with a top speed of 250km/h, which is similar to an S350, S430 and S500.

He said the cost of his specific car was around US$138 000 that was paid in September 2005 plus 23,2 million Zimbabwe dollars (new currency) that was paid in April last year. These additional costs related to customs duty, surcharges, handling costs, dealer margins as well as a further local currency component paid as top-up for swapping his S500 with an S600 that was available in stock at the dealer.

This contrasts with the US$365,000 before duty Mercedes-Benz Brabus E V12 bi-turbo that is said to be the fastest car in the world with a top speed of 350km/h. The car is powered by a twin-turbo 12-cylinder engine and can ramp its speed to 100km/h in only 4,5 seconds.