The words “limousine” and “chauffeur” have been used since before the early stages of the 20th century, when horse-drawn carriages and trains required uniformed professional drivers to handle the horses and steam engines.
The word “limousine” originated in the Limousine region of France, where shepherds wear an oversized hooded garment to protect themselves from cold weather. Car drivers subsequently used such garments when sitting in the open and exposed front seats, while their bosses or the owner of the vehicle rode luxuriously in the rear seats.
There is a distinct style to the limousine and an air of mystery that surrounds the people behind the tinted windows. Since the golden age of automobiles in the early 1900s, people have been mesmerized by the sleek and sometimes edgy designs of limousines and city cars driven by royalty, movie stars and industry bigwigs.
Early beginnings of the stretch limousine
After World War I, most of the world was filled with sedan chairs and hose-pulled carriages, then the limousine entered the picture. The first “Stretch Limousine” was created in Forth Smith, Arkansas in the United States in 1928 by a coachbuilder named Armbruster. Limousines were commonly used to transport famous “big band” leaders, such as Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman, and orchestras, as well as their musical instruments and other equipment, across the country. As a result, the first stretch cars were called “big band buses”.
In 1962, Armbruster merged with Stageway Coaches of Cincinnati in Ohio, USA, becoming Armbruster-Stageway Coachbuilders, and in 1974 the first six-door funeral limousines were built on Cadillac chassis. Eventually, the Lincoln Stretch Limousines product line was included due to Lincoln’s growing popularity within the limousine and funeral service arena; however, the cars and company’s primary mission statement was simply to “move people from one place to another, only in bigger cars.”
The advent of the 1960s and 1970s made limousines more popular as American presidents and movie stars used them more and more for general use, and due to their growing popularity, more custom coachbuilders began to be marketed. In the late 1980s, Federal Coach purchased Armbruster-Stageway, though the tradition that began nearly eighty years ago is still being carried on.
The wisdom behind the stretch limo
The wisdom behind creating the limo boils down to creating a unique design. In general, limousines are used to transport more than three passengers, not including the driver. These types of limousines may contain additional amenities such as expensive audio players, flat-screen TVs, VCRs, and wet bars, often with refrigerators.
There are times when a coach builder or automobile designer would develop the “ultimate” long limousine, adding more amenities that are somewhat impractical, but would definitely make a significant design statement. A unique design includes the use of dual rear axles to support the weight of a working hot tub. Most coach manufacturers can do aftermarket upgrades on luxury sedans and SUVs.
These extensive, and often expensive, limousine conversions have been done on a number of luxury vehicles, namely Audi, Bentley, BMW, Cadillac, Chrysler, Ford, Holden, Hummer, Infiniti, Jaguar, Lexus, Lincoln, Mercedes-Benz and Rolls-Royce. . In the United States and Canada, the most popular and commonly used vehicles for long limousine conversions are the Lincoln Town Car, Cadillac DTS, Hummer H2, and Lincoln Navigator. Sometimes even the common Corvette and VW Bug could be stretched to seat up to 10 passengers.
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