Even if North Korea’s population is cut off from the world and has to do without amenities and Western luxuries, this does not apply to ruler Kim Jong-Un. Whether Maybach, Rolls-Royce or even Lincoln: the dictator’s fleet couldn’t be more luxurious. This has now grown thanks to a gift from Russian President Vladimir Putin. Kim Jong-un is now the proud owner of an Aurus Senat. This was reported by the North Korean state news agency KCNA. According to the report, the vehicle was given to Kim for “personal use” as a sign of good relations between Russia and North Korea.
The Aurus Senat is a Russian-made car that is available in three versions: The car is available as a normal sedan, as a long version and as a 6.6-meter-long state car. As an option, and even standard on the state limousine, the vehicle is armored.
The Aurus Senat has been under construction in Jelabuga, Russia, since 2018. The vehicle was initially created in cooperation with Ford, but the Russian manufacturer Sollers now operates the factory alone, as Ford withdrew from the market in October 2022 due to the war.
Putin’s own Mercedes
For ruler Putin, Aurus is more than just a car manufacturer – the vehicles can also be seen as a demonstration of power. Because when one of the first state limousines rolled off the assembly line in 2018, Putin insisted on decommissioning his Mercedes and replacing it with the Russian make. Presumably also in order to publicly stand up to the American “Beast”, the US President’s limousine.
But Putin probably didn’t have to forego Western standards. The engine is said to have been created in collaboration with Porsche and Bosch, and the external design is very much based on a Rolls-Royce Phantom.
In other places too, the Aurus turned out to be a surprisingly international vehicle before the war. Visitors to the Geneva Motor Show claim to have discovered parts from Bosch, Pierburg or Eberspächer in 2019, reports the “Mirror“. Aurus boss at the time was the former Daimler manager Gerhard Hilgert. How the vehicle is equipped today and which parts Russia had to replace due to the sanctions is not known.
As far as the interior is concerned, the luxury standards of past decades are used. The Aurus Senat is lined with burl wood and real leather – two things that are hardly advertised in the West at least anymore. And although the engine is a hybrid model that is theoretically intended to enable environmentally friendly progress, the manufacturer’s stated combined consumption is 19.2 liters per 100 kilometers – in reality the car is likely to swallow even more.
The basic model costs around half a million euros
There are currently only three service centers for Aurus. Two in Moscow and another contact point in Saint Petersburg. Internationally, Putin probably wants to start the brand in the Emirates first. Last year, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said that the countries of the Middle East and North Africa will be seen as the main export destination for Aurus cars in the foreseeable future.
In any case, Putin’s gift to Kim Jong-un was not cheap. A dealer from Moscow is currently asking 46,920,000 rubles for the standard model – the equivalent of 470,000 euros. The armored state limousine is likely to be a lot more expensive, but according to the branch it is currently not available.