In the market for a luxury automobile? Mercedes-Benz has no shortage of offerings to suit your taste and needs... even if you're, say, a titan of industry or head of state, and your needs include being protected from armed assailants.

In fact Mercedes has been making armored cars for almost a century, stretching way back in its history to 1928 when the Japanese imperial household ordered up a pair of reinforced limousines to protect Emperor Hirohito and members of his court. And it makes them still to the highest standards of ballistic protection as part of its Guard lineup.

Early orders like the 770 Grand Mercedes commissioned by the Japanese empire represented the first time that an automaker offered armored protection in its vehicles straight from the factory. Over the decades since, Daimler has produced countless reinforced vehicles – including examples of the legendary 600, as well as the 500, 540 K, and 280 SEL.

The S-Class alone has been available in armored specification in every iteration, including the 126, 140, 220, 221, and the current 222. Today's S-Class, in fact, is offered in no less than three Guard versions – each of them with V12 power to move the extra mass of the reinforcements.

That starts with the Mercedes-Benz S600 Guard, which in 2014 became the first vehicle to meet Class VR9 standards for ballistic protection (and can today be ordered to top VR10 certification). Riding on a 124.6-inch wheelbase to measure 206.9 inches long overall. Not big or luxurious enough?

Then there's the Mercedes-Maybach S650 Guard that's 7.9 inches longer and comes with Executive rear seats as standard. Bigger still is the Maybach S650 Pullman Guard that's another 41.5 inches longer than the "standard" Maybach S650 and nearly 4 inches taller, making it more than four feet longer than even the latest GLS and higher than some of Daimler's smaller crossovers.