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מאז תחילת [[המאה ה-20]], ייצרו מכוניות מפוארות מיוחדות עבור האפיפיור, אולם המונח פופמוביל לא היה קיים עד לביקורו הראשון של [[יוחנן פאולוס השני]] כאפיפיור במולדתו [[פולין]] ביוני [[1979]]. המכונית שבה נסע היתה [[משאית]] קטנה תוצרת פולין, שנסעה במהירות של 6 [[קמ"ש]]. בביקורו הראשון ב[[הממלכה המאוחדת|ממלכה המאוחדת]] הוסב רכב מסוג [[פורד]] טרנזיט לשימוש האפיפיור, ולאחר מכן הוסבו מכוניות שונות למטרה זו מתוצרת [[מרצדס-בנץ]], בין היתר לביקורו בשנת [[1980]] ב[[גרמניה המערבית]].
לאחר [[מהמט אלי אג'ה#נסיון ההתנקשות באפיפיור יוחנן פאולוס השני|ניסיון ההתנקשות ביוחנן פאולוס השני]] בשנת [[1981]] כוסה הרכב ב[[זכוכית משויינת]] מארבעת צדדיו.
בביקוריו השונים ברחבי העולם יוצרו מכוניות מיוחדות רבות עבור יוחנן פאולוס השני, חלקן שימשו לאחר מכן לאורחים אחרים. בביקורו ב[[קנדה]] בשנת [[1984]] הסבו [[GMC]] סיירה לשימוש האפיפיור, ורכב זה שימש אותו גם בביקורו ב[[קובה]] בשנת [[1998]]. בביקורו ב[[ארצות הברית]] בשנת [[1987]], הסב [[השירות החשאי של ארצות הברית|השירות החשאי]] זוג מכוניות מרצדס-בנץ 230 G - למכוניות פופמוביל מהדגם שקיים עד היום.
בשנת [[2002]] ביקש יוחנן פאולוס השני שלא לכנות את הרכב בשם "פופמוביל", בטענה שזה לא מכובד.<ref>[http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2007/06/06/Popemobile-benedict.html CBC News]</ref>
The first time [[Pope John Paul II]] traveled to his home country the white painted vehicle (one of two made) was based on the [[Poland|Polish]] mark [[FCS Star]], a small truck from a firm in [[Starachowice]] with a speed of six kilometres per hour; a Ford Transit truck was converted in 1979 for Pope John Paul II's first visit to [[UK]], bigger than the one used today in the [[Vatican City|Vatican]]; yet another is a modified [[Mercedes-Benz]] with a small windowed "room" in the back where the Pope sits. A converted 230 G [[Mercedes-Benz G-Class|Geländewagen]] was built for John Paul II's visit to Germany in 1980.<ref>[http://www.museum-mercedes-benz.com/?lang=en Mercedes-Benz Museum - section C4 Gallery of Celebrities - 1980 230 G Popemobile]</ref> One of the current models is actually based on an [[Mercedes-Benz M-Class|M-Class]] sports-utility vehicle built in the United States. The ML430-based Popemobile was presented to John Paul II in June 2002.<ref>[http://wwwsg.daimlerchrysler.com/SD7DEV/GMS/TEMPLATES/GMS_PRESS_RELEASE/0,2941,0-1-68597-1-1-text-0,00.html 2002 – Mercedes-Benz ML 430 with special bodywork]</ref>
Following the [[1981 Pope John Paul II assassination attempt|attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II]] in 1981, the Popemobile was fitted with [[bulletproof glass]] on four sides. However, it was sometimes driven with open windows. During the Pope's visit to Canada in 1984, a modified [[GMC Sierra]] was used. It was subsequently used for the 1998 papal visit to [[Cuba]] and was displayed at the Canada Museum of Science and Technology in 2005. The second truck was sent back to the Vatican in 1984.<ref>[http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/04/07/popemobile050407.html Canadian Popemobile going on display]</ref>
During the papal visit to the United States in September 1987, a pair of Mercedes-Benz 230 G Popemobiles were flown to Washington, D.C. and modified by the [[United States Secret Service|Secret Service]] to provide access to the Papal payload from the driver's compartment, a design that continued to be used after the trip.<ref>{{cite book|last=Petro|first=Joseph|title=Standing Next To History|date=2005|pages=224-225|isbn=0-312-33221-1}}</ref> One of these vehicles has been retired and is currently on display at the [[Mercedes-Benz Museum]] in Stuttgart, Germany.
Several vehicles used for the Pope's overseas visits have remained in the host country and were reused on his subsequent visits. The [[Mexico|Mexican]] ''Papamóvil'', for example, was brought out in public during John Paul II's funeral. Similarly, the [[Philippines]] automobile manufacturer Francisco Motors produced the custom Popemobile for the 1995 papal visit. It was funded by voluntary contributions from the private sector, and (as with the Irish vehicle) had bulletproof windows, bombproof parts, and passed inspection by the [[Swiss Guard]]s. When John Paul II died, this Popemobile was briefly borrowed by parish officials of the Quiapo Church to be put on display. It became a pilgrimage destination for [[Filipino people|Filipino]] devotees who could not afford to go to the Vatican for the Pope's burial ceremonies.
For [[Pope John Paul II]]'s visit to Portugal, UMM created a special Popemobile based on a 1992 5-doors-long wheelbase chassis from the Alter II. It featured a 40 mm armoured glass box on the rear with a chair for the Pope. It also had air conditioning and outside loudspeakers connected to a microphone in the rear.
In 2002, Pope John Paul II requested that the media stop referring to the car as the Popemobile, saying that the term is "undignified".<ref>[http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2007/06/06/Popemobile-benedict.html CBC News]</ref> In 2006, an armor-plated Popemobile used by John Paul II during his visit to Britain in 1982 was sold at auction for £37,000 ($70,500).
==Current usage==
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