It's nearly impossible not to feel excited when a supercar appears in your rearview mirror and zips past like there's no tomorrow. It's not just about the noise and extravagant bodywork; it has more to do with the engineering that enabled those cars to go faster than stink. However, whether you admit it or not, seeing a limousine on the road is just as awe-inspiring — especially when you lay eyes on the Guinness World Record-breaking American Dream. A limo that's 100 feet and 1.5 inches long with 26 wheels, two engines, a Jacuzzi, a swimming pool with a diving board, a 75-person interior, a helipad, and televisions galore is sure to turn heads.
An Arkansas-based coach builder, Armbruster, was the first to market a stretched limousine in 1928. But it wasn't meant for royalty, presidents, or heads of state. As it turns out, the limousine has blues and jazz DNA, since Armbruster's stretched limo was perfect for transporting bands and live acts from their hotel rooms to concert venues. In later years, limos also gained some rock and roll pedigree with Elvis Presley and John Lennon brandishing their kickass rides. By the 1980s, limousines had become a symbol of conspicuous consumption, wealth, and extravagance, and they came with something you won't find in any other car: a boomerang-shaped accessory on the trunk lid.
For those old enough to remember, that boomerang on the trunk is not a spoiler or aerodynamic contraption. Besides the prestige and acres of legroom, one of the main draws of a limo back then was having a standard television. With a TV, limos need antennas to capture VHF and UHF signals of the boss's favorite programs. Sorry for being undramatic, but that fantastic-looking boomerang is just a TV antenna with a fancy shape.
To our surprise, Armbruster (now called Armbruster-Stageway) is still going strong. It still builds custom limousines, but it has added hearses to its lineup. Armbruster-Stageway's range-topping car is the Cadillac XT6 80-inch limo with an "executive roofline" and stamped-steel rear doors. It even has six doors in total, too. However, it doesn't have a boomerang-style trunk antenna — because, well, it doesn't have a TV. And that makes us shed a melancholic tear behind our rose-tinted glasses. What you do get, however, is plenty of headroom and legroom, as well as the prestige of being ferried around in a badass Caddy limo.
Whether you have an Armbruster limo or a plain-Jane luxury car, you can give it a throwback vibe with an aftermarket boomerang antenna from Infinite Innovations. Unlike those boomerangs of old school limos, the newer antenna can receive digital signals using a TV with a built-in converter or a separate converter box. Of course, it comes with a 6.5-inch teardrop pedestal to complete the vintage look. We reckon it's a pretty sweet deal for under $74, although that price doesn't include labor costs for the install, which we think might require some drilling or painting to make it look factory-clean.
Limousines have lost favor in modern times except for the occasional prom night, glamorous awards ceremonies, and the president's beastly limo that had mechanical issues with a trunk that refuses to close. Even so, that trunk-mounted boomerang antenna remains permanently etched in the minds of '80s and '90s kids as a money symbol.