Papamobile at the SACROEXPO fair

It took five years for Marek Adamczak, the entrepreneur from Kielce who works in the automobile business sector, to reconstruct the papal vehicle. Adamczak was gathering photographs, films and finally the genuine elements of the automobile. This precise reconstruction of the vehicle which was used in 1979 when John Paul II made his second pilgrimage to Poland has been certified for authenticity with the Notary Public certificates which state that only genuine elements have been used. This hand made automobile construction was completed by Marek Adamczak’s company personnel.

During his first visit to Poland the Holy Father travelled in the vehicle which was based on the Star truck chassis and was specially designed and constructed for this purpose in the Heavy Duty Vehicle Factory in Starachowice. The bodywork of this no-top, white painted vehicle was designed by Zbigniew Gonciarz, the PIMot artist. The car was instantaneously dismantled after the Pope had left Poland on completion of the pilgrimage; the passenger section was totally destroyed and the chassis was re-converted and sold. In 2005, after John Paul II had died, two independent search teams undertook the efforts to find the car remains. Two chassis of the car and some of the mechanical parts were purchased from the private owners who live at the area of the former PGR’s (state owned agricultural facilities).

The reconstructed vehicle will be presented outside the exhibition hall E during the whole SACROEXPO fair.