VW Lamando L gets stretched by a whole meter… of width

Around a week ago, TikTok user ‘justinbuildcars’ posted some pics of a Volkswagen Lamando L liftback widened to comical proportions. Many, including us, dismissed them as potentially photoshopped, but the new videos confirm that the bizarre car is, in fact, real and even street-legal in China.

Humorously dubbed the Lamando 5XL by its creator, the ride is nearly 3 meters (9.9 feet, or 117 inches) wide, up from the original 1,891 mm (6.2 feet, or 74 inches). As one would expect, the conversion necessitated rebuilding the entire body and cabin from scratch. If you look closely, though, you may notice that the new elements were largely added at the right side of the car and not in the middle as one might expect.

The interior space thus gained went to extra seats, making this particular Lamando L an eight-seater. If this still doesn’t sound crazy enough for you, consider that only the front left wheel is driven. Apparently, the author either couldn’t figure or otherwise didn’t bother to lengthen the axle, ending up with a 1WD car.

Don’t take our word for the car being street-legal, though: in the videos, you can see it being driven around the streets in China and even on the racetrack, but one can only hope the driver does so without breaking any laws. Oh, and be sure to watch the parking sequence – it’s hilarious!