Griffon

Overview[]

Roger's vehicle of choice is the Griffon (グリフォン Gurifon), a full sized black luxury sedan comparable to a James Bond spy vehicle and the Batmobile. The vehicle has a noticeably long profile, akin to large American luxury sedans from the mid-20th century, specifically the late 1950s to late 1960s. The Griffon appears to be inspired by a variety of sedans from this era, mostly FoMoCo and GM vehicles despite only having two doors. The vehicle doesn't possess a definitive design, however the delta tail fins seems inspired by the 1959 Buick Electra and the proportions and body are based off a 1962 Lincoln Continental. The car's design consists of a long, wide profile with a chopped roofline and low ground clearance. Much like said era luxury cars, the interior is a beautiful red leather with a camel colored dashboard and center console. The Griffon also has a large sunroof that opens to expose the entire front cockpit. The wheels consist of chrome hubcaps on red rims with whitewall tires and fender skirts, a common feature of classic American luxury cars.

The Griffon is powered by what sounds to be a V8 engine as seen in "Roger the Negotiator", when Roger and R. Dorothy Wayneright were racing to West Dome Number 5. Despite its large size, the Griffon is quite agile and has very quick acceleration. When launching from the underground ramp onto the street, the Griffon launches from a stop effortlessly and navigates the narrow alley outside Roger's mansion with relative ease. The car is also alluded to having a very high top speed as seen in the episode "Enemy Is Another Big!" the speedometer reaches 160 mph. The Griffon is also equipped with a manual 6-speed transmission. Interestingly, the accelerator, brake, and clutch pedals appear to be operated by hydraulic pistons.

In the episode "Beck Comes Back", after being set up by Jason Beck and pursued by the authorities, Roger disguises the Griffon by changing its paint color via the large circular node on the front grille, possibly using electro-phosphorescent paint or an electromagnetic clinging wrap. Perhaps the most commonly seen protective feature is the anti-theft armor that is activated via a handheld remote. Roger does this while visiting seedy areas of Paradigm City. As seen in "Beck Comes Back" and "The Big Fight", the Griffon had autonomous and autopilot capabilities controlled by Roger's watch. As mentioned above, the car appears to be custom built as when it was completely crushed by Beck, Norman Burg mentions repairing it nonchalantly with the vehicle being fully operational in its subsequent appearance.

The Griffon is equipped with weapons such as Browning style machine guns, missiles, and mines which can be dropped from underneath the car. The missile launchers can be accessed with Roger's watch, which provides remote aiming via the hood ornament. Interestingly, Roger has used The Griffon's missiles lethally despite his no-kill policy, albeit his attackers used lethal tactics themselves. For occupant protection, the car has bullet resistant body panels and glass. The Griffon can also sustain severe damage and still remain completely drivable.

Equipment[]

Armor plating
Auto Pilot
- In “Beck Comes Back”, Roger activates the Griffon to distract the Military Police to escape from the cabin.
- In “The Big Fight”, Roger walks away from Dan while the car is following.
Bullet proof body panels
Bullet proof windows
Cameras in the Griffon hood ornament
Full length sunroof
Heads up display (HUD)
Heavy duty suspension
Heavy duty wheels
Heavy machine guns
High-intensity discharge headlamps/headlights
Hydraulic jack stand
Jet propulsion front ejector seat
Missile launcher
Police radio scanner
Radio
Remote control via Roger's wristwatch
Rocket launcher
Self drive
Sheet metal camouflage
Smart glass camouflage
Telephone
Tinted glass windows
Video phone

Trivia[]

The Griffon appears to symbolize the trope of the protagonist of film noir and pulp detective novels driving large, dark sedans that are usually customized and equipped with gadgets and technology that are considered state-of-the-art.
The Griffon can stored in the foot of Big O.
The Griffon seems to be a completely custom vehicle, as its the one of its kind to appear in the series.
The Griffon, along with Big O, is maintained, serviced, and repaired exclusively by Norman Burg, Roger's butler.
Roger seems to be attuned to his car's performance, as he states the braking efficiency dropped by 1/8 in the first episode.
Despite having rear side glass on the outside, the rear windows are completely covered inside the car's interior.

Griffon

Contents

Overview[]

Equipment[]

Trivia[]

External Links[]

Gallery[]

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