It was sighted in Everett a few weeks ago.
A white stretch limousine that looks like the offspring of Cinderella’s carriage and a UFO.
No joke. The bizarre-o bubbled glass coach has pointed tips with four dangling lanterns and a tall side door to let royalty — or aliens — in and out.
“What’s up with that?” asked Herald reader George Caudill, who sent me a photo he took of the wheeled spaceship.
Our social media whiz Ben Watanabe put the limo photo on the paper’s Facebook page asking for help tracking down this unidentified freeway object. It led to 80 shares and speculations such as:
“New Pope mobile?”
“I’m sure there’s a stripper pole in there!”
“Trump’s presidential limo.”
“Thought the medical examiners were stepping up their car game.”
The musings also led to the owner. He’s Norlan Nord, 42, of Kirkland. And, no, there aren’t any poles or Popes or corpses inside the converted 2002 Jaguar limousine.
The vehicle hit the streets in January. Nord spent almost a year pimping the 26-foot-long ride, gutting the interior and replacing the low roof with grandeur.
Inside are three sections of gold upholstered seats for eight people and a wine rack with eight glasses at the ready.
Tinted windows conceal what’s happening inside but offer an expansive view of the outside. Infinity lights make the high ceiling seem to rise to the heavens.
It’s tall enough for someone 5-foot-10 to stand comfortably. You could hold a wedding ceremony in there. Or a disco party.
We needed a big parking lot for photos, so we met up with Nord and his carriage at Costco.
It was pouring rain, but that didn’t deter people from stopping and snapping photos. That happens wherever he goes.
“Beautiful!” said one lady who braked to gape.
“Brilliant” is the word that came to my mind. This is the perfect vehicle for Costco shopping. I wanted to hire him so I could shop with reckless abandon and not have to squeeze my bulk binge into my car’s measly two rows and trunk.
So far, it hasn’t been hired for shopping junkets. Parties and proms are Nord’s desired mainstay. Prettied-up passengers can step in without mussing up their dress clothes.
Nord emigrated from Kazakhstan seven years ago. He and his wife, Olga, have five kids, ages 7 to 20. He’s a contract driver for Amazon.
“This is my hobby,” he said. “I like to build with my hands. I wanted to start something new. There are carriages in Russia that are smaller, for four people.”
In classic Americanized form, his version needed to be bigger, grander and super-sized.
He bought the limo off eBay from Missouri and drove it here.
Olga wasn’t exactly on board with the idea.
“My wife said, ‘You are just a crazy man.’ I said, ‘Yeah, I know. Just give me a year,’” he said. “Everybody remembers Mr. Ford.”
Maybe so, but they remember him for the Model T, which brought automobiles to the masses. Not this limo from Liberace’s dreams.
Friends from Nord’s Russian church helped him every step of the way, with mechanics, detail and painting.
“I want to thank the people who helped me build it inside and out,” he said. “They donated their time. Good team, good people.”
It won the approval of his wife.
I asked Herald “Cars and Me” automotive blogger, Mary Lowry, for her take.
“Some people would say that’s a design improvement for the 2002 Jaguar,” she said.
Nord wants to make more limo carriages. He is offering this one for sale so he can invest in another.
So, what was he doing in Everett?
He was in town visiting a church friend when he got a flat by Everett Mall, which is where my buddy Caudill spied him on the side of the road.
“My left tire blew up and it needed to be changed,” Nord said. “The policeman helped me. He said, ‘I’ve never seen one like this before.’”
To go for a spin or a test drive, call 425-559-1716 or email limocarriage@gmail.com.
Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @reporterbrown.
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