S-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g the Definition of Posh on County Freeways

Classic Limousine is in the business of hacking apart Rolls-Royces. And Lincolns, Mercedes-Benzes and Cadillacs. The Fountain Valley manufacturer stretches manufacturer-standard luxury cars into glitzy limos--complete with wet bars, TVs, fax machines and sound systems.

Assembly line workers start by slicing the car in half; then they add up to 100 inches to the vehicle’s midsection and spiff it up with custom-designed amenities. “It’s sort of traumatic for (a car owner) to come in here and see their new Rolls-Royce sawed in two,” said owner Nick Giacobone, who founded the company eight years ago. Today, 35 employees work there, producing about 100 limousines a year.

“We build cars for most of the wealthy people in Southern California--everyone from bankers to rock stars,” Giacobone boasted.

The recession hasn’t hurt him much, he said, because the bulk of his clientele is foreign. Besides, a stretch Rolls-Royce goes for a mere $350,000.