Romero's Hearse

"Funeral director's vehicle. Possibly used as cover."

- GTA Vice City Website

The Romero Hearse is a vehicle which first appeared in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. The name was shortened to Romero in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Grand Theft Auto IV, and in Grand Theft Auto V, it was renamed the Romero Hearse. It is manufactured by Albany in GTA IV and Chariot in GTA V.

3D Universe
The design of the Romero's Hearse in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is as expected for a vehicle tailored to transport the deceased, appearing as a black station wagon-like car with a rear compartment designed to carry a coffin. It resembles an '80s Buick Superior Hearse (in turn based on a 1977–1984 Buick Electra). The car may come with a coffin at the back (appearing with one of two or three different designs). This version also resembles kind of a station wagon version of the Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham.

In Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, it resembles a late '70s Cadillac hearse, sporting a wider range of colors for the roof and body (although generally maintain dark tones). One of Carl Johnson's possible girlfriends, Katie Zhan, owns a white Romero, and will give Carl the keys to it if Carl gains her approval.

Grand Theft Auto IV
The HD universe rendition of the Romero is a modified version of the Washington sedan, and as such, bears the Albany brand.

In Grand Theft Auto IV, the Romero shares the same rims of the Washington, but has whitewall tires. The rear compartment doors always have white curtains opened, allowing to see the interior. The Romero features a unique dark purple interior. The Romero always spawn without a coffin on the back, aside from the mission Undertaker.

Grand Theft Auto V
The Romero reappears unchanged in Grand Theft Auto V, though it now features regular tires instead of whitewall ones and has been rebadged to Chariot. Unlike in GTA IV, the Romero will spawn with or without a coffin in the back.

3D Universe
The Romero's Hearse in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is a car capable of high speeds, but suffers from poor steering due to its weight and long wheelbase. Performance of the Romero in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is even worse, as the car is only capable of mediocre top speeds, and features weak brakes, though it does have a good side, as its excellent grip on all surfaces (except sand), combined with its low braking, allow it to brake and drift around corners a lot more easily than other cars. This ability significantly improves its bad turning, while retaining continuous high speeds, thus making it a somewhat desirable car.

The Romero is the least durable vehicle in GTA SA, though it does have significantly softer suspensions than even a Monster. But the suspensions are very short, sometimes leading to the cars chassis scraping the ground from a fall. (This problem can be fixed by modifying it with Hydraulics at any Transfender shop, and locking the hydraulics on 'High' mode, making it an acceptable off-roader, especially when equipped with Off Road Wheels.)

The performance of the Hearse in GTA Liberty City Stories is similar to the game's Perennial as both cars share the same body construction, thus possessing mediocre-to-average acceleration and top speed but responsive steering and braking.

All renditions of the hearse are only capable of carrying two occupants, despite featuring two back doors in most cases. The Grand Theft Auto: Vice City rendition is an exception, being capable of holding four occupants.

Grand Theft Auto IV
The Grand Theft Auto IV Romero retains the adequate handling of the Washington, but has inferior acceleration and top speed due to the added weight of the wagon body. Suspension is average on the front, but rather low on the rear, as the vehicle's wagon body makes extra weight on the rear area, causing certain difficulty on curbs or bumpy terrain when reversing the vehicle.

Like the Washington, the Romero is powered by a single cam V8 engine, coupled to a 5-speed gearbox in a front engine, rear wheel drive layout. The engine appears to have four small pipes on the vehicle's passenger side, but only three on the vehicle's driver side. Given that one of the four small pipes are almost hidden within the engine bay textures, the engine could have been, in a quick observation, a single cam V6.

Grand Theft Auto V
For Grand Theft Auto V, it retains some elements from the GTA IV version, except that it is less heavier and has better handling, though is still slow. Its top speed has been slightly increased as well.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
The Romero can be modified at the TransFenders.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

 * In Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Romero's Hearse is only available in the mission "Two Bit Hit", as a funeral car of a Haitian Gang Lord that died recently (at the time of the mission). The new Gang Lord will attempt to escape in one of the two Romero Hearses, having to be destroyed by the player.

Grand Theft Auto IV

 * The Romero in Grand Theft Auto IV is only featured in the mission "Undertaker", where the player have to take the corpse of Derrick or Francis to Steinway or Colony Island, respectively. No matter what choice is made in the mission Blood Brothers, the player can drive it as part of the mission.

Grand Theft Auto Online
In Grand Theft Auto: Online, two Romero Hearses appear in the mission "Funeral Party".

Notable Owners

 * Katie Zhan owns a white Romero, with a custom licence plate reading "TRAUMA", as a reference to her job as a nurse.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

 * It can only be obtained during the mission "Two Bit Hit", by stealing it from the Haitian funeral.
 * Via cheat:
 * PS2: down, R2, down, R1, L2, left, R1, L1, left, right.
 * PC: THELASTRIDE

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

 * In the driveway of Drive-Thru Confessions Church, Palomino Creek, Red County (Only Playstation 2 version)
 * Outside Katie Zhan's home in Juniper Hollow, San Fierro (only when dating her, unlocks after certain dating progress).
 * Near Fort Carson Medical Center, Fort Carson, Bone County
 * Two are located in Blackfield Chapel, Las Venturas.
 * Next to the Angel Pine Medical Center, Angel Pine, Whetstone.
 * Via cheat:
 * PC: WHERESTHEFUNERAL

Grand Theft Auto IV
The Romero is one of the rarest vehicles in the game, being limited to a single appearance in the same:
 * It can be obtained following the mission "Undertaker". After the final cutscene finishes, the player will spawn behind the Romero with a pedestrian driving it away. To obtain it, quickly shoot the pedestrian in the head to bring the Romero to a stop, then take it and store it at one of the numerous safehouses in Liberty City or Alderney. This Romero will spawn with bulletproof tires.
 * It rarely spawns in Colony Island, at the cemetery's parking lot.
 * Some mainly spawn in traffic, if already driving in one. It can spawn in Steinway and Colony Island.

Grand Theft Auto V

 * Seen parked at Paleto Bay, near The Hen House property in the parking lot of St. Brigid Baptist Church.
 * Seen parked in front of the mortuary on Innocence Boulevard in Rancho.
 * Seen parked in the graveyard parking lot of the Hill Valley Church in Pacific Bluffs.
 * Seen parked in front of a small church near Central Los Santos Medical Center in Strawberry.
 * Parked at Strawberry Mortuary on Davis Avenue in Strawberry, Los Santos.

Grand Theft Auto Online
The Romero is often considered to be one of the rarest vehicles in the game - Originally, the Romero was available in the same spawn locations as in GTA V's single player, but this was removed in a patch prior to the Next Generation releases.
 * To obtain a Romero, one needs another player who already owns one. Travel with the player in their hearse to the Hill Valley Church on West Eclipse Boulevard near the Los Santos Golf Club. 1-3 hearses will spawn: one in the parking lot near the cemetery, one in front of the church, and one on the side of the church. These can be taken to Los Santos Customs and stored in the player's garage. A typical hearse will sell for $4500 dollars.
 * Rarely spawns outside the Hill Valley Church during Halloween.

Grand Theft Auto IV

 * The vehicle can be sold for $2,200 at S&M Auto Sales following completion of Stevie's Car Thefts.

General

 * The Romero name is a reference to George A. Romero, the director of the Night of the Living Dead series of zombie movies.
 * Romero is Spanish for "Rosemary."
 * The Romero is generally depicted with four passenger doors, despite being able to carry only two people (with the exception of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City). Most real-life hearses utilise the rear doors as a means of loading the coffin. The San Andreas rendition features usable rear passenger doors, but in the HD Universe only the front doors are usable.
 * The Romero has no default radio station in San Andreas or GTA V. In GTA IV, its default station is The Journey.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

 * When the Romero's left light is broken, it will still work, but the right (unbroken) light will not, and vice versa.
 * If one manages to get a passenger to sit in the back of Romero, he/she will sit inside the coffin.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

 * On back doors there are door handles, but there is no gap between doors and rest of the body and back doors cannot be broken.

Grand Theft Auto IV

 * Just like the Washington, its base model, it features the door-ajar chime which can be heard with the door open and volume turned up.
 * The Romero is one of the five cars only to be called by their name in missions. The others are "The Silver Blista" in Clean Getaway, the "shitty beige Willard" from It's Your Call, the Patriot from "The Puerto Rican Connection" and Gracie Ancelotti's pink Feltzer.

Grand Theft Auto V

 * There is a wrecked Romero on a car jack in the La Mesa branch of Los Santos Customs.
 * In the enhanced version, the interior is black like many other vehicles. The rear of the vehicle remains purple, however.
 * If the Romero is destroyed by explosives, the wreath that is on top of the coffin inside will remain undamaged.
 * Despite that the Romero in GTA V is manufactured by Chariot, it still retains an Albany badge mounted on the hood bonnet.

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