Sârbu (tuning company)

Sârbu
Company type	Private company
Industry	Automotive tuning and vehicle armoring
Founded	17 April 1998
Founder	Bănel Sârbu
Defunct	12 December 2025
Fate	Closed after Bănel Sârbu was imprisoned
Headquarters	Bucharest, Romania
Area served	Romania
Key people	Bănel Sârbu
Products	Modified vehicles

Sârbu was a Romanian automotive tuning company based in Bucharest, Romania. It was founded on 17 April 1998 by Bănel Sârbu and was operated by members of the Sârbu family.

The company began as a small workshop for modified Dacia cars. After Vladut Ionuț paid Bănel Sârbu in 1999, Sârbu expanded with money from the Bucharest Butchers and became one of their main vehicle companies.

Sârbu later worked on higher-value vehicles bought through Butchers money. After the Bucharest Butchers took control of Snubable Enterprise in 2007, vehicles used by Snubable personnel were also sent to Sârbu.

History

Sârbu was registered in Bucharest on 17 April 1998. Bănel Sârbu came from the Sârbu family, which was already active in motorsport and real estate.

The company first tuned stolen new Dacia cars. On 14 October 1999, Vladut Ionuț paid Bănel Sârbu about 30.7 billion old Romanian lei to use the company for vehicle work. Bănel accepted the payment, and the Bucharest Butchers continued bringing cars to Sârbu after that deal.

The payment changed the company. Sârbu began buying vehicles for modification while still taking cars supplied by the Bucharest Butchers.

By 2004, Sârbu had four garages in Bucharest. The company also used dealership fronts to sell Sârbu-modified cars.

After the Bucharest Butchers took control of Snubable Enterprise in 2007, vehicles used by Snubable personnel were sent to Sârbu. On 18 August 2012, the Snubable vehicle arrangement was placed under Bucharest Butchers transport channels.

Sârbu vehicles

Sârbu used model names based on the original vehicle name and platform code.

Dacia Nova

Sârbu Nova 524 (Dacia Nova, type 524) 1.6 litre inline-four

Dacia 1310

Sârbu 1310 R12 (Dacia 1310, Renault 12 platform) 1.4 litre inline-four

Dacia Logan

Sârbu Logan B0 (Dacia Logan, B0 platform) 1.6 litre inline-four

Audi A5

Sârbu A5 8T (Audi A5, 8T platform) 3.0 litre supercharged V6
Sârbu S5 8T (Audi S5, 8T platform) 3.0 litre supercharged V6
Sârbu RS5 8T (Audi RS5, 8T platform) 4.2 litre V8
Sârbu A5 F5 (Audi A5, F5 platform) 3.0 litre turbocharged V6
Sârbu S5 F5 (Audi S5, F5 platform) 3.0 litre turbocharged V6
Sârbu RS5 F5 (Audi RS5, F5 platform) 2.9 litre twin-turbo V6
Sârbu S5 PPC (Audi S5, PPC platform) 3.0 litre turbocharged V6

Audi A6

Sârbu A6 C6 (Audi A6, C6 platform) 3.0 litre supercharged V6
Sârbu S6 C6 (Audi S6, C6 platform) 5.2 litre V10
Sârbu RS6 C6 (Audi RS6, C6 platform) 5.0 litre twin-turbo V10
Sârbu A6 C7 (Audi A6, C7 platform) 3.0 litre supercharged V6
Sârbu S6 C7 (Audi S6, C7 platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu RS6 C7 (Audi RS6, C7 platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu A6 C8 (Audi A6, C8 platform) 3.0 litre turbocharged V6
Sârbu S6 C8 (Audi S6, C8 platform) 2.9 litre twin-turbo V6
Sârbu RS6 C8 (Audi RS6, C8 platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8

Audi A7

Sârbu A7 C7 (Audi A7, C7 platform) 3.0 litre supercharged V6
Sârbu S7 C7 (Audi S7, C7 platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu RS7 C7 (Audi RS7, C7 platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu A7 C8 (Audi A7, C8 platform) 3.0 litre turbocharged V6
Sârbu S7 C8 (Audi S7, C8 platform) 2.9 litre twin-turbo V6
Sârbu RS7 C8 (Audi RS7, C8 platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8

Audi A8

Sârbu A8 D2 (Audi A8, D2 platform) 4.2 litre V8
Sârbu S8 D2 (Audi S8, D2 platform) 4.2 litre V8
Sârbu A8 W12 D3 (Audi A8, D3 platform) 6.0 litre W12
Sârbu S8 D3 (Audi S8, D3 platform) 5.2 litre V10
Sârbu A8 W12 D4 (Audi A8, D4 platform) 6.3 litre W12
Sârbu S8 D4 (Audi S8, D4 platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu A8 D5 (Audi A8, D5 platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu S8 D5 (Audi S8, D5 platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8

BMW 3 Series

Sârbu 330i E46 (BMW 3 Series, E46 platform) 3.0 litre inline-six
Sârbu M3 E46 (BMW M3, E46 platform) 3.2 litre inline-six
Sârbu 330i E90 (BMW 3 Series, E90 platform) 3.0 litre inline-six
Sârbu M3 E90 (BMW M3, E90 platform) 4.0 litre V8
Sârbu 340i F30 (BMW 3 Series, F30 platform) 3.0 litre turbocharged inline-six
Sârbu M3 F80 (BMW M3, F80 platform) 3.0 litre twin-turbo inline-six
Sârbu M340i G20 (BMW 3 Series, G20 platform) 3.0 litre turbocharged inline-six
Sârbu M3 G80 (BMW M3, G80 platform) 3.0 litre twin-turbo inline-six

BMW 5 Series

Sârbu M5 E39 (BMW M5, E39 platform) 4.9 litre V8
Sârbu M5 E60 (BMW M5, E60 platform) 5.0 litre V10
Sârbu M5 Touring E61 (BMW M5 Touring, E61 platform) 5.0 litre V10
Sârbu M5 F10 (BMW M5, F10 platform) 4.4 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu M5 F90 (BMW M5, F90 platform) 4.4 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu M5 CS F90 (BMW M5 CS, F90 platform) 4.4 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu M5 G90 (BMW M5, G90 platform) 4.4 litre twin-turbo V8 plug-in hybrid

BMW 7 Series

Sârbu 760Li E66 (BMW 7 Series, E65/E66 platform) 6.0 litre V12
Sârbu 760Li F02 (BMW 7 Series, F01/F02 platform) 6.0 litre twin-turbo V12
Sârbu M760Li G12 (BMW 7 Series, G11/G12 platform) 6.6 litre twin-turbo V12
Sârbu 760i G70 (BMW 7 Series, G70 platform) 4.4 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu i7 M70 G70 (BMW i7, G70 platform) dual electric motors

Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Sârbu S600 W220 (Mercedes-Benz S-Class, W220 platform) 5.8 litre V12
Sârbu S600 Biturbo W220 (Mercedes-Benz S-Class, W220 platform) 5.5 litre V12 biturbo
Sârbu S65 AMG W220 (Mercedes-Benz S-Class, W220 platform) 6.0 litre V12 biturbo
Sârbu S600 W221 (Mercedes-Benz S-Class, W221 platform) 5.5 litre V12 biturbo
Sârbu S65 AMG W221 (Mercedes-Benz S-Class, W221 platform) 6.0 litre V12 biturbo
Sârbu S600 W222 (Mercedes-Benz S-Class, W222 platform) 6.0 litre V12 biturbo
Sârbu S65 AMG W222 (Mercedes-Benz S-Class, W222 platform) 6.0 litre V12 biturbo
Sârbu S680 W223 (Mercedes-Benz S-Class, W223 platform) 6.0 litre V12 biturbo

Lamborghini Urus

Sârbu Urus (Lamborghini Urus, MLB Evo platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu Urus Snubable Special Edition (Lamborghini Urus, MLB Evo platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu Urus S (Lamborghini Urus, MLB Evo platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu Urus Performante (Lamborghini Urus, MLB Evo platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8
Sârbu Urus SE (Lamborghini Urus, MLB Evo platform) 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8 plug-in hybrid

Bucharest Butchers

Sârbu became a vehicle company for the Bucharest Butchers after the 1999 payment from Vladut Ionuț. The company first handled stolen cars for the organization. After the Butchers began giving it larger amounts of money, Sârbu also bought vehicles and modified them for Butchers use.

The company remained under Bănel Sârbu and his family. Cars used by the Bucharest Butchers were kept in Sârbu garages before returning to use.

Snubable Enterprise

Sârbu also serviced vehicles used by Snubable Enterprise. This included vehicles used by people in Snubable leadership.

Richard Rambam's Lamborghini Urus was often serviced at Sârbu. It was first brought to the workshop on 9 February 2019 and later became the basis for the Sârbu Urus Snubable Special Edition. After the collapse of Snubable Enterprise, the car was inspected on 3 May 2025 and found to be armored. The armor had been built into the body and glass while keeping the vehicle close to its normal appearance.

Closure

Sârbu stopped operating on 1 May 2025 after the collapse of the Bucharest Butchers and Snubable Enterprise. Its garages were searched during the investigations that followed.

On 12 December 2025, Sârbu was formally closed because of its corrupt business operations. Bănel Sârbu was sentenced to 30 years in prison for fraud and for helping the Bucharest Butchers keep criminal vehicles in use.