For decades, Dubai was just a city in the desert. Nothing too terribly exciting happened there. Though it was still a wealthy city, the people there never really showed off how much money they had. Fast forward to modern day, there is no city anywhere in the world that likes to flaunt the wealth of its citizens like Dubai. Its landscape is dotted in mansions, artificial islands, and even what is now the world’s tallest building. So naturally, the cars that the people of Dubai drive are world class. Rolls Royce, Lamborghini, and Ferrari are common place along the streets in Dubai.

In fact, the success of these brands in places like Dubai can be credited with saving many luxury brands. Automakers like Aston Martin have models that are solely designed and built for sale in Dubai. In most places in the world, something like an Audi R8 or a Rolls Royce Phantom would be a rare sight to see. But in Dubai they are down right common. So, if you are a hot to trot prince living there, you need to stand out a little bit. Customizing cars in Dubai is a downright art form. Car owners spare no expense when customizing their cars. Gold, silver, and platinum are just a few of the materials that are used to make these cars exactly as the owner wants them.

These cars have become a spectacle for the world. Though we may be envious of their wealth, we are always looking forward to what these customizers have up their sleeves next.

20 Chrome Plated Rolls Royce Phantom

via travelingmarla.com

Rolls Royce has always been the absolute landmark and final word when it comes to automotive luxury. With the introduction of the Phantom, Rolls Royce found itself building what would become one of the most iconic cars they’ve ever built.

But simply owning a Luxury car like a Rolls Royce Phantom just isn’t enough for a lot of people.

Obviously this was the case for the owner of this Rolls Royce. In a city filled with luxury cars, this owner wanted to make sure that their car stood out from the rest of Dubai’s “typical” traffic. I’d say the owner did a pretty good job.

19 Aston Martin Lagonda Taraf

via thetorquereport.com

If you haven’t heard of the Aston Martin Taraf, you’re not alone. Most Americans over than the really true Aston Martin fans will most likely have never heard of it. That’s because Aston Martin has absolutely no plans for selling the Taraf in the United States. When the car was initially released it was going to be exclusively sold in the Middle East. With a one million dollar price tag, the Lagonda Taraf creates a hand built English car experience rivaled only by Rolls Royce and Bentley. Under the hood of the Taraf is the legendary V12 engine that powers many Astons. But in the Taraf you can enjoy the bellowing power of the V12 from the comfort of the back seat.

18 Devel Sixty

via blogspot.com

In the automotive world there are no shortage of bulky, overbearing off road vehicles. The Devel Sixty is one of the most unique and luxury oriented off readers on the planet.

Sure a Range Rover is nice, but the Sixty has six wheel drive, private jet inspired drop down doors, and a tire inflation system that will never leave a driver stranded.

Technically the Devel Sixty is still in pre-production, but this is what we know for sure. The Devel will have operational six wheel drive, it’ll be powered by a 720 horsepower V8, and it will be built and finished in the absolute finest materials that you can fit into an off road car.

17 BMW i8 Police Car

via pinterest.com

The Dubai police force is famous for having some of the most expensive and impractical police cars that money can buy. Their fleet includes legendary cars like the Bugatti Veyron, Ferrari 612, and even the Chevrolet Camaro. Cars that can best be described as less than eco friendly. The i8 is powered by a turbocharged three cylinder engine combined with power produced by an electric motor. Combined they create over 350 horsepower and can jump from zero to sixty miles per hour in 4.2 seconds. The i8 won’t be used as a regular pursuit car, but as a car used by the police departments PR department to promote the force.

16 Lamborghini Aventador SV

via jamesedition.com

The Lamborghini Aventador SV is possibly one of the most insane cars that Lamborghini has ever created. Convicted in the lab of a mad scientist in the deepest, darkest parts of Italy, the Aventador SV is the essence of everything that a Lamborghini should be.

It was one of a last high powered naturally aspirated Lamborghinis the company would build before jumping of the turbocharging bandwagon.

With the V12 engine producing an impressive 740 horsepower, the Aventador SV will reach speed of 220 miles per hour. All this speed doesn’t come cheap, with a price tag starting out at $494,000, this car is only available to the super rich.

15 Gold Plated Range Rover

via madwhips.com

In most places in the world, the Range Rover isn’t the most uncommon car. It isn’t any more unusual to find them in Detroit than in Dubai. But it’s the special customization of this particular Range Rover that thrusts it into the spotlight. According to Maxim this particular Range Rover is owned by a Saudi Prince, who takes it with his fleet of other gold Plated cars wherever in the world he travels. Maxim also states that the Range Rover is valued at over $150,000! And just to make things even crazier, the Prince makes sure that he pet Cheetah rides in the passenger seat of this golden Range Rover.

14 Bugatti Veyron Pur Sang

via carpixel.net

The Bugatti Veyron is one of the rarest of the rare supercars. But the Pur Sang special edition of the Veyron is even more rare. Only five examples of the car were ever made. What makes this particular Veyron so special? It’s naked. The Bugatti Veyron Pur Sang has no paint or finish on the exterior of the car. Allowing those who are lucky enough to gaze upon it see the meticulously crafted carbon fiber and aluminum body. It gives you the opportunity to see this car on a level that not many see, almost at a vulnerable state. What does this moving artwork cost! $1.5 million.

13 Diamond Encrusted Mercedes SL600

via pinterest.com

Any time gas prices start to go up, and people start to feel a little more pain at the pump, this picture begins to make the rounds on the Internet. With a price tag of $4.8 million, it might be one of the most absurd cars ever customized.

With over three hundred thousand diamonds covering the body of the car, it is definitely a car that will stand out in a city.

Especially one where Rolls Royce and Lamborghinis are as common as a Prius in Los Angeles. I can’t say that if I had $4.8 million I’d spend it on a diamond covered Mercedes, but I can’t blame anybody for doing it.

12 Aston Martin One-77

via motorauthority.com

Aston Martin themselves may have summed up the One-77 best, “The One-77, a sports car of unparalleled beauty with subtle aggression and performance…” The Aston Martin One-77 is a hypercar. It’s powered by one of the most powerful engines Aston Martin had ever produced, a 7.3 litre V12 engine. This monster under the hood produces 750 horsepower and shoots the Aston Martin like a rocket ship from zero to sixty miles per hour in approximately 3.6 seconds. Only seventy seven examples of the car were ever produced. With a price tag of $1.4 million, it isn’t surprising that many of them ended up with the super rich in Dubai.

11 Brabus Rocket S65

Via Caricos

There is no shortage of high end, supercar iners turning their wrenches on Lamborghinis, Ferraris, and even Aston Martins. There are even more timers that lay claim to being great Mercedes tuners. But Brabus is the unofficial tuner of Mercedes Benz. Nobody tunes a Mercedes quite as well, or as fast, as Brabus. (They’ve even taken a crack at the Smart ForTwo.) The Brabus Rocket S65 is the most bonkers luxury car in the world. The Rocket S65 is powered by a twin turbocharged 6.4 litre V12 that produces and mind blowing 900 horsepower! That launches the 4,600 pound car frona stand still to sixty miles per hour in less than four seconds.

10 Zenvo ST1

Via Net Car Show

The Zenvo ST1 is the sole car produced by Denmark’s only automotive manufacturer, Zenvo. When you think of Scandinavian cars you think of automakers like Volvo and the late Saab. But in Denmark, things are a little bit different. The Zenvo ST1 is one of the fastest cars in the world.

Powered by an in house developed 7.0 litre V8 engine, the Zenvo produced over 1100 horsepower!

That’s an insane amount of power no matter how you look at it. With all of this power, the Zenvo ST1 will shoot from zero to sixty miles per hour in 2.3 seconds and has a top speed of 233 miles per hour.

9 Pagani Huayra

via carbuzz.com

Pagani has made a name for themselves building some of the most beautiful handcrafted Italian cars in the entire world. They pride themselves in taking something as common as a car and turning them into works of art. The Huayra is no different. Instead of spending money on developing their own engine, which would take money away from other aspects of development of the vehicle, Pagani buys 6.0 litre V12 engines from Mercedes Benz. Making the Pagani Huayra a perfect combination of German engineering and Italian passion. What does all of this get you? Well, it gets you a 700 horsepower rocket ship, a top speed of 224 miles per hour, and a price tag just short of one million dollars.

8 McLaren F1

via autoevolution.com

There are few cars in the history of everything automotive that are as legendary as the McLaren F1. Built by the small British Formula One racing company, the McLaren F1 embodies the entire heritage of the company’s racing pedigree and molds it into a production car.

The McLaren F1 held the record as the world’s fastest production car.

It dethroned Jaguar in 1998 and wasn’t beat until Bugatti stole the crown in 2005. With a 6.1 litre, BMW developed, V12 engine, the McLaren reaches a top speed of 240 miles per hour. Since the car went out of production it has become arguably one of the most sought after cars in the world, making it practically priceless.

7 Koenigsegg Agera R

Via Net Car Show

Like Zenvo, the Koenigsegg Agera R is a Scandinavian car that doesn’t fit into any stereotype that we have about the region. Powered by a 5.0 litre, twin turbocharged, V8 engine Which produces over 1000 horsepower! That’s pretty impressive considering that, for the power, that’s a relatively small engine. Especially when you consider some of the Agera R’s main rivals. Cars like the Bugatti Veyron would race neck to neck against the Agera R, and it’s powered by a Volkswagen developed sixteen cylinder engine. That’s twice as many cylinders at the Agera R! Think the Agera R is the car for you? Well just walk down to your local dealership, write them a cheque for a couple of million dollars, and you can drive it home!

6 Ferrari Enzo

Via Net Car Show

When the Ferrari Enzo was being produced it was the fastest and most expensive car that Ferrari that he company had ever produced. So it makes sense that they decided to name it after the company’s founder, Enzo Ferrari. With a 6.0 litre, naturally aspirated, V12 engine, the Ferrari Enzo produced the same engine tone that most Petrol Heads believe that an angel's harp produces.

Producing a mind blowing 652 horsepower, the Enzo jumps from zero to sixty miles per hour in three seconds and had a top speed of 221 miles per hour.

During the brief two years of production it was the pinnacle of supercars. Which makes any remaining examples of the Ferrari Enzo priceless.

5 Bugatti Chiron

via bugatti.com

The Bugatti Chiron is the successor to the Bugatti Veyron. It embodies the same spirit of wild amounts of power and unmatched luxury that made the Bugatti one of the most famous supercars in the word. The Chiron uses the same basic 8.0 litre sixteen cylinder engine that the Veyron used. But unlike the Veyron, the Bugatti Chiron produced a staggering 1500 horsepower, which is nearly fifty percent more than the Veyron. With this kind of power the Chiron is able to rocket up to sixty miles per hour in 2.4 seconds and has a top speed of 261 miles per hour. Prices for the Bugatti Chiron start at $2,500,000, better start saving!

4 Mercedes Maybach G650

via motor1.com

There are few off road vehicles that draw the same attention that the Mercedes G-Class does. The Maybach G650 is one of the most luxurious versions of this vehicle. Mercedes themselves sum up the G650 well saying, “the new Mercedes-Maybach G 650 Landaulet, the off-road classic demonstrates that the definition of unique luxury can always be taken to a new level. Not only that: it is forever reinventing itself and providing yet more evidence of the potential that still resides in this classic all-terrain vehicle.” Prices for the Maybach G650 start around $550,000. Which makes it more expensive than most Rolls Royce sedans.

3 Porsche Carrera GT

via thedrive.com

When the Porsche Carrera GT was released, it was definitely the black sheep of the Porsche family. Most Porsche cars have traditionally been built with a flat six engine. But the Carrera GT was built with a V10 engine!

Built around the same time as the Ferrari Enzo, the Porsche wasn’t quite as fast, with its top speed of 202 miles per hour.

Though it was nearly as quick. With its powerful V10 engine, the Porsche jumps from a stand still to sixty miles per hour in 3.5 seconds. Think of the Porsche Carrera GT as the more refined rival of the Ferrari Enzo.

2 Aston Martin Vulcan

Via Net Car Show

The Aston Martin Vulcan was one car that Aston Martin built on a whim. Only 24 models of the racing inspired car were ever built. The Vulcan was built was an amazingly powerful 7.0 litre V12 engine that produced eight hundred horsepower! The car is so powerful that it shoots flames out of the exhaust! When put on the track, the Aston Martin Vulcan will launch itself from a stand still to sixty miles per hour in three seconds! In its direct out of the factory state, the Vulcan cost $2.3 million, however it isn’t street legal. But for another $700,000 you can have your Vulcan altered to be street legal.

1 Gumpert Apollo

via motorauthority.com

The Apollo was built by a small German manufacturer, Gumpert for a few short years. Though the German manufacturer is no longer in business they certainly left a legacy behind. According to CBS the Gumpert Apollo is on the top ten list of the fastest cars in the world! Equipped with a 4.2 litre twin turbocharged V8 engine that produced a range of power that was anywhere from 641 horsepower to 789 horsepower. With power like that, the Gumpert Apollo was able to keep with with most of the supercars that were being produced at the time. It could accelerate from zero to sixty miles per hour in just over three seconds and had a top speed of 224 miles per hour.

Sources: Top Speed, Car and Driver, Motor Trend, Digital Trend, Top Gear, CBS News