Detroit in Michigan, USA, is the birthplace of the Ford Motor Company along with other automotive pioneers, including Walter Chrysler, the Dodge Brothers, Packard, and William C. Durant. For this reason, Detroit is historically recognized as the heart of America’s automotive industry, especially because Ford pioneered the use of assembly lines to mass-produce cars, effectively precipitating the Motor City’s current status as the Car Capital of the World.

But as the famous English poet Alfred Tennyson wrote, "All things must die." While Michigan, USA, might be the birthplace of Ford, Dubai is the destination where supercars go to die, or as the country is famously known – the supercar graveyard. As strange as it sounds, seeing expensive Porches, Lambos, Nissan Skylines, or even the limited-edition Ferrari Enzo lying forlorn around airports and car parks, literally rotting away right in front of you, is pretty normal in Dubai.

As if that weren’t astonishing enough, Dubai law enforcement enjoys high-end supercars like the Maserati GranTurismo, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, Bugatti Veyron, Nissan GT-R, and the Bentley Continental GT draped in white and green to serve as cop cars. Let's see why Dubai wrangles with the problem of too many luxury vehicles while other major cities around the world deal with issues like housing deficit, unemployment, and crime.

Related: These Abandoned Multimillion-Dollar Supercar Barn Finds Are Simply Unreal

Dubai’s Supercar Graveyards

Abandoned superars in Dubai
Via Cars for Sale

The many abandoned supercars in Dubai might as well be an epidemic. The story is peculiar enough to have made news headlines around the world. Why not? What can be stranger than helplessly watching a perfectly healthy Rolls-Royce, Lotus Exige, or a DMC DeLorean caked in mud and rotting under the elements?

They’ve actually made a head count and found that approximately – wait for it – 3,000 cars get abandoned each year at Dubai airports, public parking lots, and even on the streets. That number may not sound like much compared to other countries like the US and UK. For example, Oakland, California alone sees about 17,000 abandoned vehicles yearly and has a backlog of some 30,000 abandoned vehicles to deal with.

A request to 50 councils by the UK's Freedom of Information revealed that 21,106 cars got abandoned in the country in 2021. Compared to these figures, Dubai's approximately 3,000 abandoned cars seem insignificant, until you ask what kind of cars get abandoned in the US and UK?

According to the UK’s FOI research, the most abandoned cars in the country includes – in this order – Ford Transit van, Vauxhall Astra, Ford Focus, Vauxhall Corsa, and Volkswagen Golf. Nice. In the US, researchers say most of the abandoned cars are old cars, especially in “some depressed urban areas in the United States and England [where] people use older cars, usually unregistered, for short-distance transportation in urban neighborhoods. The cars eventually break down and left where they fall.”

These paint a drastically different picture from what’s going on in Dubai’s supercar graveyards. Most of the approximately 3,000 cars abandoned each year in the City of Gold are exotic and upmarket models from the likes of Ferrari, Bugatti, Audi, BMW, Lamborghini, and other premium brands.

Why There Are So Many Abandoned Supercars In Dubai

abandoned-supercars-dubai
Via Supercarsperhour

A combination of factors explains the large number of abandoned supercars in Dubai, ranging from forfeitures to pay off a debt to impoundment to relocation to another country. However, there’s more to the story than just a simple case of abandoning a million-dollar supercar at the airport just because you're traveling. Who does that?

The picture of a nearly $3 million Ferrari Enzo abandoned and caked in mud ignited social media some time ago. In Dubai, it's rather easy for your supercar to find itself in the same situation as the Enzo. Dubai’s Waste Management Department’s director Abdul Majeed Saifaie explained that if your car so much as obstructs other vehicles, they get moved. Out of the way, though, your car could remain just where it is for years – cue the airport parking lots.

If the sight of these abandoned premium cars makes you assume they got left by rich people who've found another toy, you're wrong. Money problems (like debt) and Dubai's strict laws are the main culprits to blame for the many abandoned expensive cars in the country. The problem is peculiar to ex-pats who come to the country to build a dream life in the City of Gold, but fall short of 'making it.'

Meanwhile, they’ve bought ‘dream cars’ they end up unable to pay for in full, eventually finding they have no choice but to flee the country to avoid the slammer. Dubai’s Sharia law legal system considers unpaid debt a punishable criminal offense, even if you declare bankruptcy.

You might just realize you're better off as a free man in Morocco than hanging on to your Maserati GranTurismo and going to jail. You'd think the locals are mindful enough to avoid this pitfall. They get caught in the harsh Sharia law along with foreigners. By all indications, the pile of abandoned expensive cars will keep rising as long as the strict laws of Dubai remain. So, if you make your way to Dubai, don't get carried away by the 'dream life' not unless you're sure you can sustain it.

Related: 15 Sad Photos Of Supercars That Were Abandoned In Dubai

Can You Buy The Abandoned Cars In Dubai?

abandoned-cars-in-dubai
Via Car Keys

One man’s loss, another man’s gain, right? First, Dubai police identify the car as abandoned, which could’ve got left anywhere by the owner, including on a random street. The owners get a 15-day notice to claim their car, failing which the car gets officially seized by Dubai municipality. The owner still has six months to come for the car. Once that time has lapsed, and the car remains unclaimed, it gets eventually auctioned at a bargain price.

So yes, you can buy Dubai’s abandoned cars sold at bargain prices in Dubai auto car auctions. Unfortunately, the auctions are by invitation only. Bidders first register with the police to verify they can actually afford the supercar, after which they might get invited to the auction. You'd have to contact a dealer, who then bids and assists you in buying the abandoned car that caught your eye.

Sources: Car Switch, Startup Talky, Poynter, Inquirer