Some people appreciate cars for what they are and how they drive; some people just want a rolling advertisement for their net worth that will catch people looking. Here are Jalopnik readers' top ten picks for the showiest status-symbol rides.
Welcome back to Answers of the Day — our daily Jalopnik feature where we take the best ten responses from the previous day's Question of the Day and shine it up to show off. It's by you and for you, the Jalopnik readers. Enjoy!
Photo Credit: Derick G
10.) Ferrari California
Suggested By: Ralph Wiley
Why it's all about the show: A Ferrari Thunderbird: all the badge prestige, none of that unnecessary race-car attitude or graceful design. The perfect car for someone who wants to spend twice the price of a Mercedes SL550 for something that offers no real improvements.
Photo Credit: 98octane
9.) Dartz Prombron
Suggested By: Gamecat235
Why it's all about the show: Even beyond the possible choices in interior fittings, the Prombron is nothing less than a study in maximum vehicular excess. It looks like it eats blinged-out Hummers as snacks between gulps of vintage Krug straight from the bottle.
Photo Credit: Autoblog.nl
8.) Mercedes 600 Pullman Limousine
Suggested By: wheatieboy
Why it's all about the show: If you've always secretly wanted to be a Third World dictator, this is your dream ride. Traditional Mercedes design and construction writ large, the Pullman is so diplomatically discreet that it becomes its own show. A security detail provides that final flourish.
Photo Credit: Jigmi
7.) Modified Mercedes M-class
Suggested By: wellthatsdumb
Why it's all about the show: Fine, put a freaking glass box on top of a Mercedes SUV so everyone can see you. Win one popularity contest among a bunch of old guys and now you think you're God or something.
Photo Credit: en.wikipedia.org
6.) Rolls-Royce Phantom
Suggested By: philaDLJ
Why it's all about the show: Essentially everyone on Earth knows what those two Rs signify, to the point where the name is shorthand for finely-crafted luxury goods: The Rolls-Royce of desk chairs. The Rolls-Royce of suitcases. The Rolls-Royce of refrigerators. Like philaDLJ said, this is the Rolls-Royce of Rolls-Royces.
Photo Credit: en.wikipedia.org
5.) Bentley Mulsanne
Suggested By: SennaMP4
Why it's all about the show: Almost everyone knows what a Bentley is, too. While the Continentals are starting to be a bit normal in some places, the Mulsanne stands as the big, bulky, endlessly impressive keeper of the name's somewhat showy dignity.
Photo Credit: kenjonbro
4.) Pagani Zonda
Suggested By: JT_3K
Why it's all about the show: If Ferraris and Lamborghinis are too over for the in-crowd, and a Koenigsegg is too Scandinavian-subdued, one of the 206 Zondas that were assembled by Pagani should happily fulfill the demands of an attention-craving speed freak. Great driving machines? Perhaps. Great way to show up? Totally. If we had the money this is the obnoxious car we'd pick.
Photo Credit: James Walters
3.) Maybach Exelero
Suggested By: TheKlic
Why it's all about the show: If anything, the Maybach 57 and 62 suffered from a lack of showiness; they were too subdued and normal. The Exelero, on the other hand, is as outré as anything on the road today. It would be the perfect ride for the world's most stylistically badass superhero.
Photo Credit: Craig Vershaw
2.) Bugatti Veyron
Suggested By: Spiegel has a Dream
Why it's all about the show: The recognized (and usually most recognizable) hyperstatus car du jour. Even if the hoi polloi knows nothing about its complex drive system or unusual maintenance requirements, they know it costs something north of a million dollars – and for a lot of owners that's all that matters.
Photo Credit: FotoSleuth
1.) Bugatti Royale
Suggested By: Gto62
Why it's all about the show: The age of the coachbuilt car is essentially over, which is a shame. Nothing today really matches the gaudy, grandiose glory of a Murphy-bodied Duesenberg or a Zagato Ferrari or — the greatest of them all — a Bugatti Royale. Six of these monstrous works of art were completed. Ettore Bugatti himself approved or denied requests for ownership. (King Zog of Albania was allegedly turned down because he had inadequate table manners.) They were, and remain, the most over-the-top living-large-worldwide automobiles ever created.
Photo Credit: Alden Jewell