The 10 Most Expensive Cars in the World Old & New

How do you replace the retired Bugatti Veyron, which since its 2005 release has been considered “the supercar king of the hill?” In the words of Wolfgang Dürheimer, president of Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S.: “We have made the best even better.”

Meet the Bugatti Chiron, named after Monaco-born racer Louis Chiron: the faster, and much more menacing, version of the Veyron. Reportedly able to reach 288 miles per hour (mph), it’s a great leap forward from the Veyron’s 16.4-liter Super Sport that topped out at 268 mph. It does this with an 8.0-liter, W16 engine with two-stage turbocharging that nets 1,500 horsepower (hp).

Specifically designed to reduce drag and create a suction effect drawing hot air off the engine, the rear fascia is actually a three-piece intake with a big diffuser, sporting a 1.6-meter (5.2 foot) taillights strip consisting of 82 light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The Veyron’s massive, center-mounted outlet has been replaced with a twin-pipe exhaust, while the diffuser would seem at home on a full-fledged racecar.

The Lykan Hypersport is a Lebanese four-wheel stunner made by W Motors, now based in Dubai. Its performance figures put the rear-wheel-drive Lykan Hypersport in the same league as the Bugatti Veyron. Boasting a 3.7-liter, twin turbo flat-six that yields 770 hp, it can get from 0 to 125 mph in 9.4 seconds, with a top speed of 240 mph. Not to mention diamond-encrusted headlights and LEDs.

Aside from being the most expensive car ever used in the Fast & Furious franchise, it’s also one of the rarest. Only seven were made, including the one used in the film and one owned by the Dubai Police. Only five more are available for purchase.

After joining forces to create Innovation Partnership, British luxury brand Aston Martin and the Red Bull Racing team have pulled the covers off what they’ve been cooking up at Aston Martin’s Gaydon facility: the hypercar codenamed AM-RB 001.

The AM-RB 001 is not only designed to be the fastest street-legal car in the world, but also the most comfortable. And though we don’t have a full grasp on how this hypercar is powered, we do have some insights shared by chief designer Marek Reichman. He’s stated that the AM-RB 001 will have an estimated top speed of 250 mph, with a track version of the car that will be on par with the LMP1-class Le Mans endurance racers. The initial manufacturing run will produce 100–150 street-legal models and 25 track versions, with first deliveries starting in 2018.

A modified Aventador, with two lightweight bucket seats, made from Lamborghini's patented Forged Composite technology and clad with lightweight woven carbon fiber, this car was built to celebrate the automaker’s 50th birthday. A design worthy of being featured in a sci-fi film, it’s a stunner from every angle, including its price: a remarkable $4.5 million. To make it more unreal, its 6.5-liter V12 engine can deliver 740 hp, be going from 0–60 mph in just 2.9 seconds.

Koenigsegg CCXR Trevita is the most expensive car in the world that can legally be driven on public roads. It is powered by a 4.8-liter double V8, with 1,004 hp and an estimated top speed of 254 mph.

But why does it cost this much? Koenigsegg created a white carbon fiber, the Koenigsegg Proprietary Diamond Weave, which is diamond-dust-coated carbon fiber. According to the company, the manufacturing process is extremely difficult and time-consuming, which is why only two of these cars will be manufactured.

A variant of the popular Ferrari 250 designed for the American market, a SWB California Spyder is the epitome of a classic sports car. One was recently sold at auction for $18 million. Powered by a 3.0-liter SOHC V-12, with a four-speed manual transmission controlling the 280 hp, the auctioned car had been previously owned by actor James Coburn. You might remember this model as the sleek joyride in the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

Another great auction vehicle—recently sold in an RM Sotheby's auction in Monterey, California, for a staggering $21.8 million—it was the overall Le Mans winner in 1956. The fact that this individual vehicle is the only Le Mans-winning C- or D-type still intact today is a significant factor in its value.

A car that was quite ahead of its time, calibrated with fuel injection, a 1954 Silver Arrow was recently sold at auction for $29.6 million. There are only 10 known to still exist. Adding to its worth is that the 1954 Silver Arrow was driven by the iconic Grand Prix champion Juan Manuel Fangio.

Once driven by legendary British driver Mike Hawthorn, in which he set a lap record at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, this 1957 Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti was sold at auction in Paris for $35.7 million to an Ohio real estate developer.

Auctioned by Bonhams in 2014, the first 250 GTO to be sold in many years and one previously owned by the French Formula One great Jo Schlesser, sold for $38.2 million in Carmel, California. Why did it cost this much? The Gran Turismo Omologato is rated as one of the best Ferraris of all time, and this particular model—the Berlinetta—is one of the first cars to have disc brakes.