In times of financial hardship, footballers continue to keep the automotive industry afloat

Stephen Ireland may look like a prize muppet in his pink-wheeled 4×4, but he’s actually a trailblazer of Premier League automotive fashion. According to Nuts Magazine’s “Premiership Stars and their Cars 2009″ survey, the Range Rover Sport is the most popular of car among football’s elite. Drivers of the squirrel-squashing Chelsea tractor include John Terry, Steven Gerrard, Peter Crouch, Joey Barton and Xabi Alonso.

Here’s the top ten most popular cars in training ground car parks:

1 Range Rover Sport (£63,895)
2 BMW X5 (£53,465)
3 Porsche Cayenne (£76,760)
4 Aston Martin DB9 (£111,526)
5 Bentley Continental GT (£137,500)
6 Audi Q7 (£51,095)
7 Ferrari F430 (£135,685)
8 Mercedes SL65 AMG £151,101)
9 Lamborghini Murciélago LP640 (£151,101)
10 Cadillac Escalade (£50,100)

As you can see, the big trend is to have a huge gas-guzzling 4×4 - the type that will break down in the middle of the Tyne bridge.

Unsurprisingly, this beauty of a motor didn’t make the list.

Winger upgrades his Bentley

What did you spend this week’s pay packet on? Cristiano Ronaldo invested in a Bentley Continental GT Speed with his sick pay from Manchester United. The 23-year-old has followed in the footsteps of team-mates Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville by picking up the 58 plate Bentley.

That fine institute of journalism, the News of the World, calculates that the Portuguese winger has spent £2 million on cars since joining United five years ago. Last month he splashed £350,000 on a Rolls Royce Phantom, and then spent a further £150,000 on a personalised CR7 number plate for it. His garage has also included two Porsche Cayennes, a BMW M6, Porsche 911, Ferrari F430 and a Bentley Continental GTC - formerly C-Ron’s runaround and now for sale in a Bolton showroom for £99,995 since the upgrade to the GT Speed.

Posh 4×4 decked out to help Germans in need

Policemen in the UK who are treated to a BMW 3 Series may feel pretty special, but Stuttgart’s emergency workers have also been gifted some driving pleasure by having a special edition of the Porsche Cayenne designed for them:

Built for the City of Stuttgart’s municipal fire department, the pair of Cayennes are fully kitted out with emergency medical equipment including an electrocardiogram, a defibrillator, respiration apparatus, emergency equipment for children and a ‘comprehensive range’ of medicines. Voice radio and radio data transmission systems, blue light bars, sirens and GPS are also fitted.

What’s next? Rolls Royce ambulances? Maserati Coastguard patrol vehicles?

Grid Crasher extra: In honour of their three consecutive victories in the 4460-mile Transsyberia Rally, Porsche have come up with the  £62,000 Cayenne Transsyberia. It features a hefty 405bhp V8, garish roof lights and stainless steel skid plates. Check out pictures after the jump…