IT’S difficult to choose a car at the best of times but imagine if you are a world leader with all the extra issues that have to be factored in.

There’s a massive amount of security needed – most leaders’ cars are armoured – there’s visibility, image and, of course, if you are like Trump, Putin or Kim Jong-un, there’s the added problem of having to look the biggest, strongest and most bullish.

The only thing most of them seem to agree on is colour. Like Henry Ford, they can have any colour as long as it’s black.

There is a huge interest in what cars world leaders use. Fortunately, not all world leaders are the same but here, we take a look at some of the most outrageous cars they have at their disposal – and some that break the mould.

Donald Trump's Cadillac One

Donald Trump

While the western world has been struggling to cope with an era of austerity, Trump had his own Cadillac built for him when he took office as president of the United States and promptly nicknamed it The Beast.

Cadillac One – in homage to Air Force One – cost £1.2million, is longer than two SUVs put together and weighs eight tons (including Trump’s ego).

It is one of 12 Cadillacs in the presidential fleet, which together have a value worth almost £15million. They are rotated and sent across the world to ferry Trump around wherever he is on an official visit.

The Beast, however, has its own panic button, bulletproof windows, Kevlar tyres and armour plating, with a few added presidential extras such as a tear gas grenade launcher at the front and a fire-fighting system in the boot, with tear gas and smoke screen dispersers.

Naturally, state-of-the-art communications technology allows the president to speak to the White House and his vice-president from anywhere in the world and, significantly, log in to his Twitter account.

The Queen and her Bentley

The Queen

The State Limousine was created by Bentley especially for the Queen and at £11million is the most expensive state car in the world.

It was built not just for her official use but for the pomp and ceremony surrounding big state occasions like the 50th anniversary in 2002 of her accession to the throne.

It is based on one of Bentley’s top-of-the-range cars from the past, the Arnage, but has a longer wheelbase for more comfort and more room for passengers in the rear.

It is also wider and has more headroom (for the hats) so that the Queen and her guests or other member of the royal family can get in and out “in a suitably dignified manner”.

Bentley have refused to reveal the car’s safety features – or even whether or not there is a corgi spot – but reports suggest the cabin is blast proof and can be sealed tight in case of a gas attack, the tyres are reinforced Kevlar and the bodywork is fully bulletproof.

It has now also been converted to run on biofuel.

Vladimir Putin's stre-tch-ed limo

Vladimir Putin

Putin unveiled his brand new wheels at his recent inauguration – a six-ton, 23ft long, twin turbocharged 4.4-litre Aurus Senat Limo. (Well it wasn’t going to be a MINI, was it?)

It is the first time since 1985 that a Russian head of state has ridden in a domestically produced vehicle but Putin has obviously insisted.

Project Cortege, as it has been called, was begun seven years ago to design the first of what officials say will be a 14-vehicle fleet using a “Unified Modular Platform” to include saloons, minivans and SUVs.

Porsche and Bosch helped with the engineering (but no mention of Lada).

It is armour-plated and comes with Night Vision. The technology means that it can sense ahead how bumpy a road is and adjusts the speed and suspension accordingly.

It also recognises road signs and limits its speed and, according to one report, when faced with inescapable collision, the Aurus can automatically move the passenger seats to a safer position, tighten all the seat belts and then close all the doors and windows.

The Pope, colour co-ordinating with his car

The Pope

The last real Popemobile was used by Pope Benedict and it was a converted Mercedes-Benz M-Class small SUV that cost about £400,000.

It had a large high cabin made of bulletproof and explosive-proof glass at the rear so that the thousands who flocked to see him could get a good view.

Popemobiles have been designed like this following the first attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II in 1981 in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican City.

Pope Benedict’s version also came with air filters and a spare oxygen supply in case the car came under a biological or chemical attack.

For the same reason, it came with run-flat tyres and could get up to speeds of 70mph for a quick getaway. The underside was fitted with half-inch thick plate to protect its precious occupant from mines or explosions below it.

Pope Francis, 81, has eschewed the Popemobile, saying: “At my age, I don’t have much to lose.” Instead, he uses an open-top £80,000 Mercedes-Benz G Wagon that allows him, he says, to be closer to those who come to see him.

It has a couple of interesting features like a folding front windscreen and handrails and a paintjob known as Vatican Mystic White.

Kim Jong-un and the incredibly fit running bodyguards

Kim Jong-un

Not only does the North Korean leader’s car come with a variety of safety features but also 12 running guards, a hand-picked security squad who form a phalanx around the car and keep up with it wherever it goes.

It is the Pullman Guard version of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class one of the safest cars around and cost £135,000. Not surprisingly, the bodywork is armoured and is said to be able to withstand a grenade attack, shots from guns of up to .44 calibre as well as military rifle attacks.

It has bulletproof glass, a reinforced mine resistant floor and the bodywork is also blast proof. It can be sealed up 100 per cent in case of gas or chemical attacks.

The black cab used by King George Tupou V

George Tupou V, former king of Tonga

Some leaders opt to go their own way when it comes to their state car.

King George’s choice of state car was that iconic workhorse the London black taxi. Well, if it’s good enough for thousands of cab drivers, it’s surely good enough for a king.

It cost £5000 and the monarch justified it like this: “A London taxi has the right proportions and makes it easy for you to get in and out of while wearing spurs and a sword.

“I realise that these criteria are not everyday considerations for the ordinary mum and dad when they come to buy a family car.”

Former Uruguayan president Jose Mujica squeezing out of his Beetle

Jose Mujica, former president of Uruguay

A frugal and hard working man, he was often described as “the world’s humblest head of state” due to his austere lifestyle and his donation of about 90 per cent of his £9000 monthly salary to charities that benefited poor people and small entrepreneurs.

Prior to entering politics, Mujica had been a guerrilla fighter and, in keeping with his left-wing views, he ditched his state car for a Volkswagen Beetle while he was president in 1987.

This car became so iconic that an Arab sheikh reputedly offered him $1million for it, which Mujica turned down.

● Research courtesy of Select Car Leasing.