If you ever wondered where all that money you pay at the gas pumps is going, the answer probably is what you were thinking. Despite a softening of SUV sales around the world, the Middle East office of Mercedes-Benz has reported that its uber-expensive G-Class continues to be as popular as ever in the Arab region. In fact, G-Class sales in the Middle East saw a massive 139% rise in May this year over the same period last year.

The G-Class, which turns 30 this year and receives basic updates such as iPod docking for 2010, will soldier on largely unchanged for years to come, especially since Americans are so adept at indirectly funding the extravagances of oil-rich Arab nations that hate everyone but themselves. Incidentally, the Arab Emirate of Abu Dhabi owns a sizable chunk of Mercedes-Benz too.