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By: JOE PHILLIPS
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Bad boys get all the attention. The same is true for autos.
All the randy rides below get terrible gas mileage, are costly to repair and scream wretched excess. But they often are the most coveted, mainly for their high-test engines and sky-high price tags from $100,000 to, gulp, over $1 million.
Aston Martin Vantage
$110,000
Mileage: 12 city/18 highway
Top speed: 175 mph
Top feature: Posh yet Porsche-like
Half the price of most Ferrari’s and Lambo’s, this new "economical" Aston Martin is aimed at the popular Porsche 911. From the shark-like nose to the subtle spoiler, the sleek sheet metal is both classy and sexy.
Ditto on the inside, with a starter button and dial-face needles made of glass and a cockpit full of suede. No wonder Gabrielle drives an Aston Martin on "Desperate Housewives."
The style is a throwback to the 1950s. But the throaty 380-hp V8 is all 2006.
Bentley Continental Flying Spur
$165,000
Mileage: 11 city/18 highway
Top speed: 195 mph
Top feature: Hip, techno styling
Need something bigger? This
bling mobile boasts a boffo 552-hp, twin-turbo engine. Based on Bentley’s popular GT coupe, the four-door Flying Spur has the same swooping snout and retro crosshatch grille.
All-wheel-drive, steering-wheel paddle shifters and 19-inch wheels ensure a controlled ride. Inside, it’s like leather weekend, with 17-way seats and your choice of 16 leathers and 7 woods.
Maybach 57S
$367,000
Mileage: 11 city/16 highway
Top speed: 172 mph
Top feature: Each car is custom-built.
Viewed from the wrong angle, Maybachs can look like oversized Buicks. So to rev up sales, Mercedes’ adds the high-performance 57S, a new grille, fog lights and hulking 11-spoke wheels.
Each engine is hand-built by a single craftsman, whose signature goes on the engine cover. The interior is custom-ordered with more options than an RSVP buffet.
Options include gold-plated keys, but even the standard fare is a hedonist’s delight: heated/ventilated seats with massage, two telephones and rear-seat refrigerator with sterling-silver champagne flutes.
Rolls-Royce Extended Wheelbase Phantom
$385,000
Mileage: 12 city/19 highway
Top speed: 150 mph
Top feature: 10 inches
Ostentatious and proud of it, Rolls is adding an extended-wheelbase version to its regal Phantom line.
Inside, the Rolls touch includes rear-seat footrests, push-buttons to shut the rear doors and 15 speakers with two floor-mounted subwoofers.
The cars are hand-built with quirky features, including umbrellas hidden in the doors. They’re fast with taut steering and NASCAR-like braking, and they are eerily quiet.
Bugatti Veyron
$1.25 million
Mileage: 12 normally/4 at full throttle
Top speed: 254 mph
Top feature: 1,001 hp
If Superman needed a car, this would be it. In just 2.5 seconds, the Veyron rockets from 0 to 60 mph. That’s as quick as a Formula One racer, making it the fastest production car ever thanks to four turbochargers and a whopping 16 cylinders.
To control all that testosterone, there’s an electronically activated rear wing that tips forward to become an air brake. The outside brawn gives way to an interior with soft leather and sublime aluminum trim. Coolest feature: Buyers can test the car at the Bugatti track in Germany.
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