2010’s Top Prestige Cars Over $75k

By John LeBlanc Every year, the Toronto Star's Wheels section asks its contributors to scratch together a shortlist of what they think are the top new cars—as in what's available in showrooms, not just "new" for 2011—in various segments. Here are my picks for the Top Prestige Cars over $75k:

BEST: Rolls-Royce Phantom ($380,000)

A bit of a no-brainer, eh? Since its debut at the 2003 Detroit auto show, BMW’s take on what a flagship Rolls-Royce should be has gone virtually unchallenged as the world’s grandest car. Nothing says “I have more cash/style/ego than you” than arriving in this hotel-suite-on-wheels. The car should come with its own red carpet. In a class all its own, the closest any other automaker has come to even nipping at the $380,000-plus Phantom’s heels is rival German automaker Mercedes-Benz’s Maybach line, which most see for what it is — an extended S-Class. Like the 1930’s Depression era Dusenburgs, we are unlikely to see anything like the Phantom for some time. During a time when uber-luxury brands are feeling the affects of the Great Recession and zealous environmentalists, Rolls felt completed to do the smaller, less politically-incorrect Ghost.

NEXT BEST: Bentley Mulsanne ($285,000)

Named in honour of one of the three towns that made up the original triangular Le Mans race course in France (along with Le Mans and Arnage), the $285,000 Bentley Mulsanne replaces the former top-of-the-line Arnage — a car that has been around for more than a decade. The new Mulsanne is the first “real” Bentley since the brand’s four consecutive victories at the 24 hours of Le Mans from 1927 to 1930. And despite similar proportions and traditional Bentley styling cues, the now-Volkswagen-owned British brand is making the point that this isn’t just a restyle of the Arnage. All the traditional big Bentley elements are here. But the Mulsanne looks as modern as its decade-old predecessor looks dated.

ALSO CONSIDER:

BMW 760Li, $186,000: Understated elegance; drives like a (big) sports sedan; V12 whoosh at a (relative) bargain basement price. Porsche Panamera Turbo, $155,000: Super car performance, but room for four and their cargo with its practical hatchback.

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