Is that car worth the money?

Expensive Option

Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG | $59,800
Oh, sweet gods of speed and performance! Born from Benz's performance division, the C63 stuffs a 6.3-liter 457-horsepower V8 engine under the hood that fires the car to 60 mph in 4.4 seconds, and that's Porsche 911 territory. Yet you still get a luxurious interior and all the benefits of a compact 4-passenger sedan — except, of course, good gas mileage; it turns in an abysmal 15 mpg combined.

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Less Expensive Option

Cadillac ATS 3.6L Premium package | $46,695
Cadillac's ATS is a gauntlet thrown in Germany's direction. With available Brembo brakes, tight suspension, fancy-pants refinement and technology such as the new Cue infotainment system, this 321-horsepower sedan is a legitimate competitor to BMW's 3-Series and Mercedes' C-Class.

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VERDICT: Mercedes C63 AMG Sedan

The ATS is the best small sedan ever to come out of Detroit — and it is, of course, much cheaper than the C63. But cars coming out of Mercedes' AMG division might as well come from a different planet where the rules of physics don't apply. The Benz is worth the money.

Compare: Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG vs. Cadillac ATS vs. Audi S4

Expensive Option

Porsche Panamera Turbo S | $173,200
The Panamera Turbo S is a bit on the big side for a midsize sedan, although it's definitely not in S-Class territory, but its 4.8-liter 550-horsepower V8 engine and adaptive air suspension make it move like a much smaller sports car. Plus, the inside is all leathery and has lots of wood. It's so fast, rich and classy, it's ridiculous.

Watch Video:  Porsche Panamera Review

Less Expensive Option

Dodge Charger SRT8 Super Bee | $41,775
Since we're hunting Porsches here, we decided to go with the fastest 4-door we could find without a fancy nameplate. The Charger SRT8 has a 6.4-liter Hemi V8 engine that produces 470 ponies and scoots to 60 mph in 4.2 seconds, so it can keep up with the Panamera (3.6 seconds to 60 mph). But the interior is spare and unadorned.

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VERDICT: Porsche Panamera Turbo S

If you're after speed for the buck, the Dodge delivers almost as much straight-line performance for less than $50,000 as the Porsche delivers for more than three times that price. But if you're looking to match Porsche's combination of refinement and raw power, you're looking to BMW's M5 sedan, and then you're shopping near the $100,000 range all over again. This one goes to the Porsche.

Compare: Porsche Panamera Turbo S vs. Dodge Charger SRT8 vs. BMW 7-Series

Expensive Option

Rolls-Royce Phantom Extended Wheelbase | $450,000
Few vehicles automatically confer status upon a passenger simply stepping out of the back seat — this car is meant to be driven by a chauffeur, not its owner — and no car drapes its passengers in dignity and importance like the Phantom. It has ample leather — bespoke, of course — and 53 inches of legroom in the back. The deep-pile wool carpets and large, 12-inch LCD screens for each passenger are pure opulence.

View Slideshow:  Best Bang for the Buck: Luxury Cars

Less Expensive Option

Hyundai Equus Ultimate | $66,250
By now, we expect that most people realize Hyundai is no joke. However, we're not even going to try to directly compare the luxury of the Equus to the Phantom; they really are playing in different leagues. But the fact that the Equus delivers powerful acceleration and a buttery-smooth ride and cocoons driver and passenger in an ultraposh interior for more than five times less is astounding.

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VERDICT: Hyundai Equus

What is the extra 380 grand or so being spent on? Prestige and over-the-top opulence, that's what. If any car is worth a half-million bucks, the Phantom is, if for no other reason than the knowledge that dozens of craftsmen put your car together by hand especially for you. That's luxury. However, we're going with Equus.

Find: Your Ultimate Luxury Car

Expensive Option

Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG | $134,300
We wanted to put the Range Rover here as the most expensive off-road-capable SUV, but there was the Mercedes AMG G63, towering above it in price. Nothing combines interior opulence and military chic like this beast. This crazy thing has a 5.5-liter 544-horsepower turbocharged V8 engine with permanent all-wheel drive and three locking differentials. So if you want to rock-crawl in a large, top-heavy box worth more than $100,000, you presumably could.

View Slideshow:  Best Bang for the Buck: SUVs

Less Expensive Option

Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland Summit 4X4 | $46,995
Jeep's latest remake of the classic Grand Cherokee is a winner, and even plushed out with a fancy infotainment system and premium leather seats, it's a fraction of the price of the Benz. We could have bumped up to the Grand Cherokee SRT8 model and still come in at less than 50 percent of the price, but the reason the Mercedes AMG G63 seems ridiculous is that big performance engines seem beside the point in an SUV. And yes, the Grand Cherokee is just as capable.

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VERDICT: Jeep Grand Cherokee

We definitely give this one to Jeep. Aside from pure pretense, there's no reason to spend the money on the Benz.

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Expensive Option

Ford F-150 Harley Davidson 4X4 | $52,230
For the gentleman rancher who occasionally needs to tow or haul something heavy, the F-150 Harley-Davidson edition is the crème de la crème of pickup trucks. It has a 6.2-liter V8 engine, leather bucket seats, a supercrew cab to fit the whole family, and a fancy navigation system with Sync AppLink so that your truck can play nice with your smartphone.

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Less Expensive Option

Ford F-150 XL SuperCab | $27,125
There are plenty of other trucks we could have put here, but we thought it was worth noting that if you just want a basic truck that can haul four people, you can get that with the F-150 XL for just over half of what the Harley-Davidson model costs. Granted, you'll lose towing capacity and you won't have all the fancy trim.

Watch Video:  2012 Ford F-150

VERDICT: Ford F-150 XL

The Harley truck is fit for a king, but for that money, you could get a BMW 5-Series. Go with the XL and spend the extra money on a boat to tow behind it.

Compare: Ford F-150 vs. Chevrolet Silverado vs. Honda Ridgeline

Expensive Option

Honda Odyssey Touring Elite | $43,825
Most minivans start at less than $30,000. But pack on the options and you're quickly over 40 grand. The Odyssey is the top dog these days when it comes to luxury potential. It can be had with an ultrawide 16.2-inch rear-seat entertainment system and second-row seats that slide to the side for easy ingress and egress.

Watch Video:  2012 Honda Odyssey

Less Expensive Option

Mazda Mazda5 Grand Touring | $24,025
We couldn't bring this one in at half the price of the top-tier Honda, but it is telling that Mazda's fanciest minivan is less than 25 grand. For that, you get leather seats and a moonroof, plus some smart features such as a fold-down center storage unit in the second row.

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VERDICT: Honda Odyssey Touring Elite

The Honda is worth the money. The Mazda5 is pretty cramped inside, and the third-row seats are positively tiny. Plus, the 157-horsepower 4-cylinder engine is weak compared with its peers. Minivans are all about comfort and accessories, and if you have a .big family that you like to take on road trips, you'll want all the bells and whistles you can afford. The Honda gives you more.

Compare: Honda Odyssey vs. Mazda Mazda5 vs. Volkswagen Routan

Expensive Option

Aston Martin One 77 | Up to $2 million
Frankly, we could have put the Bugatti Veyron here, but we're tired of hearing about it, and everything about the One 77 is rarified and superlative. As the name implies, only 77 of these Aston Martins will be built. The car looks like a hollow-point bullet cutting through the wind, and its 7.3-liter V12 engine can propel it to 60 mph in less than 3.7 seconds.

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Less Expensive Option

Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 | $54,350
Just think about this for a second: You could buy 15 to 20 Camaro ZL1s for the price of one Aston Martin One 77. And with its 6.2-liter 580-horsepower supercharged V8 engine, the Camaro is only 0.3 second slower to 60 mph.

View Pictures:  Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

VERDICT: Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

It's impressive that a $54,000 Chevy can blow the doors off supercars costing exponentially more. Sure, we'd love to own that Aston Martin, but it's not worth it when you can get so much speed for so little coin.

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Expensive Option

Fisker Karma | $108,900
There are a lot of reasons to root for the Fisker Karma. It's beautiful; its cabin is swathed in renewable and recyclable material; it's powerful, with twin 150-kilowatt motors driving the rear wheels producing up to 403 horsepower; and its series hybrid gas-electric system gets 52 mpg-e. The problem is that the Karma has plenty of fit-and-finish issues and some serious safety concerns.

Watch Video:  Fisker Karma First Drive

Less Expensive Option

Toyota Prius Plug-in | $32,000
The Prius doesn't turn a lot of heads anymore, and when it did turn heads back in 2000, it was never because people thought it was sexy. But Toyota's groundbreaking hybrid car deserves respect not only because it defined the segment, introducing a sophisticated powertrain technology at an affordable price, but also because it has proved reliable over the long haul. It's not fast, but it's certainly economical and sensible.

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VERDICT: Toyota Prius Plug-in

We like it that companies such as Fisker are making efficient powertrains sexy and fast. But there's no way we'd sink more than $100,000 into a car that still has issues. While the Prius is boring, it offers astounding value and reliability, plus excellent mileage. If Fisker is still around in two years, maybe we'll change our minds. But we're going with the Prius.

Read:  Toyota Prius Plug-in: Flash Drive

For more information on any of the vehicles available in this slideshow, click on the links below:

-Mercedes-Benz C63
-Cadillac ATS
-Porsche Panamera Turbo S
-Dodge Charger SRT8 Super Bee
-Rolls-Royce Phantom
-Hyundai Equus
-Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG
-Jeep Grand Cherokee
-Ford F-150
-Honda Odyssey
-Mazda Mazda5
-Chevrolet Camaro
-Toyota Prius

Compare: All 12 Available Vehicles

Sam Foley is a Connecticut-based automotive journalist who has written for GQ, Forbes, USA Today, the New York Post and various other publications.

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