This diverse segment offers the widest price range. It covers everything from the $34,000 Saab 9-5 to the $130,000 Mercedes-Benz SL500. Obviously our Best Buys are somewhere in between. We think that the Acura RL is a steal at $42,000 fully equipped. Though it is a front-drive V6 in a field of V8 rear-drive models, it has a great ride, plenty of power, and is quite luxurious. Mercedes-Benz E-Class, though a bit long in the tooth, also continues to impress with its impeccable road manners and luxurious comfort.

If you are looking for something a bit more sporting we recommend the BMW 5-Series. If your taste ranges more toward the luxury end, then take a look at the Cadillac DeVille or Lexus GS 300.

A8 remains a slow-seller, with just 2362 retailed during all of 2000, a near 5-percent decline from '99. As ever, Audi's aluminum-intensive flagship is at a price disadvantage against class rivals, and Audi still isn't widely viewed as a "high-luxury" brand like BMW, Lexus or Mercedes, though it's gaining more credibility all the time.

A further image boost may well come from the second-generation A8 that's on track for a U.S. launch in late 2002 as an '03 model. Audi's ASF (aluminum space-frame) construction is retained, but with improvements to make the car lighter, stronger and cheaper to build. To go with it, Audi is developing a lighter quattro all-wheel-drive system with reduced internal friction for better performance and mileage.

Standard and long-wheelbase models will continue, but engines will be completely different, the next A8 being the first Audi to adopt Volkswagen Group's new family of W-configuration engines. The mainstay powerplant will be a W8 with a reported 300 hp from 3.7 liters. A 6.0-liter W12 will make some 420 hp in an ultra-luxury challenger to the V12 Mercedes S600 and BMW 7-Series. Both engines are all-aluminum multivalve designs derived from VW's narrow-angle VR engine family. The W8 will also be offered in VW's own midrange Passat, which should reach U.S. dealers by the middle of '02. Automatic transmission will remain standard in the new A8s, but may have six forward gears instead of the present five.

Styling will be evolutionary so as not to make today's A8s seem suddenly obsolete and thus depress resale values. This mimics the approach taken with Audi's new-generation A4 models. A high-performance S8 will likely be added soon after the regular models go on sale.