The most expensive cars of the year

Revolutions in the auto industry are few and far between, so this year we are not surprised to report that the most expensive automobiles are, again, sports cars. A couple of premium sedans appear here and there in the slide show that follows — a slide show that features our annual list of the ten most expensive cars available in the United States.

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The average price of a vehicle on the list has gone up to $351,000 from $341,000, an increase of 3 percent. Automakers increase the prices of blueblood automobiles to hedge against inflation, to compensate for disappointing sales or because they have added new features to the cars.

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FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

Sometimes the price increases seem like highway robbery. Saleen's S7, this year's most expensive car, costs $120,000 more than it did last year. According to Manhattan Motorcars, Saleen's New York dealer, the price hike is due to modifications to the S7's V-8 engine, whose horsepower is now up to 575 from 550. Assume for argument's sake that's the only reason for the extra $120K on the sticker, and we're talking about a cost of about $5,000 for each additional unit of horsepower. If Honda Motor charged $5,000 per horse, a high-end Civic would cost about $800,000.

Of course, follow the link below and you will realize how each car on the list is aimed at buyers for whom money is as disposable as garbage. That's perhaps why the most expensive cars are sports cars: if you're going to throw away a ton of money, it had better be on something extremely fun.