2005 Ford Five Hundred Limited

Acceleration aside (a languid 8.6 seconds to 60 mph), on the road, the Five Hundred's is as competent dynamically as it is visually. Roll and dive are well-controlled. The brake pedals are firm, linear, and responsive. The Five Hundred also handles well, though this accolade should be shared with the our Limited version's Pirelli P6 tires.

It's said Jac Nasser (former CEO of Ford Motor) was so impressed by the Volvo S80 (which shares componentry with the Five Hundred) that he bought the company. And a big, bargain-basement Volvo doesn't seem a bad idea.

Stylistically, the Chrysler 300 is a sort of Dorian Gray among automotive shapes. Handsome and chic in 2004, with little modification it could seamlessly time travel to the Truman administration and look equally era-appropriate. And it's particularly slick how nearly every detail of this car's shape works in such tight orchestration. For instance, just follow the front fender's horizontal cut line as it attractively flows to bisect the headlamp package. See?

Inside, the shape of the hood's broad form is smartly picked up by the dash, which then extends the line well into the cabin, giving the car an uncanny feeling of power and authority viewed from behind the wheel. While the interior dimensions are surprisingly generous in light of the chopped profile, the side windows, particularly the rear side windows, are diminutive portholes, adequate for casual glances at passing billboards, but face-print magnets when rolling through Yosemite or Manhattan. At night, flicking on the headlamps illuminates a special dial cluster, a quartet of discs marked in fine deco geometries and vintage letterings. Alight, they glow in an aqua blue, like four small lighted swimming pools seen from the air. Cool.

It's at night--and the later the better--when it's hard to resist being swept up in the 300's retro charisma. As the dash-center clock ticks toward midnight, reality seems to fuzz into one of those film-noir classics set in the 1930s. A glance in the rearview mirror could reveal Humphrey Bogart in a dark suit, loosened necktie, and cocked hat, "Relax, buddy, and just drive. You and me are gonna go for a ride down to the harbor, if you know what I mean..."