In the mid 1980s, Porsche introduced a supercar known as the 959. At the time, it was the most amazing automobile on the planet. Costing around $300,000, it featured technological wizardry that is still admirable in 2006. It has now been sent to the woodshed by the new Bugatti Veyron. The quad-turbo 16 cylinder Veyron is the most powerful production street car ever made (1000 bhp), the quickest ever, and the fastest ever. Only a select few will ever drive one, fewer still will own one, considering you will have to lay down over 1 million dollars to have one in your driveway.

How amazing is this street car? Consider this: Fitted with the proper tires, it would easily win any Nascar race as its top speed is 252 mph. That top speed is in Indy car territory.

The British automobile show "Top Gear" recently featured the Veyron. The show's host, Jeremy Clarkson, drove the car across France on his way to London. He was racing his two co-hosts, who were flying a Cessna in an attempt to beat him to London. They lost.

Top Gear is the best show about cars I've ever seen. It was briefly seen in America on the Discovery Channel, only to be yanked off (rumor is that Discovery is trying to produce an American version). It was a thoroughly British show, some of the cars were Europe-only models, they were right-hand drive, etc. Most of their pop-culture references were incomprehensible to an American viewer. But despite all that it is very entertaining and interesting.

The host of Top Gear is a tall, ungainly yob who frequently utters anti-American sentiments, as do the other hosts. It seems anti-Americanism is deeply embedded in their Id or Superego or whatever the hell the appropriate sub-conscious is for this example. They always trash American cars, but it doesn't stop there. Yet I still find episodes to watch from the internet--the show is too good to stop watching simply because of their bias.