THE FOLLOWING IS EXCERPTED FRO AOLAUTOS.COM, AND FRANKLY POINTS UP THE BIZARRE DIRECTION SOME COMPANIES ARE MOVING IN THESE DAYS. AND HERE I THOUGHT THE HEATED AND COOLED CUPHOLDERS ON THE CHRYSLER SEBRING WERE A FAIRLY POINTLESS TOUCH; THEM, AND THE LEXUS LS460L'S REAR-SEAT POWER OTTOMANS. SHEESH.

Today, virtually all autos are well built and come with lots of sophisticated features and options.All good, right? Wrong.Items once reserved for luxury cars, such as navigation systems and heated seats, are now appearing on such comparatively modest vehicles as Volkswagens and Chevrolets.

High-Tech Cars
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Acura RDX SUV
Audi R8 Coupe
BMW Hydrogen 7 Series
BMW M6 Convertible
Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Coupe
Lexus LS Hybrid
Mercedes E320 BlueTec
Mercedes S600
Rolls-Royce Phantom
Porsche 911 Turbo
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This presents a problem for luxury-car manufacturers: How can they make their vehicles stand out when buyers expect even entry-level cars to come loaded with desirable options?At the recent media preview of Detroit's North American International Auto Show, we discussed this topic with Henrik Fisker, who used to be Aston Martin's design director and now runs his own company, Fisker Coachbuild, which offers high-end customizations of BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes.

Fisker said that these days, luxury-car companies must offer their customers innovative, exclusive options. He pointed toward the optional, $8,000 stainless-steel hood on Rolls-Royce's new Phantom Drophead convertible, which Rolls unveiled at the Detroit show, as an "extreme" example of putting "new luxury features in high-end cars.""You can't get these things on mid-range cars," he said.See the Gallery of High-Tech Cars HereOver-The-Top OptionsFisker Coachbuild limits its production of its cars to guarantee exclusivity. It fashions its designs out of such rare, expensive and state-of-the-art materials as carbon fiber, and it offers high-tech, high-horsepower engine modifications. Fisker's customized vehicles have base prices that range from $182,000 to $296,000.Luxury carmakers have become preoccupied with offering exotic technology of late, since they need to put forward cutting-edge features in order to remain relevant. The V-10 engine in BMW's $105,000 M6 convertible incorporates Formula 1 technology. Mercedes' $140,000 S600 sedan can drive itself in stop-and-go traffic, thanks to a short-range radar that detects other vehicles. And the climate-control system on Honda Motor's new Acura RDX SUV adjusts cabin conditions based, in part, on the position of the sun and on the car's location (it works in conjunction with the GPS navigation system). The RDX's four-cylinder engine is so sophisticated that, according to Acura, it can do things you would expect of a six-cylinder engine.Formidable FeesOf course, if you want the newest, most awesome features on the market, be prepared to spend big: The average price of a car on our list is $274,000.

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Two of the cars on our list do not have prices yet. One is BMW's Hydrogen 7, a hydrogen-powered sedan prototype that BMW will loan out in small volumes later this year. The Hydrogen 7's purpose is not to generate revenue, but to publicize hydrogen cars.The other unpriced car is Toyota Motor's new Lexus LS Hybrid sedan -- a premium, gas/electric version of Lexus' $61,000 LS sedan. The company has not announced pricing for the LS Hybrid, but the hybrid versions of other Lexus models cost 10% to 25% more than the traditional, gas-powered models from which they are derived. The lesson here is that the coolest new technology, such as that used by advanced hybrid cars, is not just a way to satisfy increasingly demanding customers, but also -- if done properly -- a way to jack up revenue.Indeed, carmakers have found that using cutting-edge technology works as a way to sell high-end cars. Sales of Mercedes' high-tech S-Class sedan range, of which the S600 is a part, increased by 93% in 2006. And Rolls-Royce says its initial production run of the Phantom Drophead is sold out."Don't be surprised," said a Rolls spokesman, "if it's a while before you can get delivery."See the Gallery of High-Tech Cars Here