New York has a bevy of Detroit Three iron on display. Growing up in the 1970s, I never thought that we'd see the day when you could get a 430-hp Corvette that got 21 mpg overall. Now it seems that you can have your cake and bring it home driving a V8-rumbling muscle car.

Ford has two Mustangs of note here at the NY show. There's a beautiful Bullitt version—decked out in the classic Dark Highland Green—complete with a 315-hp V8, big pipes coming out of the back, and no excess spoilers taking away from the shape (which still looks good three years after the redesign). Ford is also displaying a fire-breathing Shelby GT500KR. As if the 500 hp of the "standard" GT500 wasn't enough, Ford decided to bring back the spirit of the top-level Shelby of the 1960s with this new, 540-hp version. The KR resurfaces a number of the design details from the original, including vents in the hood, bold body stripes, and a chunky cue-ball shifter. What the new model has all over the old one, however, is safety equipment: three-point safety belts for all seating positions (plus pretensioners for the fronts), ABS, traction control, and front and side air bags were barely a pipe dream in 1968. All are standard on the GT500KR.

While the big-engined Shelby is dubbed the "King of the Road," Chevrolet brought out its "King of the Hill" Corvette ZR1. The supercharged V8 supposedly makes "620 hp+"—more than enough to run with the best sports cars in the world. It also comes with great-looking 19- and 20-inch wheels, enormous brakes, as well as a unique "window" on the hood that lets you peer into the engine compartment. It's stunning.

Interestingly, while GM chose not to showcase its new Camaro in New York, at least Chrysler unveiled three versions of its hot Challenger: a base V6 SE, a 5.7-liter V8 R/T, and a top-of-the-line SRT8 (in all of its 425-hp, 6.1-liter glory). All wowed the crowds with their faithful reproduction of the original's styling and hunkered-down stance. But even the V6 model makes 250 hp (not bad - even by muscle car standards. Well, perhaps more "pony car" standards; the highest hp V8 in the Mustang GT was just 271 in 1965. (Don't bet me on this; I have one in my garage.)

By looking at the high-horsepower hand-ringing here in the Big Apple, you'd never guess that gasoline prices are averaging $3.28 a gallon, with a high of $3.60 in California. Will these fast and furious machines go begging if gas tops $4.00 - and stays there? What do you think? If you had the money to buy one, would you take the plunge? Use the comments feature and let us know.

—Mike Quincy

See the 2008 New York auto show coverage.