400-HORSEPOWER SEXY BEAST; With the Spyker C8 Spyder, the term "Dutch Treat'' takes on a whole new meaning.(News)

Byline: DUTCH MANDEL

When you think of the Dutch, chances are images of high-end sports cars don't pop into your head. Victor Mueller wants to change that.

Mueller, CEO of Spyker cars, is a charming and animated man who you quickly learn is passionate about almost everything dear to him. That includes bringing his squadron of exotic cars to the States. Chances are, after a drive in the Spyker C8 Spyder, you'll share that passion.

First, some history about Spyker-a venerable name among the industrial Dutch-would serve you well. (You could go to spykercars.com for a more in-depth lesson. There will not be a test.) In 1898 brothers Jacobus and Hendrik-Jan Spijker took a Mercedes engine and formed around it a body largely considered at the leading edge in aesthetics and craftsmanship for its day. Five years later the duo produced what the company claims was the first six-cylinder engine, mated to a car with permanent 4wd and four-wheel brakes. Through World War I the innovations continued when, using its own designs, the company developed 100 aircraft and 200 aircraft engines. In 1919 the company adopted a slogan that is still found on cars today-and that includes an etching of an airplane propeller as homage to its manufacturing legacy. The credo is memorable: Nulla tenaci invia est via, or translated, "For the tenacious no road is impassible.''

The same holds true to Spyker's rejuvenated efforts. Mueller, a fan of the Spijker brothers' work, secured rights to the name and company in 2000 and introduced the Spyker C8 Spyder. He has since developed five different models and campaigned a purpose-built racer at Le Mans for the past two years.

The C8 Spyder is the one whose 4.2- liter, 400-hp V8 sang a robust vibrato along Monterey's 17-Mile Drive. Coupled to a six-speed manual Getrag transmission, the engine's mighty torque snapped the aluminum-bodied car in any and all gears as it cut ...