Venza Hits the Right Note

2009 Toyota Venza

Test Drove 1/15/09 – 1/22/09
reviewed by Lori Hindman

The Toyota Venza looked sleek and drove beautifully. It was quiet, powerful, well-planned and didn’t scream mommy-mobile; it just might be my next new car — if I ever buy another car, that is. Yes, my friends, I fell in love with the Venza. I’d be lying if I said that, when the time came to let it go, I did so with a dry eye.

The Venza is a crossover, which means it takes all the cool parts of an SUV, wagon and sedan and combines them into a completely usable, more efficient and ideally attractive package. With room for five and a huge cargo area, it’s flexible enough to handle your life. You get to decide how to spend your gas funds by choosing between front- or all-wheel drive and a four-cylinder or V-6 engine. The exterior was sleek-looking, and it helped this mom feel sexy and sophisticated, even if the carpet will eventually smell of old milk.

What did I love so much about the Venza? Well, it helped me be Super Mom with its tons of storage and room for friends, but the Venza also let me be another, freer woman without all the trappings of my life with kids. Lots of things happen when you start driving a mommy-mobile: You get used to drippy sippy cups floating around the floor, the smell of stale Goldfish crackers becomes a part of your car’s ambience, and random cheap toys from fast-food restaurants litter the interior. Even when the kids are out of the car, their aroma remains. My absolute favorite thing about the Venza was that when I managed to get the kids out of the car, I didn’t feel like my name was still “Mommy.”

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