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Story Archive: Car Reviews
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just-for-fun
The car’s doors lock as I drive, but there is no button to unlock them when I arrive at my destination. A simple pull of the handle does not pop the lock so I must turn around to manually pull up the lock button. The last time I had to do that was when I had a crush on Matt Dillon and a mixed tape (yes, I mean a cassette) playing in my car!
There’s a time when I may have been intrigued by the Honda Civic Si, but truthfully, that time has long since come and gone. My present status weighs in heavily: mom of two, wife to one, organizer of all, directress of the house, maid of the bathrooms, gate keeper to the refrigerator…the list goes on.
Can a convertible be a family car? Can a convertible be safe and secure? Can the C70 fit in at the Volvo family picnic, or will it be shunned like poor Cousin Junior who hasn’t been invited back since dying his hair purple?
The Mazda Miata is not a mom-mobile in any way, but with its reasonable price tag, side-impact air bags, and fairly small engine, it might be a fun car to buy for your responsible teenager. Did I just say that? Strike that from the record — NOW — before my son reads this!
It starts out rather innocently. I’m informed that my next test car won’t really fit into my “normal” demographics. Then I see it pull into my driveway: a shining, “absolutely red” Lexus SC430. My eyes glass over with daydreams of a night out on the town, hair blowing in the wind, sultry music slinking through the stereo.
I realize that this is not the “quintessential mom-mobile” so please don’t send me hoards of e-mails asking me why I’m writing about a car that is obviously not a family car. The 2005 Ford Mustang convertible is an affordable choice for a second car that’s just for fun.
I recently traveled 300 kilometers above the Arctic Circle to test the Volvo V50 and XC90 on the ice tracks. OK, the real truth is that 13 hours in the plane each way without kids was quite appealing to me. A good book, some mindless magazines and a long nap would do any mom a world of good.
Although the Mini Cooper certainly isn’t meant as a mom-mobile, I surprisingly discovered some mom (and dad) friendly features. Can’t guess what they are? I’ll give you a hint: ease of loading and unloading children isn’t one of them.
I’ve never understood the concept of owning an impractical car just for fun. If I had enough disposable income to purchase a ridiculously expensive “toy,” I figure I could do more meaningful and important things with it (like invest in my personal flip-flop fetish). How much use can a mommy get out of a two-seat convertible?
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