all that Jazz...

So Saturday evening I bit the bullet and bought a new car. I bought a 2008 Honda Fit, known in Europe as the Jazz...and I have to say, I think I'm going to like it. Here it is, in front of my house...well, that's my neighbor's house in the background...I was standing in front of my house to take the pic. No sunroof (because that's not an option on this car), but I did get a stick, and the 1.5 Liter, 16-valve VTEC 4 cylinder engine is peppy...and get this, there is NO TIMING BELT! Is that cool or what? (There's a timing chain instead...different beast altogether). 34 mpg highway, 5 star safety rating, and it made Car & Driver's 10 best list for 2007 & 2008...

I have to confess, this is a big change for me. Emma is a convertible...and a loaded convertible (albeit a VW!) at that. Heated leather seats, alloy wheels, yada yada yada...but, like me, Emma is getting old...as in, 9 years, over 150,000 miles old...and it's time to let her go. Still, having driven Emma all these years, there was a certain expectation as to what I'd buy next. Xander put it best (of course): when Kath told him I was getting a new car, he said hopefully: "Is Judi's new car gold with no top?" Well, no, but it came very close to being chili pepper red with white racing stripes and no top...I'm smitten with the convertible MINI, which also gets great mileage...but after some soul searching, I decided the MINI is not really a commuter car, and I need to go with practical this time around. I test drove a MINI on Thursday, and although I loved the way it handled (they DO drive like go-carts!) there were some things that gave me serious pause. For starters, I was lower to the road, and the interior of the car, plus the pizza shaped side mirrors, although cute, didn't begin to provide the driver visibility of either Emma or the Fit (which I'm thinking I may call Ralph). With the miles I drive, I want the best visibility I can have. There's no question the MINI is a cooler, sexier car than the Fit, but price was also a consideration, with base price for the convertible MINI a whopping 50% higher than base price for the economical Fit...and my backyard still needs to be landscaped, and the siding on my house needs to be replaced or, at the very least, repaired, sooooooooo...in the end, I decided to be practical. The MINI is on hold for now. Who knows, in a couple of years, maybe I'll find a used one with low mileage to tool around the neighborhood in...but for now, I'm going to enjoy my Fit. Did I mention it has a CD player? One that doesn't turn up its nose at American CD's? And it has working AC...hallelujah! It was blowing cold air on my toes as I drove around this afternoon. And look at all the room in the back: this is Kath, who's just under 5'11", checking out the cargo space, without engaging the Magic Seat, which, when flattened, provides 41 cubic feet of cargo space...handy for hauling home loot from IKEA, as well as Crate & Barrel & Pottery Barn floor samples, with which my house is abundantly furnished...








Soooooooooo...happy driving.