Those MINIs just look like fun to drive. I want to try one some day.

Oooh, those are super cute shoes, juliana!

I'm trying to decide what to wear tonight. I'm going to a party at some friends' house. I think it will be fairly casual, so I'm thinking jeans and a cute top. But can't decide which top to wear.

How is it fun? Acceleration, handling, what?

The acceleration is good, but I've really never driven any car that's supposed to have great acceleration, so I can't really compare. It's got practically no mass compared to most cars, so it'll stop on a dime, no problem. The maneuverability is great -- I was able to get it through all kinds of weird twisty turns in an over-crowded parking garage without any problem at all.

The Lexuses I've driven have had great acceleration, but I'd not call them fun, exactly. Quietest and smoothest drive I've ever had, so you don't come out of the car all energised. More, rested.

My funnest drive is, I think, the BMW 3 Series. Small enough for that fun feel, and nice safe handling.

Hil, it sounds - am I mistaken? - as if the car is ultra-light, which is why it handles so easily. Which, if so, puts it out of court for me. I'm all about the mass; not the size, just the weight. I remember coming back from Vegas to LA in MaryEllen's convertible Geo Metro, also a fun little car to handle (although, with the top up, I couldn't drive the thing, because I couldn't see - it was nothing but blind spots). And we had to have the top down and the heat on at the same time, because the car was so light that, with the top up, we apparently risked getting blown over the hill by some of the big rigs out there.

I can see a nice light car for city driving, though, in a heartbeat.

I haven't willingly gone out on New Years Eve in a couple of decades.

My funnest drive is, I think, the BMW 3 Series.

My experience with Beemers is that they are just generally fun to drive. I think they put crack in the steering wheel or something, but damn those German engineers know how to build a car.

Hil, it sounds - am I mistaken? - as if the car is ultra-light, which is why it handles so easily.

Yeah, it is really light. It's not something I'd want to drive on those kinds of mountain roads, or even really on a major highway, but for scooting around city traffic, it's great.

Huh. Jo had a BMW for a bit - a 318 or a 325, late eighties, I think - and it was a nice car, good acceleration, but not a lot of difference in handling from, say, Nic's Camry XLE.

Most fun cars to drive for me have been luxury sports sedans. For pure power driving - steel muscles and snarling power under a velvet sleeve - I'll take my Jags every day of the week.

edit: Hil, that's what I figured. The Citicar people in SF have VW Beetles.

I've only driven a Jag once, and loved it.

But I've driven many different Beemers, and every one of them was an almost orgasmic experience for me. They were all so responsive, you could practically drive them by thinking loudly. Or perhaps gesturing emphatically.

For awhile (when Jake was a baby actually) we had an old 280ZX with T-tops, which was a hand-me-down from Stephen's older brother. I loved that car for handling and speed. It did look kind of funny with the baby seat in the back, though.

It also had that talking feature, where a woman's voice would tell you if the doors were unlocked or the trunk was open or what have you, and it broke and she wouldn't shut up for the longest time. Bleh.