abefroman329
Aug 19, 09, 4:15 pm
Saw one of these on the Executive Selection aisle at DCA on Thurs, 8/13. Decided to give it a shot - I was planning to do quite a bit of driving that weekend and didn't particularly need the extra room. Plus, I was going to have to do a lot of parallel parking on city streets (wound up coming in very handy in Philly, where I squeezed it into a space roughly 6 inches longer than the car itself). Ended up being billed for a "specialty compact," despite booking an intermediate for EA service - not sure if these regularly show up on the compact aisles, probably not.
Overview: Pretty fun to drive, though VERY hard to get in and out of - even the valets in Atlantic City were stumbling. Like my dad's Scoupe from the late '90s, the engine sounded like a lawnmower. Not much power, but you don't need much, either.
Features: Came with XM, though it was a Kenwood tuner (don't think it's aftermarket) that seemed harder to figure out than the other XM-ready factory tuners - took a while to figure out how to scan all of XM's channels instead of only those within a particular genre. Handled like it didn't have power steering, but don't quote me on that. A/C, power windows and locks, cruise control, the usual. Cigarette lighter quit working after about a day, not sure if it was a blown fuse or something.
Mileage: 30ish, mostly city driving.
Space: You would be very hard-pressed to fit more than two full-sized adults in the car - I felt a little squished. I'm 6'1" with a long torso (usually take a 30" inseam) and my knees started to act up quite a bit after a few solid hours in the driver's seat. Trunk accommodated 2 28" suitcases and one laptop bag, some room left over.
Summary: Fun to drive once, but probably won't rent again in the future.
Overview: Pretty fun to drive, though VERY hard to get in and out of - even the valets in Atlantic City were stumbling. Like my dad's Scoupe from the late '90s, the engine sounded like a lawnmower. Not much power, but you don't need much, either.
Features: Came with XM, though it was a Kenwood tuner (don't think it's aftermarket) that seemed harder to figure out than the other XM-ready factory tuners - took a while to figure out how to scan all of XM's channels instead of only those within a particular genre. Handled like it didn't have power steering, but don't quote me on that. A/C, power windows and locks, cruise control, the usual. Cigarette lighter quit working after about a day, not sure if it was a blown fuse or something.
Mileage: 30ish, mostly city driving.
Space: You would be very hard-pressed to fit more than two full-sized adults in the car - I felt a little squished. I'm 6'1" with a long torso (usually take a 30" inseam) and my knees started to act up quite a bit after a few solid hours in the driver's seat. Trunk accommodated 2 28" suitcases and one laptop bag, some room left over.
Summary: Fun to drive once, but probably won't rent again in the future.