November 10, 2005

A funny thing happened on the way to getting the car of my dreams... I realized that it's not my dream car.

While I'd feared that Ross and I would end up in a fight to the death over whether we kept the Mini Cooper, no such battle has occured, nor will it. After driving/getting to know the car the last few days, we've both come to the same conclusion about it, which is a tepid "eh, it's ok" which is not the type of sentiment that sends you racing out to buy a $23,000 car.

That probably makes it sound like we're nuts. The Mini is a popular car that gets rave reviews and yet we're less than thrilled with it, but there are a few key issues that did the Mini in for us. The main issue is that Ross has big hands and the Mini's small stick shift seriously aggravated his RSI, and a car that leaves Ross in pain when he drives isn't an option. That, and the steering wheel leaves a ton to be desired ergonomically. It's thick with wide, poorly placed spokes, and that caused us both hand pain.

Another issue is the speedometer. It's -huge- and yet hard to read, and what's the point in making it so big unless for ease of use? The problem is that the speedometer is in the center of the dash, but not angled towards the driver and it's low vertically, so you have to look to the side and down to see it, which is bad design. That, and the numbers on it and the way they're positioned make it difficult to read. The most common freeway speeds (55/65) arent on the dial, so speed is approximate, and when there's a cop with a radar gun, you want more than a general idea of your speed. The speedometer's gratuitous, form over function, which irks me.

I could go on about the things we don't like (horn is just 2 small buttons on the steering wheel, cup holders are so poorly placed you can't fit cups in them, power windows have a mind of their own, stick shift has a metal knob which gets bleepin' cold [hot in summer], the only way you can really fit more than 2 people in the car is if the people in the back are less than two feet tall, Mini vs SUV factor is scary), but the bottom line is that the Mini isn't what we'd hoped it would be and definitely not worth $23k used.

So the Mini went back to the dealership today, but I did get to keep one thing from it, and that is the thrill and joy of Ross' sweet gesture. Even if we'd kept the car, what would have mattered and meant the most is that Ross gave it to me, that my husband is so sweet, loving, and giving that he surprised me with the car of my dreams. It was the gesture, not the car, that meant so much, and always will. That, I get to keep. So I don't have a Mini Cooper, but I do have the greatest husband in the world, and I'm definitely not going to return him to the dealer.

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