Real life, with a dash of Doctor Who

You know what? The jury's still out on this one. I liked what I saw and I liked how it felt, but I wasn't able to get a good idea of how the car drives because they only had a manual shift vehicle to drive and I don't know how to drive a manual. However, I had a great experience and I'm still pretty excited about this car.

When we talked to the salesman at the auto show, he told us that they only had a manual, but that he was willing to give us driving lessons. So that's what we did tonight. I'm now able to get from point A to point B without killing the engine, though I lack finesse. Unfortunately, I didn't feel comfortable enough to take it onto streets that had other cars on them. We've given the salesman our email and phone number so he can contact us when he gets an automatic transmission model on the lot. I'm willing to learn to drive a manual, but Justin insists on an automatic.

The interior was better designed than most of the models I've driven. The controls are large and contoured so they're easy to find without taking your eyes off the road. The test car we drove tonight was equipped with a BOSE sound system that sounded incredible. It has a USB iPod dock so I can stash my iPod in the glove box and use the car's controls to choose songs I want to hear.

The car is tiny, but there was plenty of room in the front for Justin even when I was seated comfortably in the back. The interior feels a lot like a more upscale MINI Cooper, but there is more room behind the back seats. I'll never be able to haul lumber, but there is plenty of room for my weekly shopping.

Fuel economy for a manual transmission is 30/38, which falls short of the mileage offered by other small cars, but is far superior to my Dodge Nitro or my favorite car of all time, the Volvo C30.

I was particularly impressed with our salesman, though. The dealership isn't actually open yet. It's still under construction. He's keeping us in the loop as the dealership comes together and will let us know when the first 500s arrive. The salesman obviously felt very passionately about Fiat and I always get a kick out of that.

However, I didn't agree with him on the looks of the car. He called it "beautiful," and insisted that when people first see it, their thoughts are always, "perfectly in proportion." I know that some designer has put a lot of thought into the design of this vehicle and he likely used the 1/3 proportions the salesman insisted were used throughout the vehicle, but, honestly, I don't think it's a beautiful car, and I didn't marvel at its proportions.

Eventually, I said this out loud, mostly because I couldn't smile and nod while he talked about how gorgeous it is. And even though I told him I didn't think it was beautiful, I also told him honestly that I thought it was a very striking car and that I liked how the design recalls the original design of the 500. It strikes me as very practical and not at all trendy.

He looked relieved and said, "For a moment, I thought you were going to call it cute."

I looked back at the car and said, "No, it's definitely not a cute car. It's distinctive, and I like that."

Justin disagrees with me. I believe he called it "hot as hell." It takes all kinds, I guess.

The Fiat 500 starts at $15,500. Equipped the way Justin and I want it, it will be $18,300. It's not a bad price for a car, though it is a bit more than I want to spend for such a little one.

We're still going to check out the Mazda 2 and Justin also wants to look at the Mazda 3, which I've already test driven and liked quite a lot.


Ok, it looks sorta hot in this pic. Hotter than reality, anyway.


This would be an excellent picture if it weren't for the terrible color scheme. Justin and I are leaning towards a dark brown/cream interior.