Minivan? Build It A Shrine

What's your passion?  Can it fit in the Van?

All this nonsense about how women don't want to be driving minivans is just nutty.  The minivan has saved millions from backaches and headaches since its introduction and those who did the heavy lifting in minivans (Moms) should be building shrines to it.   Instead, the minivan has been snubbed.  The minivan is one of the most useful, considerate vehicles ever created.  Easy access, flat floor, plenty of seats, comfortable, high seating position.  It's just great.  And if Mom wants a sexy car, just get a second hand Miata for her and she's off to the beach to meet up with friends from high school without the kids.

Trapezoidal

I drove the Nissan Quest a few weeks ago.  Now, Nissan is known for polarizing designs.  Have you seen the Cube?  And the Quest is based on a trapezoid so it's pretty polarizing.  Gotta hand it to Nissan.  It doesn't see itself coming and going.  It has the soul of individuality.  And we all know what Goethe says about individuality: "Certain defects are necessary for the existence of individuality."  I guess what I'm saying is that I applaud Nissan for making an attempt to break the mold and by the same token I don't love, love, love the design.

But I certainly would tell my friends who are soccering and shopping that they must--absolutely must--consider a minivan and that the Nissan Quest is one to test drive.

Note the ambient temperature on the nav screen

My test car was the 2012 Quest 3.5 LE powered by a 3.5 liter 6-cylinder engine with 260 horsepower and 240 lb-ft of torque.  Fuel economy is an undistinguished 19 City/24 Highway.

The vehicle is pretty packed with options including  it cost $42,365 including destination charge. Not cheap.  But it has desirables inside and out.  Power seats, fold-flat second row Captain's chairs, second row sliding and reclining Captain's chairs, leather and wood appointments, tilt and telescoping steering column, navigation, a well equipped entertainment system, automatic Xenon headlights and foglights, one touch power sliding doors and liftgate, 18" aluminum alloy wheels and state of the art safety.
I don't have kids, but I'm all about taking this land craft on a big, big road trip.  Sleep in the back, cook out?  I'm on it.  

 

Juke, Juke. Shoop, Shoop.

There's something about the Nissan Juke that makes me feel like an insect goddess with special powers. It has to be the combination of quirky design and the plucky powertrain. Do insects fly sideways? The fruit fly does for sure. And scientists have discovered that an insect, with its bulky body and delicate wings, stays airborne because its motor works the same way a piston engine works--once it's turned on it keeps running until you turn it off.

The Juke has very comfortable seats and it is very spirited on the road so we had a lot of fun trekking around in this car. My northern friends could consider buying it, because it has available AWD. Someone wants a little car like this 5-door hatchback but they need good winter traction for a steep driveway--this'll do it. It gets 27 miles per gallon city and 32 highway, not spectacular but decent.

The MSRP for the AWD that I had starts at $20,570 and goes to $22,880. The engine is a 1.6 liter, 4-cylinder turbo combined with a CVT automatic. A 6-speed manual is available.

There are some very nice styling details including trim that matches the exterior color (mine was Cayenne Red) and snappy looking cloth seats. There's an iPod input right near the driver.

I don't take the entire apartment with me when I travel, but I do have a suitcase, a work bag and about 4 bags for groceries. With the back seats up, I was hard put to fit all my stuff into the car.

The back seat has limited headroom. The styling is--well as I said--insect with special powers.

New York Auto Show 2011

Officially, the press days of the New York auto show start on Wednesday with the opening breakfast at Javits. But manufacturers are so pumped about their new products, that introductions start tomorrow at 9 a.m.

The unveilings kick off with an introduction to the Beetle. That's not the old Beetle, or the New Beetle, but the new New Beetle, which will just be called The Beetle. I'm excited to see it. We've seen the profile from the side. It looks longer than the New Beetle so I assume it will have more space inside and greater dimension. But more on that tomorrow.

On Tuesday, the NADA holds their conference with some looks at the U.S. economy as it relates to the automotive world. We'll hear what is happening with market share among the competing companies and the competing segments. Tuesday evening there are about 10 press conference/gatherings all around the same time. Suzuki, Nissan, Audi, Lexus, Porsche and Ford all have news to share.

Wednesday, the press conferences start and will continue into Thursday. Looking forward to this show because despite how the industry keeps getting slammed, it is a business that is always inventing and changing and trying new things. And it doesn't get much credit for the innovation. It gets a lot of criticism, much of it deserved, but much of it undeserved.