October
10
Tags
The Bow Tie in My Driveway
The Red MINI took one to the chin in the office parking lot the other day. While she gets stitches, I have a visitor in my driveway. This one isn’t quite as hot as my last visitor. Nevertheless, it sports a dapper bow tie, and I welcome it gladly.
Meet the Chevy Equinox.
Given how much I enjoy the Red MINI, I always have a hard time adjusting to a rental car. Especially an SUV. Behind the wheel of the Equinox (which is actually more a crossover than a full-size SUV), I feel like I’m commandeering a bus. I’m way too far away from the ground, and it is very disconcerting to look over at the car next to you and be able to see inside it. Horrors!
That being said, and despite not historically being a General Motors fan, I am actually enjoying the Equinox. It drives smoothly, with little road noise, the seats are comfortable, and the dash is well laid-out, with easy-to-use buttons and knobs. I was whining silently about the sluggish acceleration until I discovered that a certain evil button named “Eco” was engaged. Once I undid that sucker, the Equinox had much better get-up-and-go, and was fun to drive. Just say no to “Eco.”
Not that I’m one for being practical, but the Equinox also has quite a lot of storage space. You could throw a bunch of bodies in the cargo area (I have not tested this), and there are plenty of bins and cubbies to stash smaller items. I miss the je ne sais quoi of the Red MINI, but I get why people like driving cars like the Equinox. It’s attractive, practical, reasonably comfortable, and a little sporty. Chevy, give Equinox drivers a sporty steering wheel like the Ford Escape’s, and I would not begrudge you well-deserved sales success.
Motorista will now return to her regularly-scheduled programming of ridiculously expensive cars going ridiculously excessive speeds…
MOTORista 
I am sorry to hear of Red’s injuries, and wish her a speedy recovery. Meanwhile, just wanted to say that SUVs and crossovers are great for people who are afraid of forgetting something when they go on a trip, so they carry everything. Also great for people who like to take everything with them regardless. Or people who secretly want to be bus drivers (like me) and carry entire classrooms full of children on field trips to the National Air and Space Museum to see the Skylab exhibit.
Haha – exactly, Rob! And thanks for the well wishes. Red is all mended and back home where she belongs.