After years of adequate but uninspiring Saturn wagons, I defected three years ago tomorrow (happy early anniversary, honey!) to a Mini Cooper. It's one of the newer BMW Coopers; I haven't time or money for the required maintenance on a classic British car, and having had a Triumph 2000 years ago I speak with some authority on that subject.

But anyway,how I love my car! I haven't regretted it for a moment. To get to work, I have to cross a mountain range on a highway that's notorious for its accident levels, and I've never felt safer than in my Mini. It really grabs the road. Plus, the mileage is great, and with the included maintenance, we felt that the price was quite reasonable.

And while it's small, my son and I found room to take a 2-week car-camping road trip to Montana in it a couple of years ago. We were packed to the rafters, but that was part of the fun.

Claire