General Chat

Sometimes being a parent means being uncool. It sucks, but the car a parent drives can be the ultimate determining factor in how cool or uncool that parent is. Drop your kids off at school in a Ford minivan and you have no hope of being cool. Drop them off in a Porsche, and you’re the coolest parent ever.

Until recently, being a parent and having a cool, practical car were not possible. Today there are many choices for shuttling your family around in full fashion, whether your budget is $2 million or $20,000. So let’s get to it:

If your budget is around:

$2 million

You’re in luck! The sexiest of all family haulers can be yours. In addition to having 4 doors and plenty of space for gear, the Bugatti Galibier has a W16 engine that puts out slightly more than 1,000 horsepower. You might have to wait to get yours, but perfection takes time.

$200,000

If you want one of the most expensive and exclusive luxury sports sedans on the market without spending millions, the Aston Martin Rapide is your ride. A hand-built 6.0-liter V12 engine producing 470 horsepower is just waiting for the Cheerio crumbs your kids will drop into its beautiful back seat.

$120,000

Save yourself $80,000 or so over a Rapide and go for the Maserati Quattroporte, yet another elite luxury sedan fit for a fam. I’ll let a CarGurus owner review fill in the rest:

It’s acceleration is top notch. It easily goes well over 100 mph. Braking and handling are also fantastic. It’s manufacturing is top notch and will rarely need repairs unless you suck at driving and crash it. It’s appearance is astounding.

Sounds good to me! Just get some driving lessons.

$45,000 to $100,000

There’s a plethora of sexy in this price range; even for families.

For starters, the Jaguar XF ($50,000 to $80,000) just might be the sexiest car on this entire list. A CarGurus owner said,

By far the best car I’ve owned.  I fell in love with it on the first test drive and each and every day I look forward to driving it anywhere I can.  The ride quality is superb – Jaguar found the perfect balance of smoothness, quietness, handling, and the feeling of being one with the road.

If Porsche style floats your boat, the Panamera might be the baby for your babies. It starts at $89,000. Engine choices range from a 3.6-liter V6 to a 4.8-liter V8 making 500 horses.  Porsche style also comes in the form of an SUV. The Cayenne starts at $45,000 and offers all the coolness and performance of Porsche. Prices can skyrocket fast though when all the option boxes are checked.

$40,000

Do the words “Lexus” and “sexy” belong in the same sentence? Yes. Yes they do. The Lexus RX350 offers a comfortable, classy kind of sexy rather than the stiletto-sexy offered by cars like the Rapide.  For some parents, that’s exactly what they need.

Also in the $40K range is the Audi Q5. It offers a sportier kind of sexy than the Lexus, with 270 horsepower from a 3.2L V6. It provides plenty of space and torque for hauling the family in style.

$30,000

Perhaps a surprising sexy choice is the Volkswagen CC. But when you remember VW also owns Bugatti, perhaps the newest V-dub sedan isn’t such a surprising choice.

Now, before you judge me, this next car isn’t one I would normally include in a ‘sexy’ list. But I’ve seen the Hummer H3 rock it while keeping a young mom looking good and her kids safe and sound.

Under $20,000

I know, who would have ever guessed a Suzuki and a Bugatti would end up on the same list? Well, the truth is, if you have less than $20K to spend you’re not going to buy a lot of sexy. The Suzuki SX4 is as close as you’re going to get, with nice lines, an aggressive stance and enough room for a family of four. As long as they don’t go to Costco too much.

Is it important to you that your family is chauffeured in style? What’s your chariot of choice?

-tgriffith

I live in Washington state, which is one of many states to ban making phone calls on handheld devices while driving. No one actually pays attention to the ban, as evidenced by my recent count of six cars in a row with drivers chatting it up with phones glued to their ears.

An easy way around that ban is to send a quick text rather than having an entire conversation. Texting is faster and can be done at a red light in the time it takes for it to turn green, leaving time to devote the required attention to driving while still meeting my communication needs.

Now though, a group of 11 automakers has formed the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (AMM) to push for an all-out ban on texting while behind the wheel.

I’m not going to say that I think texting while driving is completely safe… it’s far from safe when the car is moving. But I do believe there’s a time and a place where it’s OK, such as while stopped at a red light. In those few moments when I have nothing else to do, I don’t want anyone telling me I can’t send a note to my wife telling her I’m x-ited 2 C her 2 nite.

Then there’s this little contradictory gem: Some states offer a service sending text message updates on traffic and weather conditions. Will that be outlawed too? Reading a text message is probably more dangerous than sending one, as seasoned text pros can compose messages without even looking at their phones.

Texting while driving is often compared to drinking and driving, which I think is absurd since texting can done responsibly. (I’ve never known anyone who could be drunk only at red lights.) Drunk driving is a serious and dangerous offense… texting doesn’t have to be any more involved than changing the radio station or adjusting the iPod (uh-oh… watch iPod bans come next).

If I want to send and read texts when I feel it is safe to do so, I want that right. The biggest consequence I see is getting honked at for being a moment late in realizing the light turned green, and that’s a risk I’m willing to take.

What are your views on texting while driving? Should it be outlawed to text while behind the wheel?

-tgriffith