Confession #35: Whose Car of the Year is it, anyway?

I remember the holiday season for some notable things. Among them are consuming far too much food that your pants no longer fit, broken Christmas presents littering your living room floor and car commercials that are sillier than normal. Lexus has become synonymous for its “December to Remember” sales event advertisements that prominently showcase a car wrapped in a bow in the driveway as the surprised couple moves in slow motion towards their new RX-GS-IS-or whatever. Corny, I know.

Confession #25: A Chevy and a Nissan are trendier than a Bentley

2011 Chevrolet Volt (General Motors photo)

While I've been gone – and in a state where the Chevrolet Volt has yet to go on sale – Santa Barbara has become the Volt capital of the world.

Considering it's a coastal town in California, the acceptance of one of the greenest things on wheels shouldn't be surprising. But remember, Santa Barbara has one of the most expensive zip codes in the country. Oprah lives around the corner from one of my high school friends' house. Rob Lowe is an accessory figure to the downfall of the local newspaper. (No, no, I'm not going there.)

That's why I'm surprised that in the first two weeks I've been back home, I've seen six Volts. Pretty much one for every color they're offered in. And only one had dealer plates. That means the few that are trickling out of the plant are going to real customers.

Confession #23: It doesn't have to be a supercar to be cool

Forbes recently published a list of "Cars that will make you cool." To the surprise of probably no one, they're all outrageously expensive things most people couldn't afford in a lifetime, even if they sold some vital organs.

No question, cars like the Spyker C8 Aileron and Ferrari FF are cool, but part of their appeal comes from the fact that they're exotic and unattainable by most. Therefore, are there new cars that are cool and aren't all high-cost, low-practicality sports cars?

2012 Fiat 500 Sport (Fiat USA photo)

Fiat 500: Small cars are cool again because rapidly rising gas prices are making everyone regret purchasing lumbering vehicles that drink too much unleaded gas. Until now, if you wanted a small four-seat car with some style, the default choice was a Mini. And that was great, because the Mini Cooper S in particular is a fantastic car to drive, seats four (or two in much greater comfort) and offers decent luggage space with the rear seats folded. Best of all, it's perfect for parking and maneuvering tight city gaps. While a Smart ForTwo is better in both regards, you could use a Mini as your only car. But what makes the Fiat cool is that there aren't a million of them on the street. Until the 500 starts selling by the hundred thousand, it's cool because it's a great alternative to the Mini, without being a Mini.

Confession #18: Small Cars Part 2 – Is this a country for super-small SUV?

2011 Mini Cooper S All4 Countryman
(Mini USA photo)

I walked past a Mini Countryman the other day. It was a strange sight in a snow-covered parking lot in Boston, mostly filled by weather-beaten small domestics, Saabs, Subarus, Volvos, and the occasional Audi A5 or Q5 that has somehow managed to stay cleaner than everything else.

There are even some standard Minis parked there and even then, the Countryman doesn’t blend in quite right, and not because this example looked pristine under the dim sunlight of a freezing January afternoon. It’s not small like a Mini or even another small hatch. But compared to the muddy Ford Explorer planted a few spaces away, it’s miniscule, no pun intended.

2010 Volkswagen Golf 3-door
(Volkswagen photo)

What never quite clicked with the Countryman and me was this: You buy a Mini because it’s compact, and you buy a small SUV/crossover either because it’s smaller than a big one or it’s all you can afford.

The Countryman is small. But at more than four meters (or 13 feet) long, it’s about the length of a Volkswagen Golf. And it’s at least 12 inches longer than the normal Mini, so it’s firmly into the “normal size” of a modern car.

Is it the normal length of an SUV? Hardly.

Confession #8: Ugliness loves company-- at Honda

First there was the Acura ZDX, which I've blamed the existence of on the BMW X6.

Now Honda has shot itself again with the release of the Honda Accord Crosstour, which automags are ready to rag at this point.

There is a reasonable business case for this one. Toyota has burdened the world with the hideous Venza, and Nissan put its toothy Murano out for the world to see as well. Companies think people in these cash-conscious and un-bling times still want unnecessary vehicles. Why would anyone buy an Accord Crossdresser for similar money as the far more practical Honda Pilot, or the cheaper CR-V? And why would you pass up the Toyota Highlander for the Venza, which has two fewer seats, is uglier and gets worse fuel economy?

Honda doesn't understand, like a number of other automakers this year, that the world doesn't want hatchbacks with funny names and bulbous details. What upscale customers want is something European. Something like the Honda Accord Tourer. But that's coming next year. As an Acura TSX wagon. I'll wait for that one.