Cool Car

Since I lease my cars, and never for more than 36 months, I get to try out quite a variety of them. And it's funny -- the most expensive aren't always the best -- or at least my favorites. The WORST car I've had over the past 21 years, since I've had "luxury" cars -- was the Hyundai Genesis. The car was a total piece of crap, and worse, the company pretended to be higher end. They'd constantly call and cheerfully ask if all was ok, like they were Lexus, and when I'd tell them all the problems I was having -- they'd cheerfully ignore me. I can read 10 consecutive years of Car and Driver saying Hyundais are great, and I'll never get another one. The best car I ever leased was a BMW 740 IL. Dr. Eric, who really knows cars, drove it when we went on a trip to Daytona Beach, and still talks about it. The car had everything, and was well built. Problem is, they now cost nearly $1500 per month to lease -- too much for my tastes. The best car for the money was a Mitsubishi Diamonte. I paid $299 per month, with nothing down, and the car was SMOOTH. It was the first I had with a CD player, and when I tooled down Old Cutler, sitting in leather seats and blasting the Grateful Dead -- it was car heaven. I leased it for 3 years, but ended giving it to my partner Paul's boy Alex, so I could lease a Jaguar and show off our new firm. The Jag was a piece of junk, too -- like the Hyundai, but more expensive. Well my current ride, the man sized Buick, is in the definite win column. It's comfortable, gets great mileage, and I can start it remotely -- so it's cooled off by the time I get inside. And it comes with OnStar, which is way cool. I get monthly emails telling me all about the car, and when I need service. It's a little creepy knowing I'm being monitored, and I expect one of the emails to tell me the sensors in the seat have detected I'm a fat slob and need to loose weight, but it's extremely convenient. I was just told to put a few pounds of air in 2 of my tires, and expect to be reminded to change the oil in another 3000 miles. When a major mechanical issue crops up, they call me immediately on my cell phone. Fellow lawyers with bigger egos than mine can never drive a Buick, but I really dig mine. Roll on, Shaquille mobile.