It took 8 weeks for my 17 year-old son to get up the courage to ask the big question: "Dad, can I drive the BMW tonight?" My wife had Skyped me a warning earlier in the day so I had ample time to prepare all of my "No Way" responses. Then I decided....why not. What could possibly go wrong?When I arrived home I surprised everyone with my "Yes" response, followed by the usual retort of, "Clean your room first." I also said we had to go on a test drive first so I could explain the basics and have him get a feel for the powerful regenerative breaking, smooth acceleration and superb handling. He did very well on the short test and I felt comfortable handing over the keys for the night. Of course he got the additional lecture of: Slow Down; Noone besides your girlfriend in the car; Come straight home after the game. I'm sure all he heard was: Blah, blah, blah!
It turns out that my wife made dinner reservations that night so I wasn't home to watch my ActiveE leave under someone else's guidance. I did get to drive the Honda Civic Hybrid for the night. The first thing I noticed was that the car handled very poorly. The steering felt loose and the first sharp corner was a challenge as I expected more out of the car. You could say that I am now officially spoiled by the legendary BMW handling.
We arrived home late to find the ActiveE tucked away and charging in its usual garage bay. A quick inspection shows no visible damage! The next morning I asked my son why he wanted to drive the car that night. His response was: "Because it's cool, Dad.".....I can't argue with that!
