MY OBSESSION WITH fast, stylish cars began with the humiliation my sisters and I suffered at school, when our parents collected us in an orange Austin Maxi. This uncool ride should never have been inflicted on hip teenagers, but it's a lasting reminder, as the new school year begins this week, that cars can be key to a classroom cred.
These days, a sports utility vehicle doesn't cut the mustard with Hong Kong's environmentally conscious younger set, yet an older Volvo is hardly cool either.
Saloon cars might also be too small for all your children and their friends, domestic helpers and those huge school bags. So, given the time you can spend in morning and afternoon traffic, you might consider a wagon that's fun to drive and easy to park - and won't let your young down at breaktime. The wagons winning the most peer approval include the Jaguar X-Type Estate (HK$379,000), which evokes Big Cat oomph, the stylish BMW 320i Touring (HK$$358,000), and the cost-effective and chic Mazda6 Sport Wagon (HK$249,900).
Then there's this Saab 9-5 2.3T Vector Wagon, with its jet-manufacturing heritage, sleek exterior, huge boot and phenomenal 220-brake-horsepowered turbo engine. Not as ubiquitous in Hong Kong as Mercedes-Benz, the Saab 9-5 wagon appeals to the teen desire to be stylish, yet unique.
It's also the kind of car in which you can cut loose, as soon as you've dropped your young ones off. Put your foot down, as I did, and you can stop being the unpaid chauffeur and feel a desirable rebel again, all the way home. This wagon shows that you're a mum with oomph - with its beefy, low-profile tyres and an aggressively face-lifted exterior that hints at the Swedish marque's aeronautical roots - without seeming old fashioned.
The interior is stylish enough, with swoopingly curved doors and matching handles, chrome strips and two-tone leather sports seats. I'm used to the quirks of Saab design, but if you're fresh from a rival make, you might take a while fiddling around the dashboard for the centrally located key hole. I can't resist a quick flick at the integrated cupholder, which pops out and extends on cue. That's so Saab.
The steering's light precision is impressive. Given the wagon's squat design, I was expecting to have to battle with a heavy wheel, but you could almost drive this wagon with the tips of your fingers. Its balance seems better, due to the stiff shock absorbers and the thickened stabiliser bars that used to come only with the Aero models. The multi-link rear axle has independent suspension and three links for each wheel for better handling on corners.