Footdown
No thanks to tanks
School runs might be less stressful if parents bought the right car for the job. We won't forget how one mum, who is probably still referred to as 'that woman' in parts of the southside, tried to three-point turn her seven-seater 'tank' on the Tai Tam Road. Stalled across both lanes, she realised that she hadn't the road vision, nerve or Popeye arms for the manoeuvre and soon earned a horn chorus in tailbacks from Tai Tam Gap to Redhill. A child in the back seemed pink with rage, as if to say: 'Footdown was right about smaller cars for short runs here.'
So, unless you have lots of children and maids or are running a block car pool, we recommend you look at compact rides with lots of safety, such as Volkswagen Golfs (from HK$179,000), Polos (from HK$138,000) and Peugeot 308s (from HK$239,900), all of which scoot to school. Your young may grow out of the back seats in the Mini Cooper (from HK$212,800) or the Fiat 500 (HK$129,800), so look at the funky interior space of the Daihatsu Materia (HK$153,630, and the Fiat Grande Punto (HK$179,800). The Italian runabout seems rare in Hong Kong but its steering proved mum-friendly in the Mid-Levels, the decor's airy and, vitally, it has a five-star safety rating. The Smart ForTwo (HK$139,800) has a turning circle of 8.7 metres, and more legroom than you'd think, but its safety is four star and its gearbox can jerk until you learn its rhythm. The Mercedes-Benz A-Class (right, centre, from HK$224,000) has five-star safety and is an easy drive. The new Toyota Prius 250 (top right, from HK$249,315) looks swisher than its predecessors, drives well and, like the new Volkswagen Polo (top) won a five-star safety rating in European crash tests (below right) last week, but we think the 2.5-litre Volvo C30 T5 (below, HK$319,000) is still the ultimate school-runner: it also has five-star safety, but with an interior designed by women who seem to understand family drivers and a long glass door that's a boon in reversing amid the mill of kids outside school gates. Renaults score well in European safety tests too.
We have yet to be convinced of the school-run safety of the affordable but light-looking Subaru R1 (HK$92,130) and R2 (HK$87,150) ranges that are said to be popular with housewives, and vans that require beepers and mirrors rather than a glance over the shoulder for reversing. Ditto those sold with camera parking devices to see around their bulk. We see many of these multi-seaters with just one small passenger in the morning and wonder if the car owner is getting value for money at such seat occupancy rates. Sports utility vehicles give you a high view of the road but can be hard to turn in tight lanes and models beyond the Lexus RX450h (left) now seem so 2007. And if you're upgrading your car for the new school term, you might check how your young view cars: there's no point in turning up in a Hummer when your son's trying to impress a teenie-greenie Prius-hugger.
A few parents might have already learned the importance of time management on school runs this week, not only in getting there, but allowing for the double-parking and the dithering of other parents at drop-offs. On the bus to our Tai Po office every day we see too many parents fail to strap their young in properly, and still allow a movie screen and stereo system to flicker or blare as they drive.
School runs require a cool head and more than the usual stopping distance from the car in front. Jerk the brakes and crunch the clutch too much after breakfast and you could be in for a clean-up in the back.
And do slow down near school gates, particularly in the Mid-Levels, where children still dart into the road or around the back of your car, sometimes immersed in an iPod.
You might also prevent delays by buying a pair of jump leads in case you came home tired late at night and left the lights on, as we have, and monitor the tyre pressures for slow flats. Oil checks are good, and we recommend filling up with petrol when the tank's quarter empty in case you have to idle in traffic or have to leave the office in a rush.
Membership of the Hong Kong Automobile Association or your dealer's recovery service can also be a boon in the New Territories. Keep their emergency number handy, along with a bottle of water, a couple of power bars, an umbrella and a pair of genuine Hong Kong taxi driver's gloves, WD40 and a sickbag for emergencies. Above all, let's treat school-run mums with respect on the road. They have a hard job.
