Along with 3D, (awesome) 80s remakes and a few other things, it looks like 2010 might be the year of the small car. I admit it, I like small cars. I loved my 1st gen MR2 and I would almost kill to have it back. About the closest they have now would be the Mini (we aren’t simply talking about size, as there are other small vehicles out there, but they simply aren’t nearly as much fun to drive), but it looks as if all of that might soon be changing. The Citroen DS3, never to be released stateside, shares the same power-plant as the Mini and should a street-legal version of the rally-prepped DS3 ever hit production, I believe the Cooper S just might end up sucking tail-pipe.
But enough of that pipe-dream, let’s discuss a small performance beast that may make its way across the pond. Once again, it is a European manufacturer who claims the vehicle was made for the American market (Detroit, where are you? I don’t want SUVs, I want rocket-powered go-karts!). Audi is supposed to announce the A1 at the Geneva show and I must say, I am a bit anxious to see this. It should be priced along par with the Mini and offer similar (hopefully better) performance and amenities. To see just how much VW/Audi plans to take on the Mini, take a look here. And should the A1 prove to be successful, style-wise, I would expect to see a new batch of A1 inspired Rabbits or Golfs gracing the VW showroom floors after 2012, provided we survive 12-20-2012 or whatever day it is that the world is suppose to end.
My current vehicle isn’t old, but in moving to Seattle I would be speaking untruths if I said that my eyes had not been swayed by the sexy stylings of many of the smaller, more nimble, vehicles I spot scurrying about. Reconciled to the endeavor of acquiring a BMW 1 -series, post graduation, it seems a little silly to be looking at vehicles now when I intend to look for one in 4 or so more years, but at times it gets hard when my compact Jetta starts to feel more like a full-sized boat.