Driving Italian Style Part 2

Two weeks ago the company’s lease on our old car expired and we were told to order a new car. I hated to give up the old one since it was sturdy and heavy. Driving it, I felt like I really had some protection against collisions and crashes. It was a stick shift, which I had no problem driving, although living in the U.S. I usually drove an automatic transmission. I was looking forward to a new car, a clean slate. The company offers the car as a bonus but xxx dollars are subtracted every month for personal use. We got a specific car allotment and we chose a FIAT Croma because it was reputed to be a good car and we did not have to pay that much out of pocket. If we wanted another BMW, we could have had to pay something like 2-4 thousand out of pocket.


The best thing about the new car is the standard automatic transmission. This is quite rare in Italy. I adore it!

The only option we bought was the electronic fold in mirrors. This is a great thing when you have to fit into really tight spaces. The speakers are nice, the car sits nice and high up, it has quite a few interesting standard perks too:

1. The rear view mirror dims automatically so there is no glare from the lights behind you.
2. Built in sunshades in the back seats.
3. Built in cooler that uses the air conditioning in the summer.
4. Cruise control
5. Some controls in the steering wheel
6. Laptop compartment in the storage area.
7. Parking assist

*All in all we are happy with the car except for the fact that is it quite a gas-guzzler, more than our old Honda and old Jeep Grand Cherokee, if you can believe that.

On a side note, we took a weekend trip to Florence to test the car out and it drove quite well indeed. I have some issues with the way my husband drives as it is much more aggressive than I am used to and much faster than I am used to also. I try to sit back and relax but it’s hard at 200 kph.

The strange key.


My husband's lead foot.


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