Friends, don't bother posting a reply to the stupid "sportsfan" post below because it just elevates it on this board. Perhaps when mightyjlr wakes from his Rip Van Winkle sleep it will be deleted. How empty must a person's life be to have nothing better to do than to go to some other car owners' forum and talk smack?

Rather than trade taunts with some moron, lemme relate just a few instances that happened to me this week:

1. Some guy in a pickup came weaving and racing up behind me in traffic, finally pulled even -- just so his passenger could give me a huge grinning thumbs-up

2. In Louisville, stuck in rush hour on the interstate, a gal in her 30s motioned to roll down the window; I did and she leaned out and yelled across the lane, "I love your car!"

3. In Nashville, a gent in a BMW admired it and started a chat while we waited for the light

4. In Indiana, after dark at a gas station, a blonde in her 20s, filling up a mid-90s Beemer, started a conversation about the Xfire, recognized it from the commercial, went on about how "cute" it was, then apologized, saying, "oh, I forgot, you're not supposed to tell a guy his car is cute..."

5. In Chicago, a lawyer with a T-bird convertible who had seen me on the road raved about how cool the car looks.

6. In a suburb, I came out of a wine store; one of the managers and a customer had been standing there for 10 minutes just waiting to see who owned the car, and wanted to talk about its specs

On the interstate, car after car, from a convertible full of blondes to racer-boy Pontiacs, from Lexus sports coupes to a red STS with running lights, raced up to ogle, or challenging to play.

I didn't get this car to impress others, I got it because I liked it. Despite a few quirks and first-production-run foibles, I get a kick every time I walk to the garage. I don't confuse my identity with my car, I don't define myself by what I drive, I'm someone who (notwithstanding the vintage menagerie I'm accumulating) has always had extremely functionalist vehicles. So this is all new. Obviously this car pleases and stimulates others as well as me. It probably also threatens the insecure.

There is no debate over the good looks; regardless of other criticisms, every single review in print raves about the killer styling. I admire well-conceived industrial design. Plenty enough else in this material world is ugly, why not put some art on the road? But car also handles like an extension of my body, gives me unprecedented maneuverability, is overall quiet and comfy. As for "recycling" Benz, proven technology is good technology, and that's what makes this car affordable for many. That is a good thing not a bad thing.

Dissing the Crossfire 'cuz people think it looks good is beyond dumb. In an era of road rage and incivility, anything that starts pleasant conversations with complete strangers is a plus.

Like they say. Drive & Love.