Joy Ride

Cadillac, a top choice among seniors, has been pushing a performance image lately in a series of television commercials. My favorite featured the punch line: "When you turn the car on, does it return the favor?"

The trouble with buying a car because it’s fun, or even sexy, is that the thrill wears off. Over years of testing hundreds of new cars, I’ve found only a few that could bring me joy every morning. I’m here to tell you about one such car, and it’s not a Cadillac.

I just spent a week in the redesigned-for-2008 Audi TT Roadster. It made me smile every day I drove it.

Someone should do a gpm (grins per mile) rating. This one would be at or near the top of any such listing.

The Audi TT appeals first to the eye. Looking at the fire-engine red exterior of my tester, there’s a hint of a mid-1950s Porsche Speedster. The TT looks something like that, but this year its previously soft lines have been hardened a bit, its grille made larger and more menacing.

Cartoonists know how to create character lines that say "cute" and ones that say "frightening." The TT designers have created, for 2008, lines that exclaim, "I’m cute but I can slap you silly."

This is a two-seater, as many "fun" cars are. Our tester had a six-speed manual transmission that proved a joy to use. Unlike the heavy-duty units in many performance cars, this one coupled a light clutch with a short-throw shifter.

The TT, like all Audis, has all-wheel drive. There is no safer setup and this Audi was as at-home on wet roads as dry ones, dirt as well as paved. The TT returns 17 mpg in the city and 24 on the highway.

The six-cylinder engine pumps out 250 horsepower. With a special suspension system that stiffens or relaxes with driving conditions, this car can handle any curve at a speed of your choice.