Published June 30, 2005 in issue 0426 of The Hook

"It's my first new car," says Maurie Sutton, 36, a PhD candidate at UVA's Curry School. "I love the color-- slate gray-- and I got a free sunroof, so yay for Saturn."

Night driving is a pleasure in its own right, she says. "The dash is very cool. It's chrome and white-- as cool as the Volkswagen dash."

Sutton bought her ride last New Year's Eve, and, appropriately, her resolution was to keep her new baby clean. How's that going?

"I've been doing well considering small child and small child's friends," she jokes, pointing to a Sprite stain on the rear seat, courtesy of 8-year-old daughter Lauren (or a pal).

There's one thing this single mom won't be doing: speeding. "It has no pickup, so you never get a speeding ticket," she laughs. "Which is okay for us because there's no reason to speed."

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