 Allow me to start by saying that I'm not a Toyota person. The idea of a Corolla doesn't appeal to me whatsoever- but my dad (as most dads would feel) thought a Corolla would be a perfect car for me as a newbie driver. I 'lucked out' when a family member sold us their car and ended up with a little Mazda 3 that turned out to be a lemon, then my second car- a 4000lb land yatcht- a 2008 V6 Convertible Sebring that I put a lot of love into and learned how to park backwards due to it's 19' length.  5 years later (without any crashes or tickets) I can say I've gained some perspective for wanting to purchase a reliable car. Still, the matter remained that I wanted a car I could have FUN in. I don't want a cage- I want an experience, something with a little luxury- after all, I have to drive it to work and school through traffic- might as well enjoy it. Well I have to say, for a limited budget this car certainly fits the bill :) so I ended up trading my old land yacht in for a 2006 Toyota Solara Convertible SLE. If I had to compare it to other cars in the way it drives, I would say it's a combination of my dad's little black convertible CLK 320 and a larger sedan. It's no rocket, so don't expect pep- but it's as smooth as butter when it drives and offers a modest amount of acceleration in traffic. The first time I smashed the gas pedal I actually heard the V6 roar! The interior isn't particularly stunning- after all it's a 2006 model. Still, it offers a nice array of creature comforts, heated front seats, loudly annoying back-up sensors, auto-climate control (that's ICE cold), auto-light shut off (in case you leave your headlights on), DRL, auto-adjusting rear-view mirrors, etc. But it lacks a proper stereo-system, and there really are no modern substitutes except for the auxillary port work-around that has to be installed with some technical know-how (thank you dad).  The biggest flaw in this car (imo) is the terrible blind-spots it has. Unless you're used to driving a convertible where the back window is often small and round, then prepare to adjust your driving style accordingly. I got used to it after a couple of days and now use my side-mirrors to navigate (along with those corner blind-spot mirrors). For some reason the designers brilliantly decided to put a raised bench seat in the back of the car and the headrests (along with any guests' heads) will ensure that you have 0 visibility when checking your back. It can be terrifying if you're not an attentive driver and try to make a lane change without triple checking your side mirrors and making a quick head-turn. But aside from that I really have no qualms with how it drives. My dad (who had driven this car for a while before trading it with me) noticed it had a bit of hesitance when it accelerated. When you hit the gas pedal, it was 1..2..*accelerates* Well he did some research and after cleaning the mass air-flow sensor, and the throttle body we both agreed it accelerates incredibly well now. It's very responsive!! I have to be careful because I don't even notice how fast I'm going- it drives so smoothly and accelerates so quickly. It's a far-cry from the clunky-chunky toss around the Sebring is. I'm so pleased with this car :) it's at 125,000 and since the previous owner was a meticulous guy he had already replaced the timing belt, water pump, convertible top, and got the recall on the dash which is now a new leather dash. He's definitely a keeper, and I feel very confident and safe driving this car. Not to mention the top is mechanic so there's NO noise and fuss when it goes down! <3 How great is that?? Much better than the expensive hydraulic top the Sebring has (which popped like an old man getting out of bed). One other issue (that has since been taken care of) was that these models' tops have been known to leak over time due to the piping in the trunk breaking  that serves as a gutter for water to run off the top when it rains. My dad spent $200 getting the top sewn up by a upholsterer. He took it to the shop with the back bench removed and the guy went in there and fixed it all up. So I would strongly suggest that before you buy one of these cars (especially if it's over 100,000) make sure it was very well taken care of! That the dash was replaced, and that the timing belt and water-pump were already replaced thus sparing you the extra headache down the line. Prepare to possibly repair that top though as it's a design flaw of the Solara in whole. Expect to spend $500-$1000 fixing it up in general on top of the sticker price because of it's age, including adding to the sound system and making it modern-day functional. Also tinting is a MUST- the leather is prone to cracking and the leather on the door-panels is prone to warping.