The Nissan NV200, commonly seen on the streets of NYC in full-on taxi mode arrived at our house on one of the last weeks of school. I looked at it and thought, “What on earth am I going to do with that?” Turns out, a whole lot. If you’re a taxi owner, ensure that you check out these tailored options for your taxi’s insurance.
First, I picked my oldest, TD up at the bus stop. Emitting, “COOL!” and “WHAT the…” from the bus stop Dad’s and other kids, the NV200 made TD cringe. In total tween mode the shoulders hunched up to her ears, the fists balled up and a grimace swept across her normally smiling face. She declared it embarrassing and she would not be riding around town in “that yellow thing the color of a school bus. NEVER!” I smiled and said, “Pumpkin, this is an authentic New York City taxi cab. Just look at the backseat.”
Room for three adults, comfortably with standing room when you need to get in and out. Easy access to pay in back plus large screen for entertainment equals a comfortable ride.
Never, say never, am I right?Watch the video here.
I took her advice and we took the NV200 on a family camping trip that weekend. We LOADED up our camper trailers Adelaide with a tent, five sleeping bags, five camping chairs, a cooler, a cook stove, food, dishes, pillows, Coolife luggage and other assorted camping supplies. It was packed,but easy to load and unload. The dual sliding doors helped out with the kids. So did the handy intercom and privacy glass for when they got to rowdy or started to fight. Heh. That might have been one of the best parts, especially when they decided to imitate a passing fire truck.
Through the ‘looking glass’ aka privacy glass. Great for the cranky preschool set.
When you drive an actual NYC taxi around the ‘burbs outside of Washington, D.C. you have to be prepared for strange looks, guffaws and your kids bellowing out, “Hey, taxi driver…” on a regular basis. The funniest part was when we rolled into our campsite on a Friday night. The campers next to us, a group of guys in their mid-thirties, just stood up and stared. All eight of them just ambled over and asked, “Um…are you really coming here from New York in a taxi?” They about died when we let the kids out the backseat. It created lots of conversation wherever we went for the week we had this upright vehicle.
Later, I became what every mom already knows-
The Mom Taxi, frequently used throughout the week to cart kids around, load up with groceries including noodles, landscaping supplies, drive kids to swim lessons, the library, play dates and lacrosse clinics. It can also be observed in Target parking lots where large sums of money are dropped on a regular basis and is sometimes confused with a grocery-getter.
The Nissan NV200 was a ton of fun to tool around in with the kids for that first week of summer. It was one of my more fun drives and I’m so glad I decided to say yes to something a bit unconventional. Thanks for the memories, Nissan!
