Mini Cooper or Minivan?

I have to take my three kids to pick up their grandmother at the airport this afternoon. I have two transportation choices: I can take my minivan (seats 7, plenty of headroom for 6'2" adults, lots of cargo space) or I could take my mother-in-law's car. But it's a little red mini-cooper.


A new mini cooper is driven off the assembly line at Santa's workshop.


That's right, my mother-in-law drives a British phone booth, tipped over, with go-cart wheels and a lawn mower engine. If you hit something, or another vehicle doesn't see and just runs you over, you'll find your coffin to be more spacious.

I won't even ride in the thing for the following reasons:

• I won't fit.
  
• I still have an ounce of self-respect and refuse to recreate the "clowns piling out of a tiny car" scene.
• I'm unnerved to be outsized by Geo Metros and Ford Escorts.

It's a moot point anyway. The "two leprechauns and a small pot of gold" seating capacity rules out the mini cooper and leaves us with the minivan option.