arTalk

With the city gearing
up for this month's
North American
International Auto Show,
we started wondering
who drives what around
town. Here, we ask
nine local personalities
what drives them.

WRITTEN BY MEGAN SWOYER

driver Marc Metzger, Farmington Hills

driver Shelley Roberts, Birmingham

driver Stan Stein, Bloomfield Hills

driver Caral Snyder, West Bloomfield

CEO, Telecom Management Resources,
Farmington Hills
current wheels Lexus SW, silver
dream car He owns it — a 1998
Porsche Boxster. With 13,000 miles
logged, the sporty black vehicle provides
a sense of freedom for Metzger. "It's a
fun car, especially because it's a convert-
ible," he says. "It gives me an opportu-
nity to go out and think about things.
I drive it Up North a couple of times a
year and in the Dream Cruise. In it, I
can really enjoy our beautiful state."

executive director, the Community
House, Birmingham
current wheels BMW Xi. "I just really
like it."
dream car "I have no other aspira-
tions except for a 1978 BMW that was
silver with a red-leather interior," says
Roberts. "I drove it for 10 years."

executive vice president, Weber
Shandwick Worldwide, Birmingham
current wheels Cadillac CTS. "It looks
and drives like a dream," says Stein.
dream car "It's not a car at all, but a
Gulfstream V with a pilot and crew
available 24-7," Stein says. "Well, if the
dream car had to be a vehicle with four
wheels, make it a Cadillac XLR-V."

executive assistant, Little British Car
Co., Farmington Hills
current wheels Chrysler 300, metal-
lic blue. "I love the way the Chrysler
300 body looks," says Snyder. "It was
different from all the other cars when
we were looking to purchase a new
car. And I would never drive or own a
Hummer or an
— they're too big
and use too much gas."
dream car 1957 Ford Thunderbird, tur-
quoise with a white interior. "I just love
the lines and the style of the car — it's a
true classic.

driver Denise Thal, Ann Arbor
vice-president for business operations
and CFO, the Henry Ford, Dearborn
current wheels Ford Freestyle. "The
Freestyle is a very versatile [crossover
SUIT] that can seat up to seven people
or seat fewer people and carry a lot of
stuff," says Thal.
dream car Volvo C70 convertible with
a manual transmission (shown above).
"But by the time all of my kids [ages 10,
17 and 20] are out of the house, I'll be
too old to drive a car like that!"

B 1 6 •

JANUARY 2008 •

IN platinum

driver Rick Loewenstein, West
Bloomfield, advancement director,
Cranbrook Educational Community,
Bloomfield Hills
current wheels Cadillac CTS, midnight
blue. "It's a great car," says Loewenstein.
"It's quite a change from my years of
driving a GMC Envoy."
dream car A manual-transmission,
stripped-down Jeep. "The doors and top
would be removed, of course," he says.
"Maybe I'll splurge when I turn 50!"

driver Jake. Abraham, Royal Oak

executive chef, Sweet Georgia Brown,
Detroit
current wheels Chevy Corsica (10 years
old)
dream car "If I had my choice in cars,
it would be a Corvette," says Abraham.
And he would never drive anything
that's "banana yellow."

driver David Lubin, Bloomfield Hills
president of Lubin, Schulz & Skocela
Architecture/Interior Design,
Bloomfield Hills
current wheels Jaguar MC. "The design
is sophisticated, aerodynamic, and the
car is powerful. It handles well," says
Lubin.
dream car "It's yet to be designed and
built," he says. "It would incorporate
concept-car designs and technologies
that are on the drawings and in the
imaginations of car designers."

driver Jeff Less 'on, West Bloomfield

sports anchor, VVVVJ Newsradio 950
current wheels S aab 93 convertible,
silver. "It gets me through the snow and
ice in winter," says esson. And, jokes
the single driver, "the convertible is a
babe magnet in the su mmer. It must
be the convertible — co uldn't be the
driver."
dream car "I don't dream about cars."