Next up the line, at $22,439, is the 2.5 SL, which includes leather trim, power driver's seat, trip computer, automatic-on headlamps and self-dimming mirror, as well as a Bose audio system with eight speakers and six-disk CD changer.
Bobo had his own car seat, for trips into Manhattan.
The whole seat-gripping trip takes just over an hour, which is even quicker than the train.
In pitch-darkness I tried to fumble my way to a seat, but tripped over some invisible piece of deco ornamentation and went sprawling down the aisle.
That subscription is credited toward fares, which start at $8 a seat for trips within a 10-mile zone and go up to $589 for a monthly pass within the largest travel zone, which extends up to 75 miles from the pickup location.
The chartered rides max out at 54 seats per trip.
A back-seat road-trip video centering on Ms. Hutchins's young daughter furthers the suggestion of a worldview profoundly changed by motherhood.
Since the attacks, Ms. Parsley said, Greyhound has had an increase in advanced bookings and in the number of travelers buying seats for trips of 1,000 miles and longer.
'After all these years, she must be interested in something more stimulating than advertising revenue.' Another points out: 'She's earned a fantastic amount of money, had the front row seats, the trips on Concorde, the brownstone, the chauffeur, the free clothes and more Manolo Blahniks than she could shake her foot at.
The test car was more typically equipped, with a $1,000 cold-weather package (heated front seats, folding rear seats and headlamp washers); $3,500 premium package (cruise control, moonroof, power seats, climate control, trip computer and wood trim); $1,450 leather seats; $260 foglamps; and $200 CD player.
To the Editor: Upon reading Mark Vanhoenacker's article, I immediately recalled the wonderful experience I had in my window seat on a trip to Israel.
