It is said that donning BMW's 3 Series suit can miraculously transform a driver into Robocop, with the way it offers a sense of invincibility during the daily hustle.
Likewise, a Landy Defender brings out a sudden urge to grow a five o' clock shadow and deliver foreign aid to darkest Africa.
Certain cars have ways of doing strange things to people. A Lotus Exige can turn the most mediocre driver into a descendent of Ayrton Senna, and wafting around in Lexus' flagship LS460 limo makes you, the driver feel as though you've popped a valium. In a good way.
Cars' different flavours is part of the magic of motoring, and it's the reason why the world's roads aren't occupied by trains of identical beige transport pods.
So, by now you've seen the picture of Honda's Jazz attached to this page and you're wondering where I'm going with this. What could such a responsible little runabout do to one's road going psyche?
Well, have you ever heard of the comic book hero Super Good Samaritan Man? That's me when behind the wheel of Motoring's new long-term test Honda, and within seconds of turning its ignition key I was a better human being.
Not only did I let that little old lady trundle over the crosswalk in front of me while a team of HiAce bullies impatiently honked hooters behind me, but I actually stepped into the road, hand out halting traffic with a pumped-up chest, imaginary cape flapping in the breeze to ensure her safe journey. Well not really, but I did think about it.
Never before has a car made me feel like eating muesli, going for a 10km jog and then separating my recyclables into neat piles of paper, metal and plastic. It's almost unexplainable, but I'll try.
Firstly, the seating position is high and proud, and combined with those tall windows you kind of feel like the Pope on display in there. There's no way to hide from the public's prying eyes so you just need to smile widely. I like the middle armrests too, as these are normally only fitted to much larger cars.
The Jazz's little 1.5-litre petrol engine is also a dainty little thing that unassumingly ticks away under that snub-nosed bonnet. You can try your damndest to rev some anger into it but it'll refuse to ruffle its hair all the way to 7 000rpm, and so tranquil is its nature that it actually feels as though it's converting petrol into butterflies as it goes.
Not to say that it's an underperformer. The Jazz nips along with the best of traffic and it's surprisingly engaging to drive, although I must give most of the credit for that to the 5-speed manual gearbox.
Although I've never fired one, editor Droppa tells me that the Jazz's gear changes feel like a well-oiled bolt-action rifle and I know what he means. The lever's throw is of perfect distance and weight, and each cog slips neatly into place with a satisfying click. All manuals should be this precise.
Pity then that given its existing ratios, it really could use a sixth gear. Highway cruising does bring the revs up quite high in fifth.
The Jazz's steering is also noteworthy for its lightness. Twirling the wheel around is as easy as pie and negotiating busy parking lots with tight spaces is almost as fun as buzzing around a gymkhana course. Some enthusiasts dislike over-assisted steering, myself included, but in a car like this it's no problem at all.
The interior's also filled with clever ideas that I'm sure have made other carmakers say: "Why didn't we think of that?"
The back seats fold flat, as they do in most other hatchbacks, but the bottoms also hinge upwards to create a floor-to-ceiling stowage space behind the front seats. Genius. A fully grown bicycle will stand up back there (sans front wheel) with space to spare.
The dash is also neatly laid out and it's a cinch to operate frequently used items like radio and climate controls. There's a cute little backlit LCD pod that sticks out towards the driver that reads temperature and fan settings, and is focussed at the driver only.
Variety is the spice of motoring and there's a car out there to suit every personality. But, if one day the world's drivers were forced to become more responsible and choose only one car that balances perfectly wants and needs, I'd nominate the Honda Jazz. Of course, as a male I'd ask that the seating position and roof height be lowered somewhat to make it look cooler.
Now excuse me... I'm off to help an old lady across the road.