~DJ~ wrote:

There are some Smart cars running around Boise. I really have to wonder why anyone would buy one.

1. Rediculous price

2. UGLY

3. No room

4. UGLY

5. You can get a much nicer looking, more practical (4 passenger) sedan that gets as good or better mileage for much less money..

~DJ~ wrote:

There are some Smart cars running around Boise. I really have to wonder why anyone would buy one.

1. Rediculous price

2. UGLY

3. No room

4. UGLY

5. You can get a much nicer looking, more practical (4 passenger) sedan that gets as good or better mileage for much less money..

AlGreg wrote:

I think there is a lot of misinformation about the Smart Car. My wife has one. The price is NOT $37k. It starts at $11,590 for the Smart Pure.

AlGreg wrote:

I think there is a lot of misinformation about the Smart Car. My wife has one. The price is NOT $37k. It starts at $11,590 for the Smart Pure. This model lacks A/C and other features. My wife bought the Smart Passion that starts at $13,590. This includes A/C (with climate control), power windows, power door locks (remote), stereo with MP3 CD, sun roof, automatic transmition and many other standard features. There is also The Smart Passion Cabriolet, a convertible, that starts at $16,590. My wife's Smart is bright yellow and she ordered it without any options so her price was $13,590 plus tax, etc. It's made by Mercedes Benz, so you can be assured that it is a well built car. Someone said that it looks like a death trap. It is built around a NASCAR style safety cage and has a 4 star crash rating. Our real life gas mileage has been 43-48 mpg. We drive mostly Adirondack Mountain roads and interstates. I have a friend who regularly gets over 50 with his. He pulls his behind his Winnebago and says it makes an excellent dinghy. If you factor in the higher price for premium gas, we would be getting the equivelent of about 40 MPG with regilar.
Someone talked about not being able to fit in it without opening the sun roof. I'm 6'2", 250 lbs and I have pleanty of room. It is a very comfortable car and handles the mountain roads and interstates very well. When you are in one, it feels like a much larger car.
Someone mentioned the Chevy Volt. That will be priced (when they come out) at about $35,000. The Smart Car is here NOW and can save you a lot of money on gas. The reason that a diesel is not avalible in the USA has nothing to do with Smart not wanting to market it here. It is our government that has kept it out. It is a 2 seater so it is not for everyone, but for us it makes an excellent second car.
Ugly???? I hope I'm around when someone tells my wife that her "baby" is ugly!

Al

AlGreg wrote:

I think there is a lot of misinformation about the Smart Car. My wife has one. The price is NOT $37k. It starts at $11,590 for the Smart Pure. This model lacks A/C and other features. My wife bought the Smart Passion that starts at $13,590. This includes A/C (with climate control), power windows, power door locks (remote), stereo with MP3 CD, sun roof, automatic transmition and many other standard features. There is also The Smart Passion Cabriolet, a convertible, that starts at $16,590. My wife's Smart is bright yellow and she ordered it without any options so her price was $13,590 plus tax, etc. It's made by Mercedes Benz, so you can be assured that it is a well built car. Someone said that it looks like a death trap. It is built around a NASCAR style safety cage and has a 4 star crash rating. I realize you said NASCAR style, not NASCAR roll cage...but it definitely isn't a NASCAR cage, which is routinely subjected to crashes at 150 mph+. Level 5 is the top rating, level 4 is fine, but is this frontal, side and back or just front. There are also the immutable laws of physics when something larger and heavier crashes into a lighter body....the smaller, lighter body takes the brunt of the collision forces. Our real life gas mileage has been 43-48 mpg. We drive mostly Adirondack Mountain roads and interstates. I have a friend who regularly gets over 50 with his. He pulls his behind his Winnebago and says it makes an excellent dinghy. If you factor in the higher price for premium gas, we would be getting the equivelent of about 40 MPG with regilar.
Someone talked about not being able to fit in it without opening the sun roof. I'm 6'2", 250 lbs and I have pleanty of room.I'm 6'3", 230 lbs. and I have been in a colleague's SMART. I found the passenger seat, did not have adequate thigh length and support, consequently I wasn't comfortable. Possibly there is a difference in our body types that accounts for your comfort and my discomfort. It is a very comfortable car and handles the mountain roads and interstates very well. When you are in one, it feels like a much larger car.
Someone mentioned the Chevy Volt. That will be priced (when they come out) at about $35,000. I mentioned the Chevy Volt and I also indicated that the technology will spread, quickly I assume, considering the anticipated demand. More volume invariably means lower prices, when it comes to technology.The Smart Car is here NOW and can save you a lot of money on gas. The reason that a diesel is not avalible in the USA has nothing to do with Smart not wanting to market it here. We have the diesel SMART here and with cars like the Fit and YARIS, getting mileage figures that are probably not too far off the gas SMART and given the fact that they are 4-5 passenger , have relatively good cargo area and are also reasonably priced, I feel the advantages of the SMART are limited. Especially considering the gas SMART, not the diesel, is the only engine available. I feel the added economy of the diesel is the most advantageous feature of the SMART. It is our government that has kept it out. It is a 2 seater so it is not for everyone, but for us it makes an excellent second car.Quite right, it is a 2 door and this is a disadvantage to the Matrix, Yaris, Vibe and Fit. My colleague who drives a SMART diesel is single and uses it for work, usually in city gridlock and to pick up a few groceries. She does use if for occasional highway driving, which it does OK at, but has indicated that this is not it's forte. We have a second car, a Vibe, which as many know is a Toyota Matrix with Pontiac badging and some differences in panels. It can seat 4 comfortably, 5 is a squeeze and the cargo potential is remarkable. Gas mileage using the Cdn. Gallon which is 20 % larger than a US Gallon is 36 MPG city, 46 MPG highway. I don't know what the American gallon figures are.
A VW Jetta diesel Station wagon diesel would get mileage I would think close to the gas Smart and offers more cargo area and passenger capacity than the SMART.
The Smart is not new technology, but it is good technology. It has been around Europe for many years and it's original intent was to provide a novel, tiny car that would be a vehicle that has parking advantages in crowded European cities. IMO, it is a indirect descendant of the '50's BMW Isetta, only much improved in safety and comfort. Nothing wrong with a Smart, but I believe there are viable options out there.
Ugly???? I hope I'm around when someone tells my wife that her "baby" is ugly!

Al