Looking for SMART car information

Hi

I test drove one and immediately ruled it out. It rode rough and the steering wheel is not adjustable--in my case it rubbed against my legs constantly.

For highway driving they dont get as good of fuel efficiency as some other slightly larger cars - much because of their poor aerodynamics. But that's not what they're designed for. They're designed to be used mostly in the city where they do fairly well.
I suggest you compare them to other light offerings from Honda and Toyota. I think you'll find that for a few hundred pounds you get a lot more car for the money and perhaps as good or better mileage.

Saw this at Quartzsite two years ago.




Bill

Lots of smart car discussions over on the Escapees Heavy Duty Truck Forum as a number of us carry smarts on our trucks.

We bought our first smart in early 2006 (gray market conversion) and our second in 2011. We have put over 30k on each of them. Yes, the ride is a bit choppy due to the short wheelbase. Depending on tires the ride can be harsh as well, easily corrected with the right tire choices.

A bit of a caveat, my other car is a 17 year old BMW Z3, and the first smart replaced a Dodge Ram, so we have not had a car with a "normal" ride, other than occasional rentals, in many years.

Would not want to drive the smart all day on the interstate, but it cruises right along at 80 MPH with no problems, and a 1 or 2 hour drive is no problem at all. A bit susceptible to cross winds much like old VW Beatles.

The smart is our primary vehicle for six months of the year in Arizona and the DWs only car at home in the summer and we are very happy with it.

My niece has one for her daily driver and hated it. Said it seemed to bounce from truck rut to truck rut on the road. The wheel base was too narrow.

Life is to short to drive an ugly car

ScottG wrote:
For highway driving they dont get as good of fuel efficiency as some other slightly larger cars - much because of their poor aerodynamics. But that's not what they're designed for. They're designed to be used mostly in the city where they do fairly well.
I suggest you compare them to other light offerings from Honda and Toyota. I think you'll find that for a few hundred pounds you get a lot more car for the money and perhaps as good or better mileage.

Speak for yourself. My 2009 smart fortwo Passion is rated 33/city, 41/hwy. Going from Olympia to Portland on I-5 I got 51 mpg out of it, and that was before I had the cruise control installed.

A smart car is basically a "city car". It is narrow in width, is short in length, and there is not a lot of travel in the suspension. No, the car is not a touring car.

It is perfect for an RVer who does not need (or want) a 4 passenger car. It weighs 1,800 lbs (US), has a computer-controlled 5-speed manual transmission, no clutch pedal, and has no speed/distance restrictions when flat towing. With some vehicles you're not supposed to exceed a certain speed limit and others must stop every 300-500 miles to run the engine for 5 minutes.

For a fulltime RVer like me it is a grocery-getter. It keeps the rain off of my head. I can't feel the car behind my Class C motorhome - not even after (actually) standing on the motorhome's brake pedal at 50 MPH. There was no supplemental braking on the car when I did that.

Other than a standard hitch-based towbar with all the options needed for safe towing, a smart car needs a $20 battery disconnect switch added - as recommended by the owners manual for flat towing. See the link in my signature for pictures.

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I'm sure John & Angela will show up here soon enough to trumpet the trailer that they use for their mini smog monster.... er, smart CDI :B

gotsmart wrote:

ScottG wrote:
For highway driving they dont get as good of fuel efficiency as some other slightly larger cars - much because of their poor aerodynamics. But that's not what they're designed for. They're designed to be used mostly in the city where they do fairly well.
I suggest you compare them to other light offerings from Honda and Toyota. I think you'll find that for a few hundred pounds you get a lot more car for the money and perhaps as good or better mileage.

Speak for yourself. My 2009 smart fortwo Passion is rated 33/city, 41/hwy. Going from Olympia to Portland on I-5 I got 51 mpg out of it, and that was before I had the cruise control installed.

A smart car is basically a "city car". It is narrow in width, is short in length, and there is not a lot of travel in the suspension. No, the car is not a touring car.

It is perfect for an RVer who does not need (or want) a 4 passenger car. It weighs 1,800 lbs (US), has a computer-controlled 5-speed manual transmission, no clutch pedal, and has no speed/distance restrictions when flat towing. With some vehicles you're not supposed to exceed a certain speed limit and others must stop every 300-500 miles to run the engine for 5 minutes.

For a fulltime RVer like me it is a grocery-getter. It keeps the rain off of my head. I can't feel the car behind my Class C motorhome - not even after (actually) standing on the motorhome's brake pedal at 50 MPH. There was no supplemental braking on the car when I did that.

Other than a standard hitch-based towbar with all the options needed for safe towing, a smart car needs a $20 battery disconnect switch added - as recommended by the owners manual for flat towing. See the link in my signature for pictures.

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I'm sure John & Angela will show up here soon enough to trumpet the trailer that they use for their mini smog monster.... er, smart CDI :B

Yeah, John and Angela will most likely chime in here soon. The wife and I recently test drove a '14 model/year Smart and, while it was a short test drive, it was kind of informative as to the peppiness of the car, how it handled around corners, acceleration, and more. Yep, it's a bit harsh but, you know all this going into a vehicle like this. Not to mention, when was the last time anyone was in a small car that rode nice?

As for mileage, the '14 we tested was recently purchased by a neighbor and, he's done many, many tank fulls that hovered in the 42-47 mpg range. I'm 6' 2 1/2" and, hover around 240 lbs. The wife is not a small woman and we both fit in that thing with room left over. John and Angelas CDI units hover in the 70 mpg range.
Scott

OMG. We are smart car famous. I'm not sure thats a good thing but what the heck, I've been known for worse. :)

We kinda like quarky cars so we each drive one. Our mileage is about half and half highway city. We do longer trips as well and we enjoy the cars. Ours are convertibles so kinda fun. Smarts handle well over all and are lotsa fun on mountain roads. Some folks who do lots of highway commuting select different tires than the high mileage continentals. Kinda makes it a cornering machine, having said that we are happy with the performance the way it is.

One thing many have a hard time getting past is the standard transmission that most think is an automatic. They feel it is a jerky automatic transmission when in fact it is a very smooth manual that clutches and shifts automatically. Many are surprised to find it has a clutch, mostly cause it doesn't have a clutch pedal. :)

Ours are CDI diesels but the gassers have a little more power. The Electrics are amazing for power. All depends what you need I guess. The gassers can also tow a little more. 900 vice 660 pounds (european spec)

Smarts tow fine four down and the vast majority tow that way. We prefer to tow on a trailer for personal reasons that most don't find important. Backing up, no road miles while towing etc.

We are in year 10 with our smarts and hope they hold on for years to come.

Cheers.