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Why didn't dealers want to sell smart

alissaalissa Member Posts: 9
edited April 2014 in smart
I read this great article today and felt I had to share it with everyone here. Why does it always seem that corporate america is trying to hold back advancements in technology when it is so important to the enviroment. Well, you can read for yourself, and I for one and buying a smart car as soon as they come out, thanks to eMercedesBenz for bringing this to my attention.

http://emercedesbenz.com/Jul06/18_Mercedes_Dealers_Didnt_Want_Smart.html
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Comments

  • zeniffzeniff Member Posts: 7
    Before you are off to thank Mercedes Benz for the article, keep in mind the motives of the company who sells the vehicle. Mercedes Benz is a part of the Daimler/Chrysler Corp. Here's some articles about what one of their higher-ups had to say about global warming, pollution, etc. -- if you think you're going to 'save the world' by buying the Smart Fortwo, I think you're dead wrong:

    http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=119166

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6247371.stm?ls

    http://www.inform.kz/showarticle.php?lang=eng&id=147616
  • plektoplekto Member Posts: 3,738
    So what? All of them worship money and profits. Oh, wait - you actually believe BPs ads about acaring about trees and Toyota's ads about the Prius saving the enviroment...

    Well, you sure sound like you do. So some idiot is blathering about global warming. Big deal.

    The reality is that they don't care and cars *all* pollute and destroy our envoronment. ie - "The Prius - only two-thirds the poison of the leading brands!"

    So the only solution in my mind is to ignore the media and buy what works for me until a proper alternative like a fuel-cell comes along. The Smart is a good car because it gets motorcycle MPG and is a lot safer and drier than one as well.
  • merryruthmerryruth Member Posts: 1
    We could all get horses and erect a canopy above them to stay dry until the super environmentally safe car comes out, but I think if everyone did something better with what we have, like buying a more fuel efficient car, then it would make a difference globally. There are just too many people who don't care. If they have the money to drive it they will drive what ever they want, be damned with the environment. Myself, I will opt for doing a small part. I'm really interested in a car that I like...and will be more fuel efficient for two reasons..our environment and my pocket book.
  • joe131joe131 Member Posts: 998
    a motorcycle as slow as the smart would probable get 3 times better mileage than smart
  • plektoplekto Member Posts: 3,738
    Considering a motorcycle as "slow" as the Smart would weigh 1/10th as much, that's hardly surprizing.

    Now, true, many people will go on and on about the car being small, slow, and so on - but you know what? It's faster 0-60 than my 4-Runner(it gets to 50mph quickly and then crawls up to 70mph - 50-70mph takes at least 10 seconds). I can easily drive the Smart, because it looks to drive simmilarly, though probably faster than my truck - lol.

    And it's infinately faster than my old Dodge Colt I had a decade ago. 0-60 in VW Bug times. Yet I drove that car quite well in city traffic. Fun, too, since like most 3 and 4 cylinder cars, all of the get up and go is at slower speeds. With the implimentation of rev limiters, flogging the little thing will be really fun ;)

    Plusm if you look at the weight, it's as heavy as a mid 90s Civic hatchback. They just mounted the engine in the rear like a Porsche and got rid of the big rear end and the useless engine compartment. All you really need is about a foot of dedicated crumple-space up front to be just as safe, despite what your eyes might be telling you.

    Shoot - take a new Honda Fit and chop off the engine and the rear seats. Keep the bumpers. Looks a lot like the Smart - and not one bit safer, either.

    Plus I have the old 4Runner if I need to haul stuff. $800 a year in insurance and a few hundred in maintainence. Makes great second car. But commuting, I need efficient and space for two peolpe max. Cargo is maybe a few groceries, a car part, or maybe some misc stuff from the local chain store. I mean - how much space does a PS3 take? ;)

    Small, inexpensive, a load of safety equipment, and likely to be as unique and cult-ish as the Mini.
  • dmathews3dmathews3 Member Posts: 1,739
    I don't know of any motorcycle that weighs as much as a smart. You have to compare apples to apples.
  • hodad66hodad66 Member Posts: 5
    The "all or nothing" viewpoint just helps to maintain the status quo. If thousands, hundreds of thousands begin saving 4 mpg's the reduction in petroleum use would be huge.

    I too want a totally petroleum free vehicle. I want to put a sticker on my car "OPEC.. kiss my a__". I have a Scion xA currently and will more than likely get a Smart.

    Whoever comes up with an affordable plug-in will see me as an early adopter as well. My angle is terror.... Petroleum pays for bombs. Those who are driving around "alone" in their large SUV's are supporters of terror as far as I'm concerned. :mad:
  • graylinergrayliner Member Posts: 39
    This would tend to support the OP's assertion;

    http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6032755929049465539&q=ev+electric+car&t- - otal=351&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=3

    I saw this film about the EV-1 at an odd-ball movie house and was real impressed. A must see.

    Yep, better face it - Big oil would rather eat their young than pass up a buck.... and they REALLY like their young!
  • kinkyangelkinkyangel Member Posts: 12
    Supporters of terror eh? Well I have taken that large SUV to deliver packages to the post office for our troops fighting oversea's. And I take that large SUV to the VA to visit hospitalized veterans.

    Not everyone can afford two vehicles or just one small one. And your accusations that anyone who ever drives a large SUV alone is supporting terror{ists} is just outright ignorant. Sometimes large SUV's are needed to haul a lot or carry a load of folks rather than taking TWO or THREE smaller vehicles. Which is more effiecient? My large SUV with myself and 6 passengers going to the local VFW or 3 or 4 of your smaller cars making the same trip?

    Yes. I'm in line {a 1235 reservation holder} for a smart. But I find your comment to be lacking in taste at best and offensive.
  • kate24kate24 Member Posts: 1
    First, full disclosure: I sell smarts. However, I just wanted to point out that a Chrysler exec's comments have little to do with European attitudes toward the smart--especially since Daimler and Chrysler divorced.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    So did the dealers want to sell the smart or not? The only place here that sold them hasn't had one for a couple of months. The initial push this past summer saw a handful on the local roads, but they've all but disappeared.
  • bumpybumpy Member Posts: 4,425
    The ones who were committed to selling smart are still chugging along, working through the backlog. The wafflers who sold from the back lot of the Mercedes store, not so much. Sounds like your local dealer flaked out.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Well he had one or two prominently displayed while they appeared to be selling, but then just as I was going to take a test drive (more out of curiousity than actual interest in purchasing) they were gone.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Given the current economic turmoil, with people pulling in their financial horns a bit, doe s it hurt the sales potential of the smart more than sales of other vehicles? I've asked the same question about hybrids and the answer seems to be a resounding yes. Mainly because hybrids are pricier.

    I know smart fans aren't going to like hearing this, but not everyone can afford to buy a car just for running around when they're alone. So for a lot of us, the smart falls under the category of "expensive toy that I might like to have". Those are the kind of discretionary purchases that are being put off by a lot of people. Not because they really can't afford it, but because the uncertainty of things has made everybody cautious about their spending.
  • bumpybumpy Member Posts: 4,425
    I'm inclined to think not, but we'll see if deliveries fall off any in the next few months (which would indicate people declining their ordered cars once they arrive).
  • bumpybumpy Member Posts: 4,425
    3.476 cars through March
    2.683 cars in April
    2,695 cars in May
    2,545 cars in June
    2,559 cars in July
    2,420 cars in August
    1,778 cars in September
    2,236 cars in October
    1,889 cars in November
    22,281 total YTD

    September's drop was due to the factory vacation in August, and IMO November's drop is because the first delivery of '09s didn't arrive until the middle of the month.
  • PerkinsTexasPerkinsTexas Member Posts: 1
    I put down a deposit for a Smart Car on June 9, 2007.

    I was informed that the car would be available in Dallas on October 23, 2008.

    I was out of town on a business trip to Asia and was not returning until November 8. The local manager in Dallas, Zach Gilbert, decided to sell the car before I returned.

    I called as soon as I returned but never heard from him. His assistant was kind enough to talk with me and eventually returned my deposit.

    This is not the way to build a loyal customer base. I waited 16 months for the car and the local dealer could not wait 16 days for me?

    Steve Perkins
  • bumpybumpy Member Posts: 4,425
    2,341 for December, and 24,622 for the year.
This discussion has been closed.

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