The Smart- What do you think?

about the Smart: America Needs to Get Smart, by Miles Cook.
What do you think? A hatchback that you can park just about anywhere..., not to mention, you can change the color of it when ever you like! ;-)
Pocahontas
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Now that I think about it, I'd estimate that 65%-75% of my driving needs could be met by the Smart! car. Are there any plans to import them into the USA?
Several excellent designs, including the SMART.
However, these are strictly city cars, and northern city cars at that. They wouldn't be practical here in Dallas where it's common to drive 40 - 50 miles on the expressway to go ANYWHERE, and often to do it in 100 degree temps.
Those tiny engines aren't intended to run A/C units.
Maybe in Boston or NYC.
BTW, Many in the Northeast routinely have commutes of 35-50 miles one way and North East summers have plenty of days that require AC. Oh and one final point; a 55 HP engine in a car that small might have a better HP to weight ratio than many compacts on the road today and because of the smaller passenger cabin the AC would not have to be as powerful as in most cars so it could probably do fine. Remember these cars are sold all over Europe including Italy, Greece and Spain, all known for hot summers.
Pocahontas
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Does anyone have a web site for the Smart Cars?
The current model line-ups in Europe can easily do around 80-85 mph as their top speed, and can easily sustain A/C load as well... Spain gets mighty hot in the summer months.
BRING SMART OVER!!!
Still it would be good for someone like my mom who has a 4 mile commute through the suburbs to work. She doesn't really drive anywhere and usually it's just her, so it would probably make a nice high mileage runabout. Don't know if she could get the week's groceries in one of those though
I admit. It is cute car, the kind you think--"gee isn't that cute little car so cute?? I'd like to take it home with me". Looks nice and sleek--a Toyota Echo contender maybe and is lighter because of the plastic instead of steel.
When I got inside I felt like I was in a comfortable tuna can on wheels. The panels are plastic and while they ARE made from impact resistant Xenoy(tradename)material I still felt...very vulnerable. I kept thinking if Bambi were to go waltzing across a darkened road somewhere in the backwoods I would have little to no crumple zone and that could spell trouble...Of course I didn't drive it either so depending on a test drive I could be persuaded to change my mind about a couple things.
A neat feature about this car I liked is that you don't even need to worry about painting it. Rust would be non-exsitant on the body. And while I do not know what a new exterior body color would cost, it seems a lot simpler for those of us who change our minds quickly and want something "new".
Daimler Chrysler has this on their site and anyone can take a look at it on-line at the link below. There isn't a specific site for America on this site but you can choose English for most any country you click on.
http://www.daimlerchrysler.com/index_e.htm?/products/products_e.htm
See what ya think and I'll see the discussion on this as I have not seen that one yet.
http://www.hyundai.com/
Just thought I'd pass it along. Have no idea if this will be a new line-up.
Living in Chicago, size is a liability, hard to park and manuever a midsize car like a Ford Taurus. I can see the Smart car appealing to some people in large urban areas, but can't see a reason to have one in the suburbs or smaller towns, where parking and traffic congestion isn't such an issue.
Would you really want to be on the road in one of those roller skates with all the 18 wheelers and Excursions driven by people who are so busy talking on a cell phone and eating that they won't even see your teeny tiny car as they run over it? These cars are dangerous on American highways, and marginal in town, IMHO.
As for safety? No matter what kind of car is made available to the public, lack of attention and interest in being an effective driver will result in accidents. Just this morning I watched a lady on the cell phone go into a sidways skid in her Camary while driving through the Golden Gate park. The turn is always slick due to oil off the trees. She could have corrected her problem with a little counter steer and been on her way. Instead she slammed on the breaks and parked her car 10 feet up the embankment with the car highcentered so both front and rear wheels off the ground. Lack of experience, training, attention or interest in knowing how to drive a vehicle will all ways end in some type of accident.
As for the Smart car? Heck my girlfriend and I could sell both our cars get a Smart car, and a slightly larger vehicle to haul people and weekend junk and still reduce our costs and gas pump bill.
The builder needs to get off their duff and get these cars in the US pronto. No better time to do it when the price at the pump is going up.
I want one!
Revka
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Hatchbacks & Wagons Boards
Anyway, what are the chances of Edmunds getting to have a look at the SMART lineup? If people were to read more about them here, it might generate more interest in the cars, and more pressure to sell them here.
" "Interest in our products continues to be enormous. This allows continued growth in new markets", says Philipp Schiemer. With the start of production of a further smart model in Juiz de Fora (Brazil), smart plans to enter the US market in 2005."
Based on the success of the MINI, I think we (USA) will see Smarts here. Must be a backlash against big gas-gussling beamoths taking root. 'Bout time. Those Smart Roadsters look like fun machines--a great weekend toy.
http://www.smart.com
But they wouldn't say whether the Rodster was coming here....they said it might though.
Revka
Host of Hatchbacks & Wagons
I wonder what they'll do to a SMART to make it an SUV...
Revka
Host of Hatchbacks & Wagons
I'd think that SMART would have to have a 4 seater to convert, first of all...I think someone was saying the "ForFour" might be a candidate...on, wait, that's what SMART told me in the e-mail. OK. Besides, the ForFour is pretty much the only thing they could convert to an SUV...just jack up the suspension and throw on an AWD system. Here's the gallery for it on SMART's international website:
http://smart.com/-snm-0135155096-1063974395-0000011594-0000001444- - -1064379301-enm-smart/content/en/en/smart/modelle/smartforfour/ga- - lerie
Hope that link fits...anyway, you'll notice it looks NOTHING like the SMART vehicles for sale now.
Here's the bad: It IS a sport/utility, and will be built in Brazil. Likely it will be a "highly modified" Forfour. Doesn't say how highly modified, but it probably means a lot more than jacking up the suspension. The article also said "Don't look for the current lineup...to be on our shores." No Roadster Coupe.
Come on guys...if the Scion xA can sell here, then the Forfour could sell here too! And if the Miata and the MR2 sell then the Roadster Coupe could sell!
Maybe we should start a petition or something...
granted there are lots of big suvs in the states but there are also lots of motorcycles and the cycle folks do pretty well around these suvs.
the reasons that these cars, i.e. mini, smart, scion, would do weill in the states today because consumers are getting smart about fuel eco and environ and are now gravitate toward smaller cars. look how well those small station wagons, a4, jetta, protege5, focus, are doing.
maybe the planet can be saved afterall