smart car

[dickie10]

  I am thinking of buying a Smart car.What are the good and bad points?

[Skids]

The whole car is a bad point.  Expecially the early versions where the rear screen pops out for no aparant reason.  They are basically glorified mopeds, but it depends on what you want it for.  Ideal for pottering around the city centre and parking in very small parking spaces.  There are now three different body styles too; the original two seat, no luggage room; the sporty Roadster; and the For Four, a four seater (cunningly).  Take one out on the open road and you can watch the fuel gauge drop right before your very eyes.

[MORELLO]

They're crap. Buy a proper car.

[smudge]

Not meaning to be rude, but God knows why they call it a Smart car. I think they are the most hideous looking things on 4 wheels I've ever seen - well apart from an old wooden go-cart we once made!

[jake-the-peg]

I saw two recent television items on the original Smart - the first (fifth gear I think) crash tested one into a concrete block at 70mph. The result was remarkably little intrusion into the passenger compartment - so probably quite good in a crash which is just as well as I think Top Gear gave it their "comedy handling of the year" award as they attempted to drive one around a corner, not really fast but lets say briskly. The Smart completely ignored the steering wheel and continued in a straight line straight off the road.

I wonder if that's why they brought out a 4x4.

Not driven one myself though - why don't you see if there's anywhere you can rent one from for a few days before you decide?

[madgeezer]

smart car, room for two ... why not buy a proper two seater like a porsche or something. smart fourfour, room for 4 ... why not buy a proper car and get 5 seats for same price? i swear their only there to prove how gullible the genral public are.

[madgeezer]

... AND ... they're going out of business, their parent company DaimlerChrysler (DCX on stock exchange) have been urged to dump the brand following losses. so you could end up with a white elephant. If you really want one you could wait a couple of months and you could pick up a bargain but no-one would buy it off you :p

[Trillipse]

madgeezer - what do you drive?

are you as imbecilic as your "hooked on testosterone" cr@p would suggest?

or do you just like slagging off cars that don't seem manly or powerful. Pr*ck.

good grief, i wasn't even as stupid as you when i was a 19-year-old at university driving a flame red merc.

and that's saying something...

[Sioux]

Hi dickie10

In defense of the Smart Car, (I have one, a 2002 Mk6 Passion Cabriolet) it�s a great little town runaround� of course it has its limitations� it�s a town car!  but I love it for its quirkiness and it has a habit of provoking heated debate, as can be seen above!
For more info on Smart Cars, visit the sites below� we�re a very friendly bunch� feel free to ask any smart questions

Here are a few to be getting on with�

www.thesmartclub.co.uk
www.smartmaniacs.co.uk
www.smartzplanet.com
www.newfunkysmart.com

[monkeygirl]

I can't believe the ignorance of people who assume what the Smart car is all about and how it runs. Until you've actually owned one, (and I'm guessing this lot haven't due to their negative comments) how can you say objectively whether it's a good or a bad car?

I've been driving my Smart car for over a year now and I love it. I used to commute about 40 miles a day in it and it was fine for that, its great for running around town in (I now only drive about 10 miles a day), the petrol consumption is miniscule on town driving, I can have a full tank and that lasts me well over 2 weeks. If I drive longer distances then obviously the fuel goes down quicker - duh! But it costs �25 to fill the car up and I can usually get 300 miles out of that, more if I'm extra extra careful.

Its a fantastically economical car, I even get half price parking permits each year and my tax is only �75 for 12 months. The insurance is very cheap, even with only 2 years no claims its still only �300 - although that may be down to where I live and where I park it.

I would suggest taking one for a test drive, asking the dealer loads of questions about it and just making your own mind up, as Sioux said, Smart drivers are a friendly bunch who feel passionately about Smart cars.

I really hope you enjoyed your test drive and that by now, you've bought one!!