CTC Review: 2009 smart fortwo

[CD_Editor]

Day 1:

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I am sure I have written the words, "This week I am back to basics" before.  Well, if I have it was a lie because I have yet to test drive a vehicle more basic than this week's ride, the smart fortwo coupe.  My tester is a "pure" model with very few options, so I am back to basics for real this time, and basic is very basic -- I can't remember the last time I drove a car with manual mirrors!  More...

[Joe]

Hey James. which dealership are you borrowing this one from? This is the exact spec and colour that I'm looking for. I was given the cold shoulder by one of the dealers in Ottawa who didn't really seem interested in selling me a car. after 30 minutes of discussing all the options he finally told me that they didn't have any base models and that I  probably would have to go to another dealer if I wanted to work on pricing??? Let us know how you find the transmission. I've decided that they have used the wrong terminology and that it's really a manual with automatic shifting. If you drive it and lift off like a manual it driver quite smoothly. mash it and it lurches all over the place. Despite what others have said I found it quite sprightly and nippy to drive. I'm looking forward to seeing what you think and how it compares to similarly priced competition.

[wing]

Joe, Talk to Leslie Mise at Ogilvie Mercedes-Benz, he seemed very keen to sell these cars, tell him you read the article

[PJungnitsch]

This guy in Toronto seems fairly keen as well:

http://www.redflagdeals.com/forums/mercedes-benz-smart-car-september-incentives-flyer-attached-huge-760326/

A bit further afield:
http://clubsmartcar.com/index.php?showtopic=19100

[dirtyjeffer]

i drove one of the original smart's several years ago...i thought it was kind of neat...sure, other cars are more practical, but if practicality were the only reason we bought a car, explain the Mustang, Camaro, Corvette, BMW, Mercedes, everything with more than 150HP and every sportscar/supercar made.

[G0dspd]

Must be refreshing (or disappointing  ) to drive around town relatively unnoticed.  After driving a MS3, a 370Z and a Cayman in the last few months ... a base Smart Fortwo must feel ordinary.  Maybe it's just me but I always see a bunch of them running around town (Ottawa).

[nsmyhte]

I believe its a sequential manual and not an automatic gearbox. At least Smart drivers can say their car has the same kind of transmission as M5's, Ferrari's and Lambo's...

[Turbo Bob]

I really do question the purpose of this car, given some of the compromises that must be made to drive it — the most notable being only having two seats.

Personally I have never found two seats to be a compromise at all, in fact the perfect solution for anyone who doesn't have kids (and/or other cars).  Why have extra seats that just add weight and are empty most of the time.

I have driven a Smart before, and loved it except for the gear change which is very very slow.  You can get used to it, and make it smoother by lifting off, but it's so slow that you have to plan your gear changes in advance.  I hope they have made this better since I last drove one which was about 10 years ago.

One thing I was impressed with was the space, for two people there really is quite a lot of space up front, compared to how it looks from the outside.  Plus the design language is pretty funky!

Not much trunk space though.

[toolatecrew]

I really do question the purpose of this car, given some of the compromises that must be made to drive it — the most notable being only having two seats.

Personally I have never found two seats to be a compromise at all, in fact the perfect solution for anyone who doesn't have kids (and/or other cars).  Why have extra seats that just add weight and are empty most of the time.

I have driven a Smart before, and loved it except for the gear change which is very very slow.  You can get used to it, and make it smoother by lifting off, but it's so slow that you have to plan your gear changes in advance.  I hope they have made this better since I last drove one which was about 10 years ago.

One thing I was impressed with was the space, for two people there really is quite a lot of space up front, compared to how it looks from the outside.  Plus the design language is pretty funky!

Not much trunk space though.

I've owned 2 seaters before (RX7) but its usally a sports car or the space where the 2nd (and small and unusable seats) would be are given over to a hatch for lugage space. A 2 seater commuter car like a CRX with a decent sized hatch makes at least a little sense to me A car like the Fit where if you only ever transport 2 people can be reconfigured into a rear space with tons of cargo room makes some sense. But in North America a 2 seater with limited cargo space makes far less sense to me.

I'm very curious to hear about how the Smart Handels. For me if I was going to buy a tiny car especially one that had little or no back seat I'd want it to be very zippy and fun to drive. The origional Mini Comes to mid. Small, somewhat crude but corners like a go kart. Even the current Mini meets that to an extent. The smart with its tall stance and from what I hear extreme understeer doesn't sound like the payoff for the rough ride etc in terms of cornering is there. I have not driven one so It will be intersting to hear the impressions.

[Shnak]

James, if you think a car with ABS/EBD/ECS, keyless entry and power windows is basic, you need to drive around in my car! The most non-basic thing in my car is power steering!

[Turbo Bob]

But in North America a 2 seater with limited cargo space makes far less sense to me.

For you maybe. The MK3 MR2 had crappy trunk space but was great to drive and made perfect sense to me.  I know the Smart isn't a sports car but for a city commuter the design makes perfect sense.

[wing]

I think as a second car it makes sense.  As an only car there are far more practical cars out there that are just as fuel efficient etc etc etc. 

[toolatecrew]

But in North America a 2 seater with limited cargo space makes far less sense to me.

For you maybe. The MK3 MR2 had crappy trunk space but was great to drive and made perfect sense to me.  I know the Smart isn't a sports car but for a city commuter the design makes perfect sense.

I find it interesting that when people say 2 seat cars with little cargo spece aren't so bad the example is almost always a sporty car with great candeling.

I understand a Mini, Miata MR2 (I had the fortune to drive  a 1991 Model a couple times) . The smart is not those cars. Its not a sports car. Heck I can understand a 2 seat Miata as a 2nd car . Its impracticle but you don't drive a Miata becuase its practicle you drive it becuase its fun.

I don't get the idea that your 2nd car would be an impractical 2 seater that you drive becuase its well "practicle" fuel efficient or can fit into parking spaces.

Obviously there is a market for them becuase they are "hip" and that's fine. I personally don't get the appeal. Maybe its just me but if someone said get something with 2 seats and a small 4cly as a second car only and your budget is 15K or so the Smart would not even cross my mind. Used Miata maybe. Smart no. If its impractical it should be for good reason like Fun. The Smarts fuel economy (based on premium gas) just deosn't seem like nealry enough of an advantage over other cars.

[AP]

The so-called "Smart" car is impractical, a poor value, less fuel efficient than one might reasonably expect and perhaps unsafe (look up the crash test of the Smart car with the Mercedes C class).  After test driving one a few years ago, my unrefined 2000 Pontiac Sunfire felt luxurious in comparison, which is really saying something.  Other compact cars, for the same or even less money, will return better fuel economy and provide better safety and versatility.  Who buys these not-so-smart cars?  

[justDON"T]

I owned one of the very first gas Smart cars available in Vancouver...it was the WORST experiment ever.  Besides the numerous times that the gear shifter seized (4 different times in 15 months), the suspension caused me to slow to 20 over almost any bump, and the frustration in having to put premium gas in...the car is downright DANGEROUS!!!  The transmission is horrible to be nice, but the lag really can put you in very dangerous situations especially trying to change lanes from a stop. 
Save your money, buy a Yaris.

p.s.- resale ended up being around 50% of what I paid

[Ontariodriver]

I don't why I find this amusing. But it is. Seeing Wing in such a little Bubble car. would make me LOL. These cars seems so over price here I must admit. There no need for cars like this here in Canada. I think Euro Cities Yes, But not Canada. It seams like a toy here.

[carsncars]

+1 on it having an "automated manual" transmission. Until you get a feel for driving it, it can be quite jerky.

Yeah, there's really no place for this car in Canada (yet). In dense European cities, yes. Perhaps in Manhattan. But (so far) we have plentiful parking, and you could get a lot more for the buck out of a base Yaris--as much as I hate to recommed it instead.

[safristi]

..."smart" is a relative term......................and i have a relative who owns one............in Victoria........the perfect trifecta U say............well................I'm not convinced..pricey and dicey and uberSTATED....lousy driver and how is the servicing costs?......U must feel like a Cirque De SOLEIL klown in one....paying a Civic OR other cheap and cheerful price for a wee toy....hell buy a 2nd hand Mazda Miata fer crispus sakes............twice the fun fer half the risability.................

[Blueprint]

These things are all over the place in Montreal.  So, Wing, are you going to autocross this one ? 

[Rupert]

The lighter the car the more difficult it is to make comfy suspension. A taller package might need stiffer springs too. Maybe it is a narrow design window that must be threaded here. The original Mini did not have much height and they got away with it reasonably well. Rubber spring units were quite good actually very good once you were used to them. Now that was a better envelope...remove the back seat and make the front ones more deluxe ...maybe just a little bit bigger wheel dia. hmmm. When you look at something like this, you do not look for highway driving or dirt road stuff...just urban and city streets. The original Mini could do both though...even won the Montecarlo Rally a couple of times. Perhaps the crash test dummies woud not like the old Mini...we have advanced since those days...perhaps.