Opinion on the American SmartCar?

If every vehicle on the road were the same size as the “smart car” it may not be a bad choice, but personally, I wouldn’t want to get T-BONED by a 4X4 Suburban or Excursion in one of those death traps.

They are cute, but not the best buy. You can get a Toyota, Mazda, or Nissan, Ford, Or Chevy that gets as good gas milage, is equal in quality, superior in performance, and seats 4-5 people. The Minin-Cooper is another poor bargain.

Last time I looked, Ford’s Focus was the best buy. The basic level Nissan was close.

The SmartCar is over priced for what it is and can do. That short wheel base is going to get tiresome.

They aren’t bad as a city car where there’s tons of slow moving traffic and parking is at a premium because they fit in tiny spots. They are also surprisingly comfortable for 2 people on short trips and can hold at least some amount of cargo in the trunk.

However, I definitely wouldn’t recommend buying a Smart car to drive long distances regularly. They’re designed to be easy to drive in city traffic and park on city streets. Merging onto a freeway or higher-speed roadway is a chore in a Smart because they are quite frankly, slow. Also, the ride gets pretty choppy at speed since the wheelbase is so short. The Smart my sister has (can’t speak for all of them – I’ve only driven and ridden in hers) also gets blown around quite a bit when semi trucks pass, either in the other direction or in the same direction.

In the Smart’s price range, something like a Toyota Yaris hatchback or the Honda Fit would be a better choice for longer distance driving IMO. Both the Yaris and Fit get comparable highway gas mileage to the Smart and they both ride and accelerate much better than the Smart at highway speeds. Plus, you can fit 4 people in the Yaris or Fit or considerably more cargo in the Fit or Yaris than you can a Smart on the occasions that you might need more than 2 seats and little cargo space.

If you are willing to spend a little more money and aren’t looking for a hybrid, a diesel powered car might also make a lot of sense for your situation. VW’s Golf and Jetta TDIs will both get better highway mileage than the Smart will and they are both much nicer to drive than the Smart on longer trips. Unfortunately they’re both also in the general price range of a basic hybrid car though.

Definitely a death trap in the US. It also feels like you’re in a go-kart. They are ok for JUST city driving or in other countries where every car is tiny. A better, safer option that still gets good mileage is the mini cooper. That’d be my top choice for what your needs seem to be. The Toyota Yaris is safer than the smart, but still a piece of junk that wobbles all over the highway. Honda Civic’s not bad, Ford Focus is also a good option, but personally I’d go with the Mini.

Edmunds had one for their long term road test last year and they weren’t too impressed by it http://blogs.insideline.com/roadtests/PastVehicles/2008SmartFortwoPassionCoupe/

They averaged 34 MPG which is good but they questioned if it’s was worth the sacrifice in comfort and performance. The best MPG was 43. Not so good compared with a bigger more comfortable Prius. Some cars soon coming out can get 40 MPG highway without hybrid and electric technology so I don’t think a Smart car is worth it.

have you ever considered a volkswagen golf tdi? Some of the diesels these days are the equivalent if not better than some of the hybrids out there today.
I dont know how readily diesel is available in your area but it does go 1000 kms on a tank as well.

What most people dont realize until after they buy it is that it runs on 91 octane gas. Not regular, thats how it gets those amazing fuel numbers. Its just a heads up that if you do want to run it on regular, your fuel economy will suffer.

Its a golf cart in disguise.