What do you think about the Smart Car?

I love them. Waiting for them to come out with a family sized one and I am all over it.

I think they are the future.

I’m a fan but I think the odd appearance will preclude it from taking over the market.

They’re cute but the waiting list is ridiculously long, and I can’t carry all five dogs at one time in one.

I’ll stick with my truck and just drive less.

@standardtoaster Welcome to Fluther.
At first I thought the same thing. However now there are more and more of them in my area and they are not odd anymore.

I can’t wait til one gets in an accident with semi truck.

I fucking love them.
BEEP, BEEP!

Cute and squishy body shapes. Like those itty bitty Euro cars.
/swoon

@simone54 That is what people said when Honda started making small cars. It did not discourage sales though. Also I think that in the future even trucks will harness smart-car technology Fossil Fuel guzzling vehicles are destined to become extinct.

actually they are much safer than a motor cycle and get 5 and 4 star crash ratings (thank you mercedes). They are no different than a mini cooper or any other small car.

As someone who remembers the one-person Iseta I have to say that the Smart Car looks enormous next to that.

I can’t get past the size and the ugly body style. I love that they are smart and fuel efficient but I just can’t fathom being in any kind of accident driving one of those. It is pretty cool to hear they have a five star safety rating.

yes the safety features in them are amazing and once you’re in one…it really doesn’t feel like a small car. I’ve gone close to 65 mph on the highway and it handles no differently than my dad’s mini van

Too expensive for what you get

huh?! they start under $12,000…how is that expensive compared to any other car sold in america? look at the Kia Soul…they claim to start under 14,000 but thats with manual transmission…the smart does both automatic and manual for <2000

If you go to a place in the UK called Brighton, it is absolutely full of them.

Parking in Brighton is famously difficult, nigh on impossible and smart cars can fit into the smallest of spaces, or just tuck themselves into little corners, which makes them the smartest choice in that situation.

I don’t own a car at all at the moment, but I won’t dismiss them when the time comes for me to drive again.

I would never drive one around Amsterdam.

Besides that, however, I think they’re a cool little car. Not exactly my style, but I don’t really mind them.

@dverhey that’s such a harsh thing to do to someone’s car!

It’s like a modern cow tipping… But yeah, that sucks.

We used to lean an occasional dune buggy up against a concrete wall, but we usually knew the owners and they did things in return to us, such as completely filling our elderly Series I Land Rover with aluminum cans.

A pregnant roller skate.

Seriously, they do not get great mileage.

Also, in a world still filled with SUVs, they seem like an invitation to early death.

I am sorry, but they really are dumb. I want a car that can get up the driveway.

@Garebo: They’re perfectly capable of that, and more.

@SuperMouse: Check this out. :)

they’re so tiny. if everyone drove one, okay. but even driving past a volkswagen bug with one of those would make me nervous.

@asmonet that is incredible!

@asmonet: Not according to my bosses neighbor they are not, he had a 13% grade he couldn’t get up and he had to take a second revved up run at it. Besides can you imagine getting hit by something big in this, I hope the air bags are good. Don’t get me wrong, I am all for efficiency, but also practicality.

Unsafe for a Canadian climate.

I thought the gas mileage wasn’t all that great. I recall something like 29 mpg, but I could be making that up. Anyway, it seems ridiculously gas-thirsty for such a small critter. The review I read also said they were kind of rackety and poorly built. They probably will need a lot of repairs.

They are cute, though.

If the majority of American commuters drove them, and commerce vehicles had there own lane, then the highway system would probably expand another lane which would be great.
Furthermore, with GPS technology and a properly equipped highway system that could prepare drivers of impending crashes, control traffic speed and safeguard lives this vehicle would be the answer, easier than the current mixed array of vehicles. I think commuter time could be significantly reduced, but until that time it is not smart, but I believe it can be, and probably will be.

@Garebo I see your point, but who wants everyone to look exactly the same? For me, this is a city car, great at fitting into tight little corners, allowing you to park where no one else can, but I wouldn’t do much long distance driving in one myself…

i dont like it. way too small. weird looking. i dont know anything about its safety ratings or whatever, but i wouldnt feel very safe in it.

@Garebo: Click my link, I don’t have to imagine it.

@point5r:I agree, it seems so controlled and planned, but unfortunately those in power have a way of forcing change, probably another way for them to make a buck for their buds.
Americans love to express themselves through their vehicle, and that is not something that will be easy to change.
I have always thought their needs to be a more rational way to get to work, so the smart car seems to be on the right path.

the convertible is the way to go