DaimlerChrysler is leaning toward launching its Smart car in the United States, CEO Dieter Zetsche said in an interview with Germany’s Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung this weekend. “At the moment, the tendency is clearly positive,” he said. An announcement is expected later this month.
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06/05, 11:33 AM
posted by:
1c3d0g
Heh…I can already imagine what it’d be like, the drivers of these lil’ cars anxiously eyeing the SUV/Pickup owners up there to see whether they saw them or not…
06/05, 11:54 AM
posted by:
TW
I’ve seen them on the road, and they’re a lot more obvious than motorcycles.
06/05, 11:55 AM
posted by:
Mike
more like looking down their noses at the SUV pigs. The SMART will be more fashionable than a Prius!
I can’t see many enthusiasts picking these up, only those who have the need to feel morally superior, and to show the world that they ARE morally superior.
I already expressed my opinion on these in the other thread as to why I am not a candidate to be a customer…
06/05, 12:03 PM
posted by:
Tariq
Mike, maybe you couldn’t get in one after all of those Big Macs?
Just answering your rhetorical question.
06/05, 12:11 PM
posted by:
Niels
I wanna see these pathetic heaps pass safety tests.
06/05, 12:14 PM
posted by:
Mike
My rhetorical question? Thank you for another quality post Tariq.
06/05, 12:24 PM
posted by:
smart
Actually, they pass ALL US crash and safety standards, with superior results to most large SUVs. The occupant cell has ZERO intrusion at the 35mph offset test, and given the engine is in the rear, they have DOUBLE the crush space of most vehicles on the road today. Having driven one, they are not only economical, they are the closest thing to a go-kart you can drive. Sequential manual, lightweight, mid-rear engine layout. great stance, sounds like an enthusiast’s dream!
06/05, 12:26 PM
posted by:
Zan
While i am sure these cars will somehow pass safety tests I just could not feel safe in one.
Hell, if a chevy Aveo can pass safety tests anything can!
06/05, 12:44 PM
posted by:
CoCoChanel
There are big trucks and SUVs in Europe. There are autobahns with no speed limits in germany. If the smart was so dangerous there would have been huge publicity about it and there is no way it would be considered for sale in the US
06/05, 2:00 PM
posted by:
JCwhitless
Looks like DCX killed off the Plymouth nameplate too soon!!
06/05, 2:16 PM
posted by:
Lee
for all the people who are seriously concidering to buy a car like this….here in europe we have these cars for a few years already. they have the name to drive like crap, everyone laughs at you when ur in it, and a new engine has to put in after every 10000 km(6250 miles) and also a lot of other problems…the only things good about it are its low fuel consumption, and its not hard to park….but you wont save money because of all the money you spend on repairs, and you wont be parking it either because you’re afraid that everyone laughs at you, or that you’re friends saw what car you have bought -.-’
06/05, 2:28 PM
posted by:
Fellate Me
Lee is that why Rock Stars drive them around London: So they can be laughed at?
06/05, 3:23 PM
posted by:
manny
no… with rock stars its a more ‘look at me, im pretending to care’ thing… like celebs rolling up to the acadamy awards in priuses…
06/05, 4:42 PM
posted by:
norby
Our affiliate dealer here in Reno,Nv has a Smart car franchise and has been selling them in the US for a year now. There is no car on the road today that gets more attention!
They ARE a little rough, as there is not much sound deadening, etc, for weight reasons. Lots of room inside, fun to drive and you can park two in a single car parking space.
Should be interesting to see if they catch on. If I lived in a big city (NY,SF) I’d seriously consider one!
The biggest obstacle, of course, will be the inflated SUV driver ego.
06/05, 5:23 PM
posted by:
Mike
“will be the inflated SUV driver ego”
norby, you ruined an otherwise good post with this comment. Tuck in your skirt, your bias is showing.
as opposed to the other extreme?
SUV = Smog
Prius = Smug.
All this will become is the new chic way to make yourself feel morally superior.
06/05, 9:57 PM
posted by:
monts
Mike you got the smug thing from southpark.
06/06, 12:02 AM
posted by:
J
Smarts are sold in West Palm Beach Florida and are a blast to drive. Safety is NOT an issue. They are actually very safe as mentioned above. I would buy one as a run-about, but not at $27K, Zap the distributor has priced me out of the market. However, IF..MB brings it in around $20K & very well equipped, I’m a buyer. Any more than that and I’m getting a MINI. By the way, once I drove it I was hooked. It’s fun, cool, people go nuts, and I have driven everything in between, when you try one you will understand JMO.
06/06, 1:54 AM
posted by:
Fatstrat
Everyone singing the praises of this pimple on wheels should take a close look at Smarts ‘medical chart’. ?A move to the US is a last ditch effort to save the make.
It might suit the lifestyles of some. Thats fine with me. But you people taking shots at those driving SUV’s are not only intellectually vacant, you are redundant in droves.
Most driving SUV’s do so because they haul people, kids etc… Look at a parking lot during a local little league game (for you folks in the UK thats kids baseball). In order to haul the numbers of kids and gear without an SUV I would need 3 or four other cars not to mention the extra drivers. Gee, how economical/enviromentally friendly is that?
I guess I should also give up my camping trailer and trips with the family so some tree hugger can have another clean air orgasm. Perhaps Smart will develop a 1200lb tow package for it’s car.
06/06, 2:10 AM
posted by:
Al
To haul kids and their equipment for a little league game, you don’t need an SUV, you can buy a station wagon: it carries the same amount of stuff, it handles better (after all, it’s a car not a vehicle based on a truck) and it consumes less gas.
My feeling is that people that buy SUVs are not doing it because it’s a superior vehicle for carrying a lot of people and stuff, but because it gives them the sensation of being in some sort of a tank (I can’t totally blame them, seeing the awful general level of American drivers) and many of them think that they can bully other smaller vehicles because they go around in those behemots…
06/06, 6:48 AM
posted by:
Simon
Very informed comment ‘Smart’ further up the list. These cars are IMO quite expensive, but we have one and love it to bits. It has 40000miles on the clock and hasn’t had a single thing go wrong with it. Fuel bills are very low, as is insurance, tax etc etc. It will never replace SUV’s in the U.S. because Smarts don’t have the extra wide seats that most American people require. We didn’t buy it to save the planet (I drive an S4), only to make getting around London and parking easier.
06/06, 9:40 AM
posted by:
Brad
They are going to bring it to the states… they aren’t going to bring it to the states… they are going to bring it… they aren’t going to bring it.
I’m sick of hearing about it. They need to shut up about it until they make a true final decision.
06/06, 9:57 AM
posted by:
Fatstrat
Your ‘feeling’ #18 is all that idea is based on. There is no wagon that can match an Expedition for hauling people and things, the SUV is not a race car and the few that drive them like they are are idiots. Please note, there are idiots in every crowd so don’t lump all the SUV drivers in with them. The fuel economy between the largest wagon sold in the US (Dodge Magnum?) and an SUV is for all intents and purposes NIL. Not to mention the inability to tow anything reasonable.
06/06, 10:35 AM
posted by:
Lee
#11
1. can you name one of the rock stars that drive em? if i know that person, i will laugh at that person, if i dont, then i’ll laugh at you,
2. if you’re driving, it still drives like crap, while its falling apart,
3. i totally agree with #12
so
4. please shut up with you’re stupid comments and get a live….
06/27, 2:09 PM
posted by:
RW
You can rent these on French St Martin.
They are very cool.
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06/05, 11:33 AM
posted by:
1c3d0g
Heh…I can already imagine what it’d be like, the drivers of these lil’ cars anxiously eyeing the SUV/Pickup owners up there to see whether they saw them or not…
06/05, 11:54 AM
posted by:
TW
I’ve seen them on the road, and they’re a lot more obvious than motorcycles.
06/05, 11:55 AM
posted by:
Mike
more like looking down their noses at the SUV pigs. The SMART will be more fashionable than a Prius!
I can’t see many enthusiasts picking these up, only those who have the need to feel morally superior, and to show the world that they ARE morally superior.
I already expressed my opinion on these in the other thread as to why I am not a candidate to be a customer…
06/05, 12:03 PM
posted by:
Tariq
Mike, maybe you couldn’t get in one after all of those Big Macs?
Just answering your rhetorical question.
06/05, 12:11 PM
posted by:
Niels
I wanna see these pathetic heaps pass safety tests.
06/05, 12:14 PM
posted by:
Mike
My rhetorical question? Thank you for another quality post Tariq.
06/05, 12:24 PM
posted by:
smart
Actually, they pass ALL US crash and safety standards, with superior results to most large SUVs. The occupant cell has ZERO intrusion at the 35mph offset test, and given the engine is in the rear, they have DOUBLE the crush space of most vehicles on the road today. Having driven one, they are not only economical, they are the closest thing to a go-kart you can drive. Sequential manual, lightweight, mid-rear engine layout. great stance, sounds like an enthusiast’s dream!
06/05, 12:26 PM
posted by:
Zan
While i am sure these cars will somehow pass safety tests I just could not feel safe in one.
Hell, if a chevy Aveo can pass safety tests anything can!
06/05, 12:44 PM
posted by:
CoCoChanel
There are big trucks and SUVs in Europe. There are autobahns with no speed limits in germany. If the smart was so dangerous there would have been huge publicity about it and there is no way it would be considered for sale in the US
06/05, 2:00 PM
posted by:
JCwhitless
Looks like DCX killed off the Plymouth nameplate too soon!!
06/05, 2:16 PM
posted by:
Lee
for all the people who are seriously concidering to buy a car like this….here in europe we have these cars for a few years already. they have the name to drive like crap, everyone laughs at you when ur in it, and a new engine has to put in after every 10000 km(6250 miles) and also a lot of other problems…the only things good about it are its low fuel consumption, and its not hard to park….but you wont save money because of all the money you spend on repairs, and you wont be parking it either because you’re afraid that everyone laughs at you, or that you’re friends saw what car you have bought -.-’
06/05, 2:28 PM
posted by:
Fellate Me
Lee is that why Rock Stars drive them around London: So they can be laughed at?
06/05, 3:23 PM
posted by:
manny
no… with rock stars its a more ‘look at me, im pretending to care’ thing… like celebs rolling up to the acadamy awards in priuses…
06/05, 4:42 PM
posted by:
norby
Our affiliate dealer here in Reno,Nv has a Smart car franchise and has been selling them in the US for a year now. There is no car on the road today that gets more attention!
They ARE a little rough, as there is not much sound deadening, etc, for weight reasons. Lots of room inside, fun to drive and you can park two in a single car parking space.
Should be interesting to see if they catch on. If I lived in a big city (NY,SF) I’d seriously consider one!
The biggest obstacle, of course, will be the inflated SUV driver ego.
06/05, 5:23 PM
posted by:
Mike
“will be the inflated SUV driver ego”
norby, you ruined an otherwise good post with this comment. Tuck in your skirt, your bias is showing.
as opposed to the other extreme?
SUV = Smog
Prius = Smug.
All this will become is the new chic way to make yourself feel morally superior.
06/05, 9:57 PM
posted by:
monts
Mike you got the smug thing from southpark.
06/06, 12:02 AM
posted by:
J
Smarts are sold in West Palm Beach Florida and are a blast to drive. Safety is NOT an issue. They are actually very safe as mentioned above. I would buy one as a run-about, but not at $27K, Zap the distributor has priced me out of the market. However, IF..MB brings it in around $20K & very well equipped, I’m a buyer. Any more than that and I’m getting a MINI. By the way, once I drove it I was hooked. It’s fun, cool, people go nuts, and I have driven everything in between, when you try one you will understand JMO.
06/06, 1:54 AM
posted by:
Fatstrat
Everyone singing the praises of this pimple on wheels should take a close look at Smarts ‘medical chart’. ?A move to the US is a last ditch effort to save the make.
It might suit the lifestyles of some. Thats fine with me. But you people taking shots at those driving SUV’s are not only intellectually vacant, you are redundant in droves.
Most driving SUV’s do so because they haul people, kids etc… Look at a parking lot during a local little league game (for you folks in the UK thats kids baseball). In order to haul the numbers of kids and gear without an SUV I would need 3 or four other cars not to mention the extra drivers. Gee, how economical/enviromentally friendly is that?
I guess I should also give up my camping trailer and trips with the family so some tree hugger can have another clean air orgasm. Perhaps Smart will develop a 1200lb tow package for it’s car.
06/06, 2:10 AM
posted by:
Al
To haul kids and their equipment for a little league game, you don’t need an SUV, you can buy a station wagon: it carries the same amount of stuff, it handles better (after all, it’s a car not a vehicle based on a truck) and it consumes less gas.
My feeling is that people that buy SUVs are not doing it because it’s a superior vehicle for carrying a lot of people and stuff, but because it gives them the sensation of being in some sort of a tank (I can’t totally blame them, seeing the awful general level of American drivers) and many of them think that they can bully other smaller vehicles because they go around in those behemots…
06/06, 6:48 AM
posted by:
Simon
Very informed comment ‘Smart’ further up the list. These cars are IMO quite expensive, but we have one and love it to bits. It has 40000miles on the clock and hasn’t had a single thing go wrong with it. Fuel bills are very low, as is insurance, tax etc etc. It will never replace SUV’s in the U.S. because Smarts don’t have the extra wide seats that most American people require. We didn’t buy it to save the planet (I drive an S4), only to make getting around London and parking easier.
06/06, 9:40 AM
posted by:
Brad
They are going to bring it to the states… they aren’t going to bring it to the states… they are going to bring it… they aren’t going to bring it.
I’m sick of hearing about it. They need to shut up about it until they make a true final decision.
06/06, 9:57 AM
posted by:
Fatstrat
Your ‘feeling’ #18 is all that idea is based on. There is no wagon that can match an Expedition for hauling people and things, the SUV is not a race car and the few that drive them like they are are idiots. Please note, there are idiots in every crowd so don’t lump all the SUV drivers in with them. The fuel economy between the largest wagon sold in the US (Dodge Magnum?) and an SUV is for all intents and purposes NIL. Not to mention the inability to tow anything reasonable.
06/06, 10:35 AM
posted by:
Lee
#11
1. can you name one of the rock stars that drive em? if i know that person, i will laugh at that person, if i dont, then i’ll laugh at you,
2. if you’re driving, it still drives like crap, while its falling apart,
3. i totally agree with #12
so
4. please shut up with you’re stupid comments and get a live….
06/27, 2:09 PM
posted by:
RW
You can rent these on French St Martin.
They are very cool.