Anyone own a Smart fourtwo?

GreenBadger · July 3rd, 2007, 12:41 PM

The Smart fourtwo will go on sale in the USA in August of 2008. Right now, Smart USA has a campaign going which allows one to "reserve" one for a refundable $99 deposit. Since the Smart cars have been on sale in Europe for a number of years, I was curious if any of you actually owned a Smart fourtwo, and what you thought of it. Note that there will only be three models available in the USA next year; the Smart "pure", "passion" and "passion cabrio".

Thanks in advance

LeMans GTR · July 3rd, 2007, 01:53 PM

I have never owned a smart, but I think this video could help you more than I could.

+ YouTube Video

and you can also find some reviews from people who have owned a smart fortwo here

http://fifthgear.five.tv/jsp/5gmain....o.x=22&go.y=15

MadCow809 · July 3rd, 2007, 02:32 PM

dont know anyone that have ever though about buying a smart.. but if you are after a smart, then why dont you go for the roadster if space isnt an issue for you.

Fiete · July 3rd, 2007, 02:45 PM

The roadster is already out of production. I don't think that used roadster are available in the US. images/smilies/sad.gif

sonza68 · July 3rd, 2007, 03:29 PM

It isn't. Only the ForTwo will be available in the US.

D-Fence · July 3rd, 2007, 06:47 PM

I testdrove the "old" fortwo.

It sucked.

It has shift times like hell and a stupid suspension, so when it accelerates, it bends backwards, when it shifts, the whole car falls forward, when the next gear is in, it bends backwards again.

Piece of shit.

thedguy · July 3rd, 2007, 07:01 PM

Personally I'd wait till some proper road tests in the US come out about them. I've read a couple articles about people driving the older ones here in the US on road trips and not achieving the mileage worthy of owning such a hideous car.

You may find it's just better to go with a Honda Fit/Toyota Yaris.

D-Fence · July 3rd, 2007, 07:55 PM

it definitely is.

I had a Toyota Aygo (smaller than yaris) as a exchange car when mine was for service at the garage and it was 10 times better then the smart....

teeb · July 3rd, 2007, 09:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by D-Fence

I testdrove the "old" fortwo.

It sucked.

It has shift times like hell and a stupid suspension, so when it accelerates, it bends backwards, when it shifts, the whole car falls forward, when the next gear is in, it bends backwards again.

Piece of shit.

Whilst I agree with all that, there was something novel about being able to park nose-in to the pavement and not block people behind you.

If you were solely after a city car for getting about town, and were unlikely to go anywhere near motorways, then you might want a look.

un-dee · July 4th, 2007, 08:03 AM

The US are only getting the new Smart, and I guess it will be a lot better. The old one wasn't exactly a car for spirited driving, but for normal city driving it was perfectly okay.

Adunaphel · July 4th, 2007, 08:13 AM

Smart ForTwo is one of the most dangerous cars in the road today. Because of it's small size it has virtually no crumple zones (bad). Combined with the exceptionally strong safety cell (good) it tends to bounce back from a crash pretty hard (bad). So hard even in the Euro NCAP test that it ended up at what would've been the other lane, facing oncoming traffic (worse). The results were that the occupants would have survived that crash, but that there is a very big likelyhood that it would've been hit a second time. And because of it's short wheelbase, hard braking at motorway speeds tends to send it spinning, which also is very not good. So, if you only drive it in a big city, you should be okay, but only drive it on the motorway if you want to die.

jensked · July 4th, 2007, 08:44 AM

Well my mom has got the fourtwo.

It's a nice car in the city, because it's small and it doesn't consume anything.

BUT i don't like it to drive: it's too short so it bumps and hops like crazy. I can't seem to "ease" on the pedal. When i accelerate, first it does nothing, then it jumps with all the power it has got.

It's very very noisy. Steering is weird. It is just too small.

I'd never buy one. My mother is happy with the car...so it's down to personal taste of course.

Blind_Io · July 4th, 2007, 10:11 AM

"Trying to find the differences between this and it's predecessor is a bit like trying to remember which one of the Corrs plays the drums."

images/smilies/lol.gif

umm, the hot one? No, that won't work.

D-Fence · July 4th, 2007, 10:23 AM

To prove Adunaphels facts:

+ YouTube Video

Spectre · July 5th, 2007, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adunaphel

Smart ForTwo is one of the most dangerous cars in the road today. Because of it's small size it has virtually no crumple zones (bad). Combined with the exceptionally strong safety cell (good) it tends to bounce back from a crash pretty hard (bad). So hard even in the Euro NCAP test that it ended up at what would've been the other lane, facing oncoming traffic (worse). The results were that the occupants would have survived that crash, but that there is a very big likelyhood that it would've been hit a second time. And because of it's short wheelbase, hard braking at motorway speeds tends to send it spinning, which also is very not good. So, if you only drive it in a big city, you should be okay, but only drive it on the motorway if you want to die.

Some of the "old " ForTwos have made it over to the US. They actually sold a few here in Dallas. At least one of them has been in a collision that I'm aware of.

The idiot driver took it onto I-75 (an urban highway/motorway) in Central Dallas, and decided to cut across two lanes to try to make his exit. Unfortunately, the ForTwo has some pretty nasty blind spots and he failed to notice the giant F-450 service truck in the lane.

The F-450 literally ripped the ForTwo in half. And took no significant damage while doing so.

I wouldn't take one in Dallas, or any sprawling metropolitan area with decent traffic circulation. Too many cars that are too much larger that are going too much faster. It might work in New York City, but not here. I think the Yaris or Fit is about as small a car as can be safely used here, and even those are pushing it a bit. I've seen the Smart on the freeway here; when the wake from a passing Jaguar almost pushes the car out of the lane, there's a problem.

Speedtouch · July 6th, 2007, 08:00 PM

Why do they have to copy Top Gear ALL the time?

No Boss · July 7th, 2007, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeMans GTR

+ YouTube Video

"...Like a McLaren F1..."

Right. Well there's the overstatement of the year.

July 3rd, 2007, 12:41 PM	#1
GreenBadger Joined: Oct 7th, 2006 Last Online: December 25th, 2008 Location: Broadlands, Virginia Age: 59 Posts: 45 Car: 1999 ML-320, 2008 Smart fourtwo Rep Power: 10	Anyone own a Smart fourtwo? The Smart fourtwo will go on sale in the USA in August of 2008. Right now, Smart USA has a campaign going which allows one to "reserve" one for a refundable $99 deposit. Since the Smart cars have been on sale in Europe for a number of years, I was curious if any of you actually owned a Smart fourtwo, and what you thought of it. Note that there will only be three models available in the USA next year; the Smart "pure", "passion" and "passion cabrio". Thanks in advance

July 3rd, 2007, 02:32 PM	#3
MadCow809 Joined: Feb 23rd, 2006 Last Online: 04:23 PM Location: Durban, South Africa / Los Angeles, California Age: 23 Posts: 3,125 Car: 2007 E87 BMW 130i LFS Status: Rep Power: 32	dont know anyone that have ever though about buying a smart.. but if you are after a smart, then why dont you go for the roadster if space isnt an issue for you. __________________ Supporting : A.Priaulx, Kimi Räikkönen, J.Button, R.Kubica, P.Solberg, M.Hirvonen, J.Plato & M.Jackson FinalGear's Car/Bike Register 08/09 Currently looking for a car, got any suggestions? 08 Honda Civic Coupe 06 BMW 130i 05 Subaru Impreza 2.5RS 05 Ford Bantam 1.3i 95 Mercedes Benz E320 Sportline Intel Core 2 Duo E4300 @ 3Ghz (333 X 9 @ 1.44v ~ 35°c with ZEROtherm BTF90/92mm Cooler) \| DFI INFINITY P965-S \| Corsair XMS DDR II 800 6 Gb \| GeCube ATi HD3850 512mb @ 800/1000Mhz \| Seagate 500Gb + 500Gb + 750Gb + 1000Gb\| LITE-ON 20X DVDRW \| XION 600W PSU \| Logitech Z-2300 \| Logitech MX1000 \| Logitech G25 \| Dual 22" LCD Display @ 3360 x 1050 + Toshiba 40" HDTV @ 1920 x 1080 \| CoolerMaster Centurion 590 \| Vista 64 Ultimate \|

July 3rd, 2007, 03:29 PM	#5
sonza68 Joined: Feb 26th, 2007 Last Online: 04:48 PM Location: Chesterfield, MO, US Posts: 341 Car: '00 Cougar/'95 Mark VIII Rep Power: 11	It isn't. Only the ForTwo will be available in the US. __________________ Tom Beware the Honey Badger

July 3rd, 2007, 06:47 PM	#6
D-Fence Ibiza-Proll Joined: Apr 2nd, 2006 Last Online: 01:57 PM Location: Germany Posts: 2,404 Car: SEAT Ibiza LPG ;) Rep Power: 69	I testdrove the "old" fortwo. It sucked. It has shift times like hell and a stupid suspension, so when it accelerates, it bends backwards, when it shifts, the whole car falls forward, when the next gear is in, it bends backwards again. Piece of shit. __________________ Quiky & TechZ

July 3rd, 2007, 07:55 PM	#8
D-Fence Ibiza-Proll Joined: Apr 2nd, 2006 Last Online: 01:57 PM Location: Germany Posts: 2,404 Car: SEAT Ibiza LPG ;) Rep Power: 69	it definitely is. I had a Toyota Aygo (smaller than yaris) as a exchange car when mine was for service at the garage and it was 10 times better then the smart.... __________________ Quiky & TechZ

July 3rd, 2007, 02:45 PM	#4
Fiete Joined: Feb 19th, 2007 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Hamburg, Germany Age: 29 Posts: 59 Car: VW Lupo 1.0, Mitsubishi Evo VII 2.5cc ;-) Rep Power: 0	The roadster is already out of production. I don't think that used roadster are available in the US.

July 3rd, 2007, 07:01 PM	#7
thedguy ^ will bore you to death Joined: Jun 18th, 2004 Last Online: 06:16 AM Location: Under the Counter at McD's Posts: 5,901 Car: 1990 Mazda MX-5 Rep Power: 75	Personally I'd wait till some proper road tests in the US come out about them. I've read a couple articles about people driving the older ones here in the US on road trips and not achieving the mileage worthy of owning such a hideous car. You may find it's just better to go with a Honda Fit/Toyota Yaris.

July 4th, 2007, 08:03 AM	#10
un-dee I hate your sig! Joined: May 21st, 2004 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Frankfurt, Germany Age: 24 Posts: 1,410 Car: Mazda MX-3 Rep Power: 27	The US are only getting the new Smart, and I guess it will be a lot better. The old one wasn't exactly a car for spirited driving, but for normal city driving it was perfectly okay.

July 4th, 2007, 08:13 AM	#11
Adunaphel Global Moderator Joined: Jan 18th, 2006 Last Online: 10:35 AM Location: [ˈne:dərlɑnt] Age: 29 Posts: 3,600 Car: 1990 Mercedes-Benz 190E (W201) Rep Power: 67	Smart ForTwo is one of the most dangerous cars in the road today. Because of it's small size it has virtually no crumple zones (bad). Combined with the exceptionally strong safety cell (good) it tends to bounce back from a crash pretty hard (bad). So hard even in the Euro NCAP test that it ended up at what would've been the other lane, facing oncoming traffic (worse). The results were that the occupants would have survived that crash, but that there is a very big likelyhood that it would've been hit a second time. And because of it's short wheelbase, hard braking at motorway speeds tends to send it spinning, which also is very not good. So, if you only drive it in a big city, you should be okay, but only drive it on the motorway if you want to die. __________________ 01001001 00100000 01000001 01001101 00100000 01010100 01001000 01000101 00100000 01010011 01010100 01001001 01000111

July 4th, 2007, 08:44 AM	#12
jensked Joined: Mar 31st, 2005 Last Online: 10:30 AM Location: Flanders, Belgium Age: 25 Posts: 4,012 Car: RIP Opel Astra -> 2006 Toyota Corolla Wagon Rep Power: 43	Well my mom has got the fourtwo. It's a nice car in the city, because it's small and it doesn't consume anything. BUT i don't like it to drive: it's too short so it bumps and hops like crazy. I can't seem to "ease" on the pedal. When i accelerate, first it does nothing, then it jumps with all the power it has got. It's very very noisy. Steering is weird. It is just too small. I'd never buy one. My mother is happy with the car...so it's down to personal taste of course.

July 4th, 2007, 10:11 AM	#13
Blind_Io Dispenses buckshot medication for all undead patients. Joined: Apr 5th, 2006 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Richmond, California, USA Age: 28 Posts: 9,076 Car: 2004 Honda Civic Coupe 2000 VFR800 Interceptor Rep Power: 121	"Trying to find the differences between this and it's predecessor is a bit like trying to remember which one of the Corrs plays the drums." umm, the hot one? No, that won't work. __________________ War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength

July 6th, 2007, 08:00 PM	#16
Speedtouch Joined: Jul 30th, 2006 Last Online: 04:29 PM Location: Kent, England Age: 16 Posts: 2,858 Rep Power: 34	Why do they have to copy Top Gear ALL the time? __________________ Eyre Photography

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