Article Comments: 2008 Smart Fortwo First Look and Drive

65 messages, Last post on Jun 22, 2008 at 7:42 AM

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What is this discussion about? smart fortwo, Hatchback

Article comments for First Look: 2008 Smart Fortwo - Americans' newfound love affair with small cars is about to be tested with the arrival of the 2008 Smart Fortwo. (more)

First Drive: 2008 Smart Fortwo Passion - Once you get some momentum together, it's a pleasure to drive the Smart. Despite its short 73.5-inch wheelbase, the Fortwo absorbs bumps and potholes quite well. The ride quality isn't exactly as supple as a Maybach, but the motions are surprisingly gentle. (more)

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#58 of 65 sbonhartwell by sbonhartwell Dec 08, 2007 (2:10 pm)
What about the road noise level on these cars. Can someone tell me something about this? Thank you
#59 of 65 I don't know specifically... by bumpy Dec 08, 2007 (4:55 pm)
but I didn't notice anything exceptional about the noise inside the cabin. The tires are fairly narrow by modern standards and the exhaust is well-muffled, so that helps to keep the noise down. Replies to this message: sbonhartwell (Dec 08, 2007 6:20 pm)
#60 of 65 Re: I don't know specifically... [bumpy] by sbonhartwell Dec 08, 2007 (6:20 pm)
Replying to: bumpy (Dec 08, 2007 4:55 pm) Thanks for all the responses. I appreciate folks sharing their thoughts on the Smart Car. I am one who paid the $ 99.00 and most likely will get one when it becomes available. The toyota IQ shows promise but more waiting will be required for it. It's like before I bought my Prius and joined the Prius group on Yahoo. I got loads of information and passed much of it on to the dealers' personnel until they became convenienced it was a fine car. Thanks again, Sam
#62 of 65 Smart??? by shebb Jun 12, 2008 (4:56 pm)
Ok who was it that was smart enough to come up with the line in the video I just watched that said and I quote: "The new Smart is much larger than the original, but not by much." Not very "smart"!
#63 of 65 MPG by 74apollo Jun 19, 2008 (7:28 am)
I had my $99 down on a Smart up until December when I decided that a Honda Civic Hybrid was a better deal for me. I am interested in better mpg but was not impressed with what the Smart was offering. The test drive I took last summer brought to light the jerky tran, which I didn't much care for. I picked up my Honda Hybrid in Jan and have averaged 40.2 mpg for 5,604 miles (combined city & hwy). My last road trip netted 48.9 mpg for 365 miles. This is much more impressive than the Smart and it is a much larger ride. If you are looking for mpg, the Smart is not that great. If you want something smaller than a Honda, try the Mini - I have one of those too.
#64 of 65 Civic Hybrid by scottl Jun 22, 2008 (7:42 am)
Yes, Civic Hybrids are nice, but around here they are going out the door at $24K! My Passion model with climate control, heated seats, six disk changer, stability and traction control, etc. was $15K. They are not in the same league, pricewise. Even gas Civics are 18-19K when equipped comparably to the smart. The current Civic Hybrid is a bit undecided, but the first generation have had major battery and electronics problems late in life. If the batteries die, I understand it is about $6K to replace them. Except you can't get them, because they are backordered for months. As are the controller boards. A guy I work with wrangled with Honda over the batteries going bad on his '03 Civic Hybrid. He ended up selling it just to get it out of his life. I think for someone who fits a specific profile, which seems to be driving 12-15K a year, the Civic Hybrid makes sense. People who drive short trips and few miles per year seem to be having battery problems, as are people who put a ton of miles on them. Good luck.