How Smart?

I come from a Smart family. Smart Car, that is. There are only a handful on American roads, but one belongs to my sister-in-law, and another to my mother. Indeed, Mom officially got the first Smart delivered in Arizona, and named it Alistair. When the Mrs. and I were in Phoenix for a wedding last weekend, my parents were out of town, but everyone else in the family encouraged us to take it out for a spin. So we parked the pickup and became Smart drivers for a day.

My impressions: It's been said before but it really is surprisingly roomy in the driver's seat. Mrs. Phoenix had a problem with passenger-side legroom, until we found out that the seat was moved way forward. Even after shifting it back, the seat release handle jabbed her in the back of the calf, which was reportedly uncomfortable.

Since the needle was flirting with E, our first stop was the gas station. Even though it requires Premium, the price to fill the tank was refreshing after driving a pickup truck the length of California. Alistair is a convertible, and it was very nice rolling down to the restaurant with the top open and windows down in the warmth of a spring Arizona night.

Less nice is the transmission. The Smart has a pronounced jerk when upshifting. It's a shockingly-long hesitation. Once you get used to it, it still surprises you every time with just how long you have no power. It's even worse when it goes from 1st to 2nd while cornering, like after a stop sign; you get halfway around the corner and just hang there for a second. My brother advised that it's best to ease off the gas just before it shifts, and I admit it works fairly well, but I think it's basically psychological. By making the loss of power less sudden, and less involuntary, it seems less drastic. But it's no substitute for smooth shifting. I'd prefer a manual.

However, Alistair had plenty of zoom. We drove from Arrowhead all the way down to Mesa, freeway all the way, and actually found ourselves in the fast lane more than we expected. It keeps up great. Of course it parks great.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety says, and I'm sure Smart would agree, that the car is very safe in a crash. And that's good, because it feels like a crash magnet. It's not that I felt small in traffic. It's that people around us drove stupid, because they couldn't help staring. (and slowing down If you get a Smart car, everyone will talk to you. At stoplights. In parking lots. Pretty much any time you have the window open. Based on our limited sample, 80% asked what the mileage is, the others ask if we like it. In both cases, we had no clue and couldn't answer.

Final opinion: Cute car. Adorable. Comfortable. Economic. But not for me.

Comments

[Dad]

I am glad you found it enjoyable, if not for you. I actually wouldn't expect it to be "you", or for your sweetie either. As your sister-in-law points out, it's primarily a "life-style" car... and one that doesn't match your current life style.

For those of us whose life style it -does- match, it's been a blast! Yes, the whole shifting thing is a bit awkward at first, but you learn to feel and anticipate how it will react, and you can then "become one" with it. When in this groove, there is no "pronounced jerk when upshifting", and no "shockingly-long hesitation" - instead there can be either a nice smooth shifting of gears or a peppy sprint to high speed. You may not have tried (or known of) the manual shifting capability that puts you entirely in command; this may have helped you feel more comfortable.

The mileage is listed at about 40 MPG average; in city we've been getting about 37. When I drive Alistair exclusively, I expect that I may be getting even less because I accelerate faster. We intend on taking her to the mountains this long weekend, so we'll see how she does on the highway (albeit one that is decidedly NOT flat).

We definitely do get a lot of attention; as mentioned elsewhere, we have to add 5 to 15 minutes to any trip due to interaction with gawkers.

Oddly, and statistically anomalously, there are now at least 3 smart owners at my office building. Of course, those of us here are definitely 'smart' people!

[FYI, for those that think I'm mistakenly not capitalizing 'smart', it
-is- all lowercase; Dan's usage is in error. That's likely his one and only error for the year]

[Dan]

I don't care how many high-concept designers you cram in a room. An auto manufacturer's name is a proper noun and proper nouns are capitalized. I'd expect Germans to be especially particular about that.

[Dad]

It's all marketing, not designing/engineering. THAT overrules the rules. It's not the first company to do so.

I suspect 'smart' is all lowercase to emphasize its diminutive stature. It's all the more Strongly Emphasized because it IS a German car; it probably grates severely on some Germans' nerves because it is definitely "nicht in Ordnung".

Nevertheless, there we are: "smart"

[Jen]

you were in town and didn't call me?? what's up with that?? :p

i've been starting to see them around town a bit lately. congrats to your mom for being the first :o)

[Dad]

I saw two more "new ones" today. I.e., ones I haven't seen before in our neck of the woods. They are multiplying like rabbits!

Hey Jen - we owe you a wedding present of a framed fine art photo. Give us a call, okay?

[Jen]

Indeed! I can't believe it's already been 8 months... time flies, eh?

[Kevin Baker]

How would you like a Smart car with a 1300cc Suzuki GSX-R motor?