I have a friend in Switzerland that is deciding between a MC and a Smart roadster.

Any advice from across the pond there that can aid him?

 

Heh Let me know! Or I'm gonna buy that smart

 

Sadly, I don't think many people even know what a smart car is on this side of the pond. Though I suspect a lot of them think it's a car that'll drive itself while they're busy talking on the phone! :evil:

I know a little about them but not near enough to even begin to give you an intelligent response about which would be better.

 

Smart cars were pretty popular here in Mexico until the MINI came out and blew them into oblivion.
They're unique but impractical, unsafe, and painfully slow.
They're great for what they are designed to do, which is negotiate tiny European streets in densely populated urban settings. Forget about going on the open road or highway, though.
Keep in mind I'm talking about the smart coupes, the new roadster might be a bit better suited for your needs although they are still really slow.


_________________

 

Oh, we know what a Smart car is. We just can't buy one.

GO here for some great advise about how the Smart Car drives and a couple good photos too!

Paul got to drive the neighbor's Smart

 

>>They're unique but impractical, unsafe, and painfully slow.
>>They're great for what they are designed to do, which is negotiate tiny European streets in densely populated urban settings. Forget about going on the open road or highway, though.
>>Keep in mind I'm talking about the smart coupes, the new roadster might be a bit better suited for your needs although they are still really slow.


Ditto what calvin77 said.

Also, the ones I've seen in Holland and England had a look I can only describe as "wrong." Kind of like they had their rear-half chopped-off.

Nothing like the harmonious, balanced, and dulcet lines of the MINI.

 

any pics of the smart car?

 

>>any pics of the smart car?

Here is a link:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bristol/content...smart_lead.jpg

 

The Smart Roadster looks very cool from some reviews I've read. And a pretty great price as well, as I recall. Unfortunately, looks to be frighteningly unsafe...maybe that's unfair, but it looks scary to me.

 

Haven't ridden in one, but I don't think they look as stylish as a MINI....

 

Coopers and Smarts can be regarded as different class cars looking at the engine.

Smart does the 100km run around 15 secs. Base cooper under 10.

I'm not saying that the Smart is crap, it depends on what you want. I think driving pleasure and speed, get a cooper. For fun, either. For pure city driving, all traffic, small parking, I think the smart is cool. Fuel efficiency, smart. Class... Cooper, Power... Cooper S.

 

>>I have a friend in Switzerland that is deciding between a MC and a Smart roadster.
>>
>>Any advice from across the pond there that can aid him?

Tell him to drive both cars as much as possible, compare the prices and other spec.s and then make up his own mind. But warn him that, if he buys the Smart and then wants to drive your MINI, he's out ot luck.

 

Get the MINI! I heard they're gonna bring the smart here?

 

No he wants the smart roadster. This car is shown on this page.Smart Car

other links:
http://www.autointell.net/nao_compan...oadster-99.htm
http://www.tiscali.co.uk/motoring/ro...est_540_1.html

 

>>
>>>>They're unique but impractical, unsafe, and painfully slow.
>>>>They're great for what they are designed to do, which is negotiate tiny European streets in densely populated urban settings. Forget about going on the open road or highway, though.
>>>>Keep in mind I'm talking about the smart coupes, the new roadster might be a bit better suited for your needs although they are still really slow.
>>
>>
>>
>> Smart?

 

The new Smart roadster looks very unike and striking, though it still has a max power of over 80hp so I don´t know how fast it could be (It is very light weight though so that compensates the lack of power).

A good friend used to import smarts (city coupes and cabrios) into Mexico City over a year ago. I personally love the looks of the micro car and think it is an excellent transport for high traffic, small street cities.

The ONE thing that turned me off from buying one of these cars was the extremely slow start. These cars have a manual gearbox with no clutch (it is a standard shifter, not an autostick kind of transmission). When you make a complete stop the car shifts into neutral, when you want to go you have to press the gas pedal hard and wait.... wait... wait... then it slowly starts. Once it starts it moves around pretty decent.

Now just imagine trying to merge into a freeway with this situation. Could potentially be very dangerous.

So, tell your friend to drive both cars in different situations, not just around the block, especially the Smart.

Hope it helps...

 

im with Calvin77....besides the mini looks great...the smart car looks like something my 3yr old nephew got for his birthday!!

 

Having lived in Europe, I've driven a smart car (Brussels airport- ie. Zaventum rents them if you request them). I lived in Antwerp in the Grote Markt (very dense, small streets, cobblestones).

The Smart car was quite nice for that, easy on gas too. Ride was choppy on city streets, but tolerable. But on the highway, not too much fun- sways in the wind,
doesn't like to go over 120KM/H (not sure the top speed, 85ish MPH?) without
struggling. The understeer was strange, tho I guess thats good- oversteer=flip.
Ride wasn't too nice either.

A picture of a smart car (at Amsterdam Schipol airport, was still there when I passed thru this past June on my way to Spain).
http://www.dolch.net/Europe2002/Amsterdam/smartcar.jpg

Parkings a snap in the city
http://www.dolch.net/Europe2002/Lond...carparking.jpg

The roadsters are ok, but I still think the mini is much better finished and comfortable. Plus, (IMHO) the styling on the Mini won't tire out as quickly...

-Matt

 

>>The roadsters are ok, but I still think the mini is much better finished and comfortable. Plus, (IMHO) the styling on the Mini won't tire out as quickly...

I agree. Judging from the websites posted earler, the roadster looks like a cute, fun, little car that's slightly overpriced. I didn't see much in the way of performance data, but I suspect that the MINI has an edge in almost every respect. (Of course the roadster gets better gas milage, and a handling comparison would be interesting to see.) And finally a car, compared to which, we have more *room*!

I'm really glad to see some interesting small cars start to appear in the market. Maybe all those trendy folks who buy SUVs to commute to work solo, will have a more sensable alternative.

 

Besides the bubble gum dispenser Smart car dealerships, there is nothing I prefer about a Smart when compared to a MINI. If your friend wants to really go gonzo, I'd suggest a MCS over the standard MINI One or MC. There is nothing like a "city" car with 163hp.

 

I have to admit that that roadster does look cool.

Not as cool as a Mini, but it does look cool.

As for the tiny ones, I was placing drunken bets in Amsterdam about how many shoves it would take to toss one in a canal.

Of course I'd never do that, but it was worth a good laugh.

 

Tell you what, if i ever decide to have a millionaire's toybox (garage with many cars in it) that roadster will be amongst them. I'm not the type to be set on the iconic cars (BMW, Porsche, Ferrari) so I think that would have to be amongst them. I'd have a few classic minis fo course, all modified.

I was thinking it would be cool to redo the body on one to make it look like a mini muscle car.

 

When I visited Germany a couple of years ago, I saw these cars. They looked so cool, but being a firefighter, they reminded me of a mobile coffin. No need to put you in a box. Just put the car in the ground.

I still think they are cool....heck they are probably even very safe. I actually saw one backed into a parking spot where everyone else was parallel parked. That was neato!