RE: Smart Roadster Coupe: Spotted
Discussion
The Pela is fine. One thing I would recommend is a spin on filter conversion (about £50). This not only makes changing the filter easier (the hex on the crappy plastic filter housing has a tendency to round off) it also provides a significant increase in filter area as the standard filters are miniscule. With the adapter there is a large number of M20 threaded filters you can use.
Other things worth checking, if not already done.
Reluctor rings on the rear outer CV joints. If they are originals they will be rusty and will probably split at some stage, causing ABS/traction control issues. The ones on my wife's were still in one piece, but heavily corroded so I wire brushed most of it off, then used a rust converter on the rest and then etch primed and painted them. New reluctor rings are pretty cheap though.
Rear brake shoes. Usually these are ignored until they start grinding, or until the car fails an MOT. When I checked my wife's there was plenty of friction material left, but almost all of it had delaminated from the metal shoe. If this happens it can lock the rear wheels up.
Cam chain tensioners: Remove the oil cap on the cam cover, and try to pull the chain away from the sprockets with your fingers. There should be virtually no movement available, if it's more than a mm or so then chances are one of the plastic guides has broken, a very common fault.
SE Drive (gear lever). The inner part of the gear lever assembly can drop down (held by small, ineffective plastic clips) which stops the ignition switch working. This happened on my wife's car, fortunately only a few miles from home. Self tapping screws or nuts and bolts can be used to secure the assembly and prevent this though it does mean removing the seats and carpet (not a big job). removing the carpet is a good idea anyway as you can check for evidence of leaks, especially in the drivers footwell which present a risk to the 'SAM' body control system.
Other things worth checking, if not already done.
Reluctor rings on the rear outer CV joints. If they are originals they will be rusty and will probably split at some stage, causing ABS/traction control issues. The ones on my wife's were still in one piece, but heavily corroded so I wire brushed most of it off, then used a rust converter on the rest and then etch primed and painted them. New reluctor rings are pretty cheap though.
Rear brake shoes. Usually these are ignored until they start grinding, or until the car fails an MOT. When I checked my wife's there was plenty of friction material left, but almost all of it had delaminated from the metal shoe. If this happens it can lock the rear wheels up.
Cam chain tensioners: Remove the oil cap on the cam cover, and try to pull the chain away from the sprockets with your fingers. There should be virtually no movement available, if it's more than a mm or so then chances are one of the plastic guides has broken, a very common fault.
SE Drive (gear lever). The inner part of the gear lever assembly can drop down (held by small, ineffective plastic clips) which stops the ignition switch working. This happened on my wife's car, fortunately only a few miles from home. Self tapping screws or nuts and bolts can be used to secure the assembly and prevent this though it does mean removing the seats and carpet (not a big job). removing the carpet is a good idea anyway as you can check for evidence of leaks, especially in the drivers footwell which present a risk to the 'SAM' body control system.
heebeegeetee said:
Is he trading it in for a Honda S660?http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Or after driving what he currently has to on Sundays, maybe its anything but Honda
, I had a low mileage notchback roadster for 3 years and I'd never have another as long as I live. It handled well, did very good mpg and felt quick enough....until you encountered a 1.9 diesel people carrier you couldn't overtake and died a little inside.
I also found it flooded twice after heavy rain. Not just a few drips but literally things floating in it. I thought it looked good when I got it, there werent many around. Girls thought it was "cute". Blokes regularly laughed at me in it. I'm 6 foot, my Mrs described me as a "bear in a push chair".
The gear change is as slow as described, even after the software updates. You have to lift off a bit when changing or its even more dim witted. It won't hold onto gears either. You get the feeling it would be at least warm hatch quick with a manual, in gear performance is surprising if you keep "its a car with only 700cc" in mind.
I paid £7k for mine a good few years ago now. They are maybe worth a punt now at (I guess) about £2k?. Keep it serviced!
I also found it flooded twice after heavy rain. Not just a few drips but literally things floating in it. I thought it looked good when I got it, there werent many around. Girls thought it was "cute". Blokes regularly laughed at me in it. I'm 6 foot, my Mrs described me as a "bear in a push chair".
The gear change is as slow as described, even after the software updates. You have to lift off a bit when changing or its even more dim witted. It won't hold onto gears either. You get the feeling it would be at least warm hatch quick with a manual, in gear performance is surprising if you keep "its a car with only 700cc" in mind.
I paid £7k for mine a good few years ago now. They are maybe worth a punt now at (I guess) about £2k?. Keep it serviced!
Thanks for the replies, chaps!
Pela is on order, as is the oil filter adapter -- makes a lot of sense.
The reluctor rings are fine thankfully, as are the brakes. Previous owner just had them refreshed (discs, pads, drums, the full set) at the local indy we use for our 42. On that front all is clear, just want to paint the drums before they start rusting.
Will have a look at the cam chain tensioners. Excellent info, thanks again Mike! And continue the hunt for leaks. Surprisingly only found evidence of past water ingress on the right speaker so far. Paper cone was done for, so a good occasion to upgrade the rather rubbish OEM stuff.
Chassis bits were also just refreshed, ponies seem to be all present and accounted for, so far no oil consumption. The engine mounts will need doing soon (central one looks like quite the job
), but apart from that, fingers crossed, she seems to be fairly healthy.
Talking of value: I paid the equivalent of 3500 GBP for it. Recon that was fair with all the recent work carried out. Two owner car with service history, 50k miles. Good ones seem to start round that area (5k EUR) here.
My specimen is far from "concours" though, panels (plain black) have some scratches, clear coat starts getting weak in a a few areas, soft top also not pretty.
Pela is on order, as is the oil filter adapter -- makes a lot of sense.
The reluctor rings are fine thankfully, as are the brakes. Previous owner just had them refreshed (discs, pads, drums, the full set) at the local indy we use for our 42. On that front all is clear, just want to paint the drums before they start rusting.
Will have a look at the cam chain tensioners. Excellent info, thanks again Mike! And continue the hunt for leaks. Surprisingly only found evidence of past water ingress on the right speaker so far. Paper cone was done for, so a good occasion to upgrade the rather rubbish OEM stuff.
Chassis bits were also just refreshed, ponies seem to be all present and accounted for, so far no oil consumption. The engine mounts will need doing soon (central one looks like quite the job
), but apart from that, fingers crossed, she seems to be fairly healthy.Talking of value: I paid the equivalent of 3500 GBP for it. Recon that was fair with all the recent work carried out. Two owner car with service history, 50k miles. Good ones seem to start round that area (5k EUR) here.
My specimen is far from "concours" though, panels (plain black) have some scratches, clear coat starts getting weak in a a few areas, soft top also not pretty.
Kolbenkopp said:
The engine mounts will need doing soon (central one looks like quite the job ),
The secret to doing the front engine mount is to re-use the bracket that bolts onto the gearbox rather than using the new one that comes with the mount. This greatly simplifies the job, as removing the bracket is a PITA. Obviously you need to support the engine with a suitable jack and a bit of wood. The other mounts are much easier to access.),I'd recommend using the quality Meyle engine mounts rather than the cheaper pattern parts.
If you notice any increase in oil consumption, the first thing to do is replace the upper engine breather - the one way valve sticks open and allows compressed air from the turbo to enter the crankcase, forcing oil past the rings.
Edited by Mr2Mike on Wednesday 10th June 20:34
Mr2Mike said:
The secret to doing the front engine mount is to re-use the bracket that bolts onto the gearbox rather than using the new one that comes with the mount.
Ah, good! That sounds a fair bit easier access wise. Might try to swap it myself after all (depending on what the indy quotes). Usually I'm so slow these days that renting a garage/lift isn't worthwile, but taking a good look at the thing from now and then myself can't hurt. Mr2Mike said:
I'd recommend using the quality Meyle engine mounts rather than the cheaper pattern parts.
Yup, agreed. Their stuff usually works really well (in my experience). And good value at ~ EUR 30 per mount as well.Do you have any experience with filling the rubber donuts with PU sealant? Read some reports of people having good success stiffening the bits with e.g. Sikaflex 221. Apparently NVH neutral but way more durable and more controlled engine movement. Sounds interesting.
Mr2Mike said:
If you notice any increase in oil consumption, the first thing to do is replace the upper engine breather - the one way valve sticks open and allows compressed air from the turbo to enter the crankcase, forcing oil past the rings.
Uh yes, nasty. That one I knew, one problem that lead to many original 450 engines giving up early, before MB revised the part. Tempted to make it a regular service item even if that seems a bit wasteful. Despite the things one does for love, sucking on that breather pipe to find out the blasted thing still does it's job isn't that sexy 
...AH33] [... said:
I paid £7k for mine a good few years ago now. They are maybe worth a punt now at (I guess) about £2k?. Keep it serviced!
Definitely will, quite smitten with the little thing to be honest. I'd say they are well worth a punt at the current price, reason I finally bought one. But definitely not for everyone. The perennial MX5 does most objective stuff better, your choice of NA or NB in same budget. And if you want a weekend toy and can scrape 10 - 15k together, there are more hard-core options available with (currently) low or negative depreciation.
But the pocket roadster has a lot of upsides IMO: looks, positive image, good brakes, silly corner entry speeds for something so cheap, rarity, open top motoring at the press of a button, cheap consumables, usability, excellent efficiency, plastic or galvanized bodywork, very low tax and insurance...
Sum it up: I feel that now they are cheap, out of the spotlight and rare enough, the thing can finally be treated for what it is: a desirable, good looking, modern and highly efficient take on a Spridget type car. Complete with leaks and unnerving idiosyncrasies.
What really does it for me is the compactness. Vibe is just like that from my first cars, real minis in the early 90es. Would love the opportunity to drive a well sorted GTM or Mini Marcos for comparison
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