Talk to me about.... Smart cars...
Discussion
Just started a new job. It's further away than my last and so I'll be doing a 30 mile round trip every day. Not massive miles but noticeably worse off on the petrol front than my old commute of 5 miles each way and probably only driving a few days a week, cycling the rest.
I've run a few what cars on here in the last few months to help me decide on cars. Originally I was looking at a small, sporty hatch with reasonable insurance and running costs. Narrowed it down to either the Ignis Sport or Yaris T-Sport. This was intended as a fun, get me to work and back with some weekend fun thrown in, car which would fit my daughter in the back when needed, we would use my partners car on longer journeys as it's bigger.
After a visit down to my Mums (Stoke to London) I decided that what I really need is an economical estate. Did a what car and pretty much decided on a Rover 75/MG ZZ-T CDTI. This would have been my work car and the main family car too which would fit the 2 dogs in the boot, with the buggy and daughter on the back seat.
Now I've changed my job, the Rover/MG is still on the cars (still being reasonably economical) but I'm thinking about going back to the original idea of having just a little work hack that is just to get me to work and back and then use my partners car for anything else. Something uber economical, super cheap to tax and super cheap to insure.
Had a few ideas like the Fiat Panda, VW Lupo, Seat Arosa etc. But the smart just stands out as ideal what what I want it to do.
I've driven one before. My partner had one as a company car a few years back. It was fun to drive. Felt quicker than it was and was comfortable too. Nice space in the back to put the dogs in should I need to cart them somewhere too.
On paper, the 0-60 is in minutes, not seconds but I really don't remember it being that slow. We saw 85 out of the company one and It didn't seem to get there that slowly.
What are they like for reliability? Reviews seem to give them 4/5 in most cases but I can't help think that it is of the Mercedes A-class era of build quality and rust also springs to mind. obviously the body is ok, being plastic, but do the chassis rot in any nasty places? Gear boxes are a concern too. Is the auto or semi auto better? Or are they just the same box with different options? My partners company car had a breakdown and refused to select gears. The garage told her it was a common problem with them but ultimately an easy fix (don't know the cost, the company covered it). It was, however, a complete dog of a car, purchased second hand for £2k around 5 years ago so was really the bottom end of the market and would be, even now!
So, avoid or have a think about it?
I've run a few what cars on here in the last few months to help me decide on cars. Originally I was looking at a small, sporty hatch with reasonable insurance and running costs. Narrowed it down to either the Ignis Sport or Yaris T-Sport. This was intended as a fun, get me to work and back with some weekend fun thrown in, car which would fit my daughter in the back when needed, we would use my partners car on longer journeys as it's bigger.
After a visit down to my Mums (Stoke to London) I decided that what I really need is an economical estate. Did a what car and pretty much decided on a Rover 75/MG ZZ-T CDTI. This would have been my work car and the main family car too which would fit the 2 dogs in the boot, with the buggy and daughter on the back seat.
Now I've changed my job, the Rover/MG is still on the cars (still being reasonably economical) but I'm thinking about going back to the original idea of having just a little work hack that is just to get me to work and back and then use my partners car for anything else. Something uber economical, super cheap to tax and super cheap to insure.
Had a few ideas like the Fiat Panda, VW Lupo, Seat Arosa etc. But the smart just stands out as ideal what what I want it to do.
I've driven one before. My partner had one as a company car a few years back. It was fun to drive. Felt quicker than it was and was comfortable too. Nice space in the back to put the dogs in should I need to cart them somewhere too.
On paper, the 0-60 is in minutes, not seconds but I really don't remember it being that slow. We saw 85 out of the company one and It didn't seem to get there that slowly.
What are they like for reliability? Reviews seem to give them 4/5 in most cases but I can't help think that it is of the Mercedes A-class era of build quality and rust also springs to mind. obviously the body is ok, being plastic, but do the chassis rot in any nasty places? Gear boxes are a concern too. Is the auto or semi auto better? Or are they just the same box with different options? My partners company car had a breakdown and refused to select gears. The garage told her it was a common problem with them but ultimately an easy fix (don't know the cost, the company covered it). It was, however, a complete dog of a car, purchased second hand for £2k around 5 years ago so was really the bottom end of the market and would be, even now!
So, avoid or have a think about it?
Servicing can be expensive depending on where you take it, otherwise not bad cars as a hack.
You'll probably get answers to all of your questions on http://www.smartz.co.uk/
You'll probably get answers to all of your questions on http://www.smartz.co.uk/
My wife ran a Smart Passion from 2000-2003 about 30,000 miles covered in all weathers and at all speeds,was one of the first in the area l/h drive.
comfy,nippy,obviously good on fuel and the air con kept it coolish in summer.
Loved it and had no problems mechanically at all and the finish lasted well.
comfy,nippy,obviously good on fuel and the air con kept it coolish in summer.
Loved it and had no problems mechanically at all and the finish lasted well.
mrdelmonti said:
Servicing can be expensive depending on where you take it, otherwise not bad cars as a hack.
I do a lot of DIY maintenance on cars. Only put them into a garage when I can't be bothered to do a big job. What are they like to work on? I assume the engines are fairly run of the mill but I imagine that access will be a bugger?300bhp/ton said:
What smart are you talking about???? Dogs in the back and rear seats ???? 
You didn't read the whole thing.Looking at a simple work hack just to get me to work and back and use my partners car for anything else. You could get a dog or 2 small ones in the back of a normal 2 door smart. Nice bit of space behind the seats.
Deluded said:
mrdelmonti said:
Servicing can be expensive depending on where you take it, otherwise not bad cars as a hack.
I do a lot of DIY maintenance on cars. Only put them into a garage when I can't be bothered to do a big job. What are they like to work on? I assume the engines are fairly run of the mill but I imagine that access will be a bugger?Like I said though, not sure what it's like with the other models, but I imagine it's similar.
Edited by mrdelmonti on Thursday 30th June 21:15
mrdelmonti said:
Not sure what the other models are like but to a proper service on my Roadster you need to take the back end off, it sounds like a lot of work but in reality it only takes 15-20 minutes to remove.
Like I said though, not sure what it's like with the other models.
Cheers. Any idea what sort of life span the engines have? Been looking on a few owners forums and people seem to be selling them with around 60-70k on the clocks after just having had a full engine rebuild!...Like I said though, not sure what it's like with the other models.
My wife has an 04 plate one, cant fault it, nippy enough about town, wont set the world alight on a motorway, cruises at 70 no problem with a good mpg return, cheap tax. On the flip side there are a lot of bad reports about them, but then people only tend to talk when there is a problem!, I am a bit sad and change the oil and filter every 3k, simple ten minute job once you have mastered it, you dont even get underneath as oil is sucked out through dip stick hole with the aid of a £15 tool.
There are people on owners forums that I've seen running them at 100k with no massive bills, being a small engine though I think you can expect for parts to wear a little faster, but saying that, they are only light.
Like I said before, try out Smartz, the guys on there know far more about these cars than me.
Like I said before, try out Smartz, the guys on there know far more about these cars than me.
Assume you're looking at the first generation FourTwo? I don't think there is too much to worry about, although I seem to remember something about cracking exhaust manifolds. Somebody else may know more. It's worth looking at Pulse models or anything else with the wider wheels/tyres. It makes a huge difference to higher speed stability and general grip. One last curve ball to throw in, is that we have a brand new Smart CDi for £91 per month over two years... Free road tax and a warranty for peace of mind. Maybe another option?
Deluded said:
Cheers. Any idea what sort of life span the engines have? Been looking on a few owners forums and people seem to be selling them with around 60-70k on the clocks after just having had a full engine rebuild!...
I just bought the wife one of these and that's what I saw, lots of engine rebuilds around the 60k mark. What surprised me is how many miles people do in these things, after a 30 min trip in the passenger seat I felt like I needed a new spine.Bought a Smart Brabus Fortwo cab a month ago and love it!
I drive it 30 miles each way to work, have had 110 kph out of it (
) I drive it like a go kart with the paddle shift and the look people give you is great. They are amazed at how it goes. Though 100bhp and 700 kg means a decent power to weight. I get 38 to 41 mpg but I tend, at the moment, to drive it faster then most of my other cars.
It's a great place to be in. The seats in mine are good, AC strong, roof and rear section can be lowered at speed (done both at 80mph no problem). It understeers strongly when pushed but is a little go kart until then.
Down sides are the short wheel base will accentuate bumps, and the auto mode is a bit jerky until you get used to it. If you drive with the paddles and lift off the throttle as you change (ala manual gearbox) it's pretty slick an smooth.
Have no idea on servicing or reliability yet!
It's not perfect, but space utilisation (for two) high seating position (good view and easy ingress and egress) and general efficiency mean it's perfect for what I want from it.
Hope it helps one way or another.
I drive it 30 miles each way to work, have had 110 kph out of it (
) I drive it like a go kart with the paddle shift and the look people give you is great. They are amazed at how it goes. Though 100bhp and 700 kg means a decent power to weight. I get 38 to 41 mpg but I tend, at the moment, to drive it faster then most of my other cars. It's a great place to be in. The seats in mine are good, AC strong, roof and rear section can be lowered at speed (done both at 80mph no problem). It understeers strongly when pushed but is a little go kart until then.
Down sides are the short wheel base will accentuate bumps, and the auto mode is a bit jerky until you get used to it. If you drive with the paddles and lift off the throttle as you change (ala manual gearbox) it's pretty slick an smooth.
Have no idea on servicing or reliability yet!
It's not perfect, but space utilisation (for two) high seating position (good view and easy ingress and egress) and general efficiency mean it's perfect for what I want from it.
Hope it helps one way or another.
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