smart cars????
Discussion
Why not invest in a smart roadster..... Satisfies the daily cheap hack and the weekend toy!
I used to own the roadster coupe. Could get 50mpg with relative ease. No major issues in 2 years ownership. Servicing, especially spark plug change can get pricey, but some good independents dotted around the country. Engine life is alledgely a concern but failures seem infrequent and random.
Mike
I used to own the roadster coupe. Could get 50mpg with relative ease. No major issues in 2 years ownership. Servicing, especially spark plug change can get pricey, but some good independents dotted around the country. Engine life is alledgely a concern but failures seem infrequent and random.
Mike
We've run one for 12 months and 25k miles so far. Not an ideal motorway car, but great around town. Gearbox is comically slow, however you soon learn to live with it. Just had it's second replacement windscreen due to stone chips. Does about 230-250 on a £35 (ish) tank of fuel. Road tax is £15 for the year. Certainly quick enough to stay with traffic and will sit at 80 on the m-way. It genuinely puts a smile on my face when I drive it!
I've some some fairly long trips in SMARTS, Bedfordshire to Nice, Malaga to Madrid .. find them ok, (and my everyday car is a Jag X350). Found them reasonably quiet & comfortable, and frugal. And I found it quite good fun to drive.
Early ones have a tendency to drop valves, usually as a consequence of a cracked manifold (which is only available new with a turbo for big bucks). Don't know if this affects the later ones, but 60/70k seemed to be a critical period .. look on ebay loads of 'slight misfire' cars for sale
Early ones have a tendency to drop valves, usually as a consequence of a cracked manifold (which is only available new with a turbo for big bucks). Don't know if this affects the later ones, but 60/70k seemed to be a critical period .. look on ebay loads of 'slight misfire' cars for sale
Good cars i owned one for 4 years . cant beat filling it up it used to cost me £17 ha!
I did suffer the cracked manifold and engine failure - i had a new engine new turbo and it happily did 40,000 miles and then i sold it its still on the road so i assume its going strong. -
Things to consider why owning one is the fact their maintenance, i would always recommend replace plugs on each service , regular oil changes are recommended too as its a fairly highly stressed engine.
Good thing is the oil can be changed easily with a Pela 6000 oil extractor via the dipstick (no sump nut) plugs are a little more tricky need to remove the bumper and the crash bar to gain good access.
There are common problems but which car doesnt have them. Check the gearbox functions as it should / brake light switch was a common reason for it not selecting between neutral and first.
I did suffer the cracked manifold and engine failure - i had a new engine new turbo and it happily did 40,000 miles and then i sold it its still on the road so i assume its going strong. -
Things to consider why owning one is the fact their maintenance, i would always recommend replace plugs on each service , regular oil changes are recommended too as its a fairly highly stressed engine.
Good thing is the oil can be changed easily with a Pela 6000 oil extractor via the dipstick (no sump nut) plugs are a little more tricky need to remove the bumper and the crash bar to gain good access.
There are common problems but which car doesnt have them. Check the gearbox functions as it should / brake light switch was a common reason for it not selecting between neutral and first.
I've owned one of the first R/H drive Smarts and the gear box is painfully slow but you get used to it, the under-steer is also bad due to the thin tyres but the fuel economy is quite good eg; 50mpg even when driving hard. The very early models had a problem with the roof shattering (a vinyl strip was added to the leading edge on latter models) also the rear hatch tended to smash and this was cured and the difference can be seen with the latter pattern heated elements.
The new model is brilliant, faster gear box, and great handling with ESP added, but the economy is down on the earlier models and is no where near what Mercedes say it should be.
I have not had a problem with Smarts in about 8 years of owning them, they are also like a tardis with who and what you can get in the things, I got a 37" TV (in it's box) in it and I've just managed to fit my mountain bike in it too (not both at the same time)
The latter Smarts have a Mitsubishi engine in them rather than the earlier Merc engine.
The new model is brilliant, faster gear box, and great handling with ESP added, but the economy is down on the earlier models and is no where near what Mercedes say it should be.
I have not had a problem with Smarts in about 8 years of owning them, they are also like a tardis with who and what you can get in the things, I got a 37" TV (in it's box) in it and I've just managed to fit my mountain bike in it too (not both at the same time)
The latter Smarts have a Mitsubishi engine in them rather than the earlier Merc engine.
kevin63 said:
I, they are also like a tardis with who and what you can get in the things, I got a 37" TV (in it's box) in it and I've just managed to fit my mountain bike in it too (not both at the same time)
The latter Smarts have a Mitsubishi engine in them rather than the earlier Merc engine.
I can vouch for that, on my Nice trip I shared the cabin with a small suitcase, an outboard motor, and a full exhaust for a Suzuki Vitara .. and as an ultimate insult, couldn't find a cheap hotel at 2 AM, so ending up getting about 4 hours kip in it as well !The latter Smarts have a Mitsubishi engine in them rather than the earlier Merc engine.
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