For a car conceived so long ago, the Smart Roadster looks remarkably relevant in the increasingly constrained automotive world of 2018. Here is a rear-wheel drive car that’s small, light and innovative, combining a downsized turbocharged engine with an automatic gearbox. It also looked pretty funky and should have carried some premium brand cachet from the Mercedes backing. Was it a case of right car at the wrong time? Or a great plan that wasn’t executed properly?
Whatever the case may be, Smart Roadsters can now be picked up extremely cheaply – PHer ‘pthelazyjournalist’ paid just a few hundred pounds for his, albeit a Cat D car that required some work.
However, with that work completed – specifically curing a misfire with new spark plugs, sorting the alignment and replacing the dampers – pthelazyjournalist has been left with a Smart he says is “perfect as a city and town car”. It’s also one he rates above the Mk3 Toyota MR2 and describes as a “decent replacement” for an Elise if you’re on a budget, both cars he’s also owned – high praise indeed!
Since purchase (and with the mechanical work completed), the Smart has had cosmetic tinkering to make it a little more appealing for the regular use it has been subjected to. With the warmer weather seemingly now upon us, it looks like perfect timing for this particular lazy journalist and his Smart to have a great deal of fun – enjoy the car!
Read the full thread here.