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We test drove one last week, and second many of your comments. Our expectations of peppiness, though, are diminished after our lengthy minivan experience, so we felt fine about many of the things you were disappointed in.
How tall are you? For me, at 6'2", there was plenty of headroom, and it felt much roomier than the Mini that I've been in a couple times (especially for the passenger- the Mini's front passenger legroom is like being in a coffin IMO, whereas the Smart was like sitting in a nice comfortable chair), but the deal-killer was the nasty rear view mirror being right in the center of the windshield from my driving visual perspective, with no way to adjust it upward (according to the Service Manager of the local dealership). That is an unbelievably bonehead move AFAIC.
Other negatives: no spare tire (even if there was space to have one, you'd have to have two, as the front and rear tires are different); new tires are $190 each according to the dealer; it only runs on Premium gas; the standard no-cost color selection is rather limited (red is an extra cost option); lowest price model doesn't have a radio ($350 option); and maybe one or two other little things.
Still, it was fun to drive, easy to park, kept up on the freeway, and felt like a much bigger car than it is. If we really, really needed to get another car right now (we don't), I would saw off the rear view mirror and replace it with another one that sits up at the roof, and be happy with it as an additional car that is useful for going to meetings or to a show or something where parking agility and relative energy efficiency are important.
And the base model is $11,500 or so, plus $650 delivery (to my area), plus $350 for a radio plus taxes licensing, etc. So for $12,500 or so I've got a new car that is cute and can do what I'm buying it for, which is to get my butt from here to there in reasonable comfort and safety.
I agree with the poster (maybe the original author?) who said that this is the equivalent of the first iPod, and that surely there will be other versions by other manufacturers or the same mfr. which take this transportation model and refine and improve it.
In a way, this type of vehicle is like the first cell phones: the premise was that there is one per family, and somehow everyone benefits by sharing. In fact, everyone realized how nice it was for each person to have their own, and be instantly reachable at any time as well as be able to reach out any time any place.
With the Smart car model, each person in the family can have their own little car which takes up very little driveway space when not in use, but is always available when that person needs to go somewhere now. In a way, it's like a weatherproof, more comfortable motorcycle that does not necessarily have a fatal penalty when some other driver turns into your path, and is more easily visible than a motorcycle as well.
If it could only more closely approach the mpg capability of a motorcycle, the world would change. And the plug-in electric version, at this kind of price, will create a revolution.
