2009 Smart Fortwo Reviews

Never have my wife and I disagreed so much — except on our wedding night, when I wanted to leave early. Echoing that level of differing opinions, she loved the Smart fortwo coupe we had on test recently and I loathed it. She found it fun to drive and I felt like a complete goose in the tiny two-seater.She said people looked, smiled and waved at her when she was driving it while I found they pointed, laughed and made other motions with their hands. So I went to Crazy Clark's and bought a clever disguise for just $2. Not that I'm against small cars. The Mini is great fun to drive. But the Smart fortwo coupe just feels too quirky and weird to make the driving experience anything other than a total aggravation.InteriorIt started for me when I struggled trying to unlock the car with the key fob buttons which are totally invisible to my naked eye.When I slipped in behind the wheel it was no better. It seems Mercedes — the makers of Smart cars — has done everything it can to make the controls different to conventional wisdom.Even the key is located in the centre console, rather than near the steering wheel, although Saab also does that. Speaking of the steering wheel, it is not reach adjustable, so the driving position just never felt comfortable for me, although my wife loved it.TransmissionThe Smart coupe comes with a five-speed manual, but this one was equipped with the ‘Softouch’ auto for an extra $750. It includes steering wheel paddles to change gears, or you can push and pull the gear lever. The ‘Softouch’ semi-automatic changes are ridiculously ponderous and require the driver to decelerate as if they were changing manual gears, but without a clutch.Even leaving it in automatic it dithers and feels as if it's stalling as it slows to change gears. And forget about rapid downshifts for overtaking or impetus on a hill because it groans and struggles on for ages in too-high a gear before deciding to switch cogs. Getting off the mark is also quite slow and it takes more than 13 seconds to wind up to highway speed.Engine It's not that the vehicle is underpowered. It only has a three-cylinder 999cc engine, but it weighs only 750kg. Besides, you can also get a version with 10kW more power and 32Nm more torque. The problem lies in that auto transmission. The manual would undoubtedly be nippier.DrivingSpeed is not the essence of this vehicle. According to my wife it's about fun, economy and easy parking. Oh, and she loves the efficient wipers. I wasn't having much fun, especially around my neighbourhood where people could identify me or when our equally tall photographer and I tried to squeeze into the car together and had to take turns putting on our seat belts or cop an elbow in the eye. However, I will concede on the economy and parking issues. And the big-sweeping wipers.With a turning circle less than 9m and a wheelbase of just 1.8m, it whips into parking spaces with no planning or skill required. You can even fit it sideways in a parking space as they tend to do in Paris and Rome. It also whips into the tightest spaces when merging into traffic without inciting rage from other road users.Fuel consumption As for economy, it simply ran all week without making much of a dint in the fuel gauge, so I tend to believe the supplied figures of 4.7L/100km. And that's pretty good. That's even better than my motorcycle. In fact, under certain conditions, such as stop-start commuting, you could expect to get even better economy if you choose to switch on the economy button next to the gearshift. This puts it into ‘stop/start’ function which means the engine stops when the car stops and starts when you take your foot off the brake again so you aren't wasting fuel while idling at the traffic lights or stopped in a queue of traffic.However, in the summer, you will find the airconditioning also switches off and the car quickly heats up. It also feels very rough as the three-cylinder donk shudders to a halt and fires up again and in stop-start traffic this becomes quite annoying.PricingThe Smart is listed at just under $20,000 and is built to that price, but even competitors in this price range have electric wing mirrors. The only saving grace of the manual mirrors is that you can easily reach the passenger's side because the car is so tiny. Not that it worries my wife — she never looks in the mirrors, except to fix her lippy. However, my wife did find one problem with the car: she felt very nervous when a truck pulled up behind.

It is really a matter of horses for courses. What may seem a terribly desirable thing to consumers in one market is going to leave those in another wondering what the fuss is about.The three bar heater that seems indispensable to the good citizens of Gnome, Alaska, will simply gather dust in a shop window in Bangkok.And that brings us to the Smart Fortwo. As clever as all get-out in the alleyways of Rome or the backstreets of Paris the little two-seater micro-car elicits less enthusiasm in a wide brown land.It is not that the ideas are any less clever nor the solutions any less elegant it is just that there is less opportunity to be struck by them.We have long been a closet fan of the Smart concept — much the same way as one would be a fan of Morris dancing ... there is a certain skill involved but you don't want to actually do it yourself, or let others know that you do.DrivetrainThe latest Smart close encounter has been with the so-called MHD (that's mild hybrid drive) which really isn't a hybrid at all — at least not as we know it.The Smart MHD has no electric motors to help it slip quietly away in the mornings, no battery packs soaking up regenerative power from the brakes or pouring additional urge to wheels as the workload increases.What it does have is a button marked Eco and a nice green light on the dash to make drivers feel good about their efforts to save the planet.That Eco button does have a function. It engages the stop-start capability of the MHD's dual-mode starter/generator and battery to shut down the three-cylinder, 1-litre naturally aspirated engine as the car is braked to a halt and restart it when the foot is lifted off the brake pedal.What the off-again, on-again engine means to the environment is a claimed saving of six percent in fuel use — down to 4.7L/100km on a combined cycle — with a similar saving in emissions (112gms of CO2 per kilometre).For a petrol car they are pretty impressive figures, until you remember that to move the same number of people as any other small sedan you need to use twice as many cars.Body, fit-out and equipment And that is probably what makes the Smart such a niche vehicle. It is a selfish car. There is nothing gregarious about it.Heading off for a game of golf? It's you and your golf bag on the passenger seat. Going shopping? Don't plan on taking a passenger because they are going to have to walk home as an average family shop fills the Smart to overflowing.The Smart is about satisfying very particular personal needs.There is no arguing that the car's tiny 2.7-metre length opens up never-before explored options for parking while the fuel-sipping economy is a wallet saver.It is also one of the better cars in the market for ease of entry and exit. The upright stance makes the seat height/hip relationship very suitable for joints that may not move as well as they once did.Interior space is also good. That may seem a strange statement given the criticism of the car for its selfish nature but head and shoulder room in the square passenger compartment is surprisingly generous.There is nothing flash about the car's interior with a small dash display for the speedo, a clock and tacho in two individual pods on top of the dash and materials that are tactile and pleasing.The seats are supportive and with enough range of movement to get a reasonable driving position from the fixed steering wheel.Driving The biggest surprise is just how adequate the performance of the Smart is. With just 52kW of power and a meagre 92Nm of torque it would be fair to assume that the little city car would struggle.It doesn't. While a 13.3 second 0-100km/h time is not the stuff of excitement the combination of the engine and five-speed automated manual transmission is good enough to handle most needs that arise in city traffic.The changes are not particularly smooth, especially if the manual selection is used and the engine run out to its peak performance range around 5000rpm.Ride quality on the 15-inch wheels is reasonably well controled through the McPherson strut front end and DeDion rear axle with coil springs and telescopic shock absorbers.As good as it is it can't completely isolate the tall body and relatively short wheelbase and narrow track from the laws of physics.On the open road the claimed maximum top speed of 145km/h is not something any sane person would want to explore but the car will cruise quite comfortable at the speed limit.However, getting away for the weekend will pose its own problems.With two people on board the luggage space is — well, restricted. There is a narrow bin behind the seats into which one could squeeze a soft sports bag and suitbag or a couple of briefcases.The bottom line A clever concept but as awkward in Australia as a carnivore at a vegan party.Rating: 70/100