Illinois WIND...how are the smarts doing?

[meaux61]

Yesterday and today have been pretty windy in the state. How are the Illinois smarts doing on the highways in the wind?

Meaux

[PhilWinIL]

We have gone through some pretty windy days with the smart, and it's not too bad. It reminds me of when I was driving a '66 Volkswagen Beetle. You find yourself with both hands on the wheel when there is a good gust of wind. Then one of those real strong gusts can sort of catch you off guard, but it's not too bad.

On the interstates, passing a truck isn't bad either. To be honest, it holds to the pavement better than the old Beetle did. Just allow plenty of distance for acceleration when entering a road off of an exit ramp.

I guess it's the age showing through on me, but I have gotten to where I would rather travel on an old US or state highway rather than the interstate. Not because of the smart, but the traffic is so much lighter, plus you see the small towns. Time doesn't always allow for the older roads, but they are nice when it does.

[Karl Roth]

With Blue Hill and Boston here in MA in the top ten for windy cities my smart here in the Springfield, MA area has no problem with the wind. They work surprisingly well as just "normal" cars in spite of the diminutive size
karl

[jimvw57]

It seems like it is affected less than my Expedition. I'd guess it is due to the smaller surface the wind has to act against (smaller sail)

[bigcritter]

Originally Posted by PhilWinIL

I guess it's the age showing through on me, but I have gotten to where I would rather travel on an old US or state highway rather than the interstate. Not because of the smart, but the traffic is so much lighter, plus you see the small towns. Time doesn't always allow for the older roads, but they are nice when it does.

I'm with you there! My wife's family (and some of mine) live in the LaSalle/Peru area of Illinois. I also have family in the Rockford/Carpentersville area, which I always visit when we're home. The last time that we went to visit, I said "NO interstates or toll roads!" I programmed my GPS to avoid interstates, and it took us backroads the entire way...... through every little small town & all the cornfields! We LOVED it! Stopped in some little town along the way, and they had a candy store with candy that was popular in the 40s & 50s! :>) We had a blast that day! Bought a bunch of the candy to give to family that we knew would appreciate it! The only time I want to be on the interstate is when I'm in a hurry (not normally), or when I HAVE to, such as here in Washington state where I HAVE to take I-5 to get to work. Unless I want to go 45 minutes out of my way! :>(

[BE.SMART]

I live in Albuquerque and travel to Santa Fe quite a bit and to be honest the wind has scared the hell out of me a few times. I was looking at buying a mini (not sure if that would help) because of this. Although I would feel like a traitor so I bagged the idea

Anyone know what to do with this? Can I get some advice?

Thanks,
E

[smark]

Small footprint, high profile. The car hates windy days in the midwest. There is no advice. It the nature of the car.

[Duckhunter]

In El Paso we get wind. It is breezy today with steady winds in the 30-50 MPH range. My large truck gets moved around more than the little car. You can feel it but it is not real bad. I can really notice it for the headwind as acceleration is reduced.

[Macaw]

This works for me YMMV and try at your own risk but running the front tires at 36-psi is way more stable on the highway than the recommended 29-psi. This is a sampling of 1 '08 Pure let you if our soon to be here '09 cabrio is the same way.

[nprsmart]

Originally Posted by PhilWinIL

I guess it's the age showing through on me, but I have gotten to where I would rather travel on an old US or state highway rather than the interstate. Not because of the smart, but the traffic is so much lighter, plus you see the small towns. Time doesn't always allow for the older roads, but they are nice when it does.

I thought it was just me. We've been rediscovering the Florida back roads since taking delivery of our smart.