C'mon guys and gals, we're all dying to hear some real world MPG's!!!!

[rirover]

I always get 40 mpg with my vw passat diesel..2004 but looking forward to adding my smart...wife has 2006 diesel new beetle...

[Carnut]

Posted on another thread but makes sense here:

Driving my Silver with Black Tridion Passion
Took delivery from Loeber Smart Center yesterday, and have racked up 200 miles already. Yes I did get a little sleep. Getting 35mpg in mixed driving.

All systems A-OK. Everyone says it's cute. You forget it's size as you drive. Plenty of pickup to run with the herd. Handles great.

Oh, and my wife digs it.

I expected to be dissapointed, but this car does not do that, at least for me.
I was hoping it would be this good!

Bravo SMART and thanks to Penske for getting this car to the USA.
It seems like a game changer.

Jay Cohen
Itasca, IL

[jediknight36]

Originally Posted by Fredvon4

Don't look for any MPG figures in the next 60 days to have much meaning.... It takes a while for folks to find the best brand of fuel and multiple fill up averages for the MPGs to get stable...

When you start posting MPGs on these things please add:

Location
Typical terrain (hilly, steep mountain, sea level, altitude etc..)
Driving style (hyper-miller, lead foot, sporty, conservative etc..)
Load (single drive mostly, driver and passenger mostly etc..)
Fuel brand and octane ( Shell, Chevron, 89, 91, 93)
Clean air blend if any (10%, 15% ethanol or MTBE)
Total tank fulls in the average
Tire pressure (please check this cold as it makes a significant difference in performance and seriously effects MPGs)

I thought that you could only put premium (93) in it?

[jediknight36]

Originally Posted by Fredvon4

"However, I'm not sure I want to be permanently disfigured when a shopping cart rolls into me at the grocery store"

wanna come back down to earth marcrhodes?

not buying a 46~50mpg car for $2~~3k because you are askairt of a shopping cart is a tad extreeme...

Thousands of civics, metros, festivas, diesel rabbits, yugos and several others navigated American highways and cities with out leaving death and carnage every where... defensive, attentive driving is the key


BUT yes.... the Smart car is technically safer then a Geo Metro--- if you are the typical brain dead idiot sitting in a car doing every thing on earth BUT paying attention and driving.... well... I don't suppose I do not need to say much about those Darwin award, gene pool strengthening candidates...IYKWIM

Why are you a club member when you attack the car in which the club is meant for?

[oldbike]

I fail to see any "attack", just his own opinion. I don't see anything wrong with that. This is, of course, my own opinion.

[spdickey]

Real worls. Stop and go mostly, couple of highway runs. 100 miles so far, two blips down on the gas gauge.

[spdickey]

Originally Posted by Remix80

what grade fuel choice do you have ? Over here in the Uk we run from 95ron-99ron . We notice better MPG and performance in our smarts with 98+
The higher premium is worth the better MPG ,even if it does cost £1.10 per uk gallon .Equiv £1.32 for your larger measure .

Our grade number are different here (RON+NON)/2 or AKI. We generally have 87-89 regular, 89-91 mid and 93+ premium. Difference in price is about twenty cents US more for the premium over regular, or less than $2.00 per tankful.

For a good discussion of regular vs. premium recommendations see http://www.edmunds.com/advice/fuelec...3/article.html.

Lisa at the smart house advised regular will run just fine, but performance will suffer because the smart computer will retard the spark (anti-knock sensor) and the MPG will decline.

[Fredvon4]

Jediknight36

Please read for comprehension

I acknowledged in post 14 that my initial sling at brother marcrhodes was too harsh and my grins and smilies did not stick

But I do not apologise for the general thought...

To not buy a high MPG car because of an irrational fear is poor economic sense... at least for a singe commuter adult...IMO...someone who frequently must transport a child or spouse may have a different threashold for family safety... and I would respect that concern relating to some older vehicles...

But to simply see the Smart car as some bullet proof super safe conveyance and poo poo a Geo Metor as some rolling carnage machine is not real rational assesment of the merits of either car... human behavior can significantly offset the lack of side air bags in the Geo Metro...else both vehicles are not too different in a side impact with an 7800 pound truck at 45mph.... IMO

[jediknight36]

I read your apology later after I posted. But I think you are right. If Geo had this technology then, maybe they would not have folded. There are only 2 reasons I don't hunt for a Geo in my area. 1) I am a student who also works full time who has a wife who works full time and as broke as we are, cant afford to have the car broken down with out a loner. Our new matrix came from a dealer that will loan us a car. No questions asked, no extra expense. Its under warranty so no fee for issues. When it looses its warranty, we trade up. 2) is simply the style. actually, I can see the metro 'evolving' into the SMART but I had no idea they had that good mileage. The geo my old GF had got ok mileage and hers was a '94 and it was in 2002 when we dated. I see your point. Sorry for the post.

[Fredvon4]

no sweat...I skim read some times and miss things too ...we all do it and just like you, I sometimes spout out without all the ducks lined up...

no real biggie