Howdy/Question From a Home Health Nurse

[julesnursey69]

I have been researching the Smart Car. I am not sure it is the one for me. I have been a long time VW/Mercedes driver and can rave about their safety. I am currently driving a Ford Focus for the fuel ecomony (scary in the snow), but with ever increasing gas prices I will soon be losing money by doing my job, which I love. Does anyone know when the diesel model may be available? I can stomach the price of diesel at 80mpg. Also needs to take hard miles. I drive annually 50,000 miles seeing, primarily, geriatric homebound patients.

[anthony94114]

There have been some rumors that a diesel might come in 2010. One would think they'd rush it along, but it's pretty unconfirmed.

The VW Jetta diesel is out very soon (or maybe already in your state). Perhaps it would work well for you? That's noble, hard work that you do. Thank you.

[bull8042]

Kudos to you Jules. That is not a job I could do.
Welcome to the forums and good luck on your car quest.

[julesnursey69]

Thanks for the input . My sis has a VW Jetta Diesel and I had a VW New Beetle Diesel. My sis gets 52 mpg hwy. I got 43mpg hwy. Not good enough with the cost of the vehicles and the high cost of diesel. Which is why i went to the Focus. Half the vehicle cost with my average 33 mpg hwy. This made better financial sense but I just don't feel safe in it. A nurse is just who I am and it is fab!

[curtis]

if you are looking for a car strictly for mpg's why not get a prius?

[julesnursey69]

My mom has one and it is great in stop n go traffic but not so great on mpg on hwy and a high price tag. I do a lot of rural driving and hwy driving. Not in the city much, which is why I did not get one. MPG is my main concern but I want a happy car. My VW New Bettle had daisy's all over it and was fun. My black focus is not. I spend 8-10 hours a day in my car and it needs to be happy.

[curtis]

wow, thats alot of time in your car. Nothing is much happier than a Smart! What kind of roads are you traveling on, I find in Wisconsin we have some pretty bumpy highways due to the freezing and thawing and it can get pretty bad on some stretches. Other than the Smart I really only like the Toyota Yaris as of now but I did like pics of the early Toyota IQ which is not yet released but the later pics looked like they changed it and it isn't so cool looking anymore, but if the IQ is ever released in the USA I think it will be the micro to beat since it's toyota quality and I'm sure the mpg's will be great as well as the price. I still like teh looks of the smart best but I do love my Toyota matrix (6 years+122,000 miles= 0 times in the shop for repairs! and still running strong.

[LorbeerTLC]

Originally Posted by julesnursey69

My mom has one and it is great in stop n go traffic but not so great on mpg on hwy and a high price tag. I do a lot of rural driving and hwy driving. Not in the city much, which is why I did not get one. MPG is my main concern but I want a happy car. My VW New Bettle had daisy's all over it and was fun. My black focus is not. I spend 8-10 hours a day in my car and it needs to be happy.

I know the waiting is tough... especially when you want it now. But I believe we're going to see some interesting things coming down the pike in the 2010/2011 time frame.
Nissan has said they will introduce an electric car about then. Chevrolet will bring out their highly anticipated Volt (albeit ~$35,000-$45,000). Earlier, Toyota has dropped hints at bringing out a plug-in Prius which has been said to achieve 100mpg in 2010... then said it would be for commercial use only. But now I believe that equation has changed since GM will be launching the Volt.
With the price of oil at $130 per barrel, I haven't seen such a push towards electric vehicles since the oil embargo of the 1970's.
But back to your concern.
You mentioned you spend 8-10 hours a day in your car.
Might I make a suggestion?
Take a piece of paper and make a list (in a vertical line), of what you want in your car.
Then after you're done, number them in priority from "1" to the last item on your list. If you have ten items, then they would be listed from 1 to 10. "1" being top priority and "10" the least. If "fuel economy" and "comfort" are in the top 3 or 4, because of your long hours in your car, you might want to consider a Prius.
I'm not trying to discourage you from a smart car, but I am trying to identify the best car based upon your needs as everyone is different. The Prius has a lot more options than a smart... that said, it's a lot more expensive too. But... giving the many hours you say you're in your car... a Prius might be more suitable for you. You're still going to get fantastic mileage with either car. The smart is terrific for parking, especially if you do your driving in congested areas. How often do you take more than 2 people? What about items you will carry like shopping? These are some of the things you might also want to list in your priority list.
Just trying to be neutral and non-bias.
I don't know if this helps or not.
Best Regards,

-Tom L.

[angel]

I'd be the first to toot the horn for the smart. I'm lucky there is a dealership close by in Dallas. You might need to consider the availability of local dealerships. Being in Idaho you are a long ways from anyone local just yet. While they will flat bed your car to a dealership for service will you be keeping another vehicle as a backup? Or will the dealership offer you a loaner? I think I would have had to of considered some other vehicles if my nearest dealership was a state or two away.

The smart really is a happy lil buggar though!! It's got a long history with 36 other countries and about 10 years on the market. Other than the initial issue with my alarm it's been a wonderful gas sipping little car.