Second one in Ohio? Lovin' it!

[TheMercers]

Only 2 Smart Centers in Ohio (insert joke re last Presidential election here), picked up my Smart this past Saturday from the Bedford one. Told by the Penske people this was the second delivery in Ohio. Whatever, just happy to have the little bugger. Car is fascinating, an odd mix of "loaded" (ABS ESP BA heated exterior mirrors) and "stripped" (no cargo net, no floor mats), but we love it too much to complain. Fuel gauge doesn't work, they say they can fix it this week. We will be adding lots of accessories ASAP (those floor mats for one thing, we have snow and slush here). Got a chance to play in the snow with it: electronics help a lot but Skinny Little Tires are SLT regardless, so it lacks strong grip. But one can "catch" a skid pretty fast. Informal survey of the throng at the Center reveals (unscientificallly) biggest plus is interior space (voluminous) and biggest negative is premium fuel (grumble). Anyone know (and yes I read the Dire Warnings in the manual) how bad it would be for the car to use regular? Anyway, gotta get off PC and dream up more excuses to go run errands!

[robotbill]

Congrats, Now drive it through Chagrin Falls and make their jaws drop. Hopefully in Feb or Mar, I 'll have mine.

[jwight]

Great news; at this point there is really only one open smart center in Ohio, as the one in Columbus is at least a month away from being certified. More pics, info and adventures in the snow please.

[robotbill]

I can't believe it Cleveland Rocks!

[spdickey]

Originally Posted by TheMercers

Anyone know (and yes I read the Dire Warnings in the manual) how bad it would be for the car to use regular? Anyway, gotta get off PC and dream up more excuses to go run errands!

Per Lisa the trainer at the smart house regular will not damage the engine, however the anti-knock electronics will cut performance. The knock is what would damage things. When the the sensor retards the spark, power is reduced. So mileage will be affected as well as hill climbing and fast starts when using regular. I'm going to try ARCO mid-grade next fill to see what happens. If that runs okay, I'll try a tank of regular.

Premium is 20 cents per gallon more here. Less than $2 per tank.

I hear you about errands, it rained this morning, so I didn't take the smart outdoors. Drat!!

[OC1Dave]

I keep reading all these posts about how" regular fuel will not harm the engine" coming from all manner of expert shade tree mechanics and informed(or not!) smart officials and I will say this: (based on many years as a Sprint Car mechanic, drag racer and car collector) if you run "regular" in a 10-1 engine on a hot day with a full load up a long mountain YOU MAY VERY WELL TOAST THE ENGINE BY MELTING IT DOWN ! Cool weather, easy on the trottle, OK, but remember, the knock sensor can only retard the timing so far, and heat is the enemy of aluminum engines, particularly small hard working ones. Don't believe me? Ask your expert mechanic (not the smart showroom spokesperson).

[spdickey]

Thankfully pulling the boat up the mountain is not in my plans for the smart. Of course, everything is with "normal driving."

Go with the factory recomendation of 95 RON (91 AKI) printed right on the fuel door and pay the extra $2.

[robotbill]

Aw, come on Mercers. Stop going to Heinen's,shop at Giant Eagle get 10 cents for each $50.00 you spend, the way these things sip gas you will easily afford the premium. I put 18 gallons of gas in my Expedition for $8.00.

[OC1Dave]

SPD:I would estimate that a pair of big guys and a couple cases of beer could constitute a "heavy " load as that could be as much as 40% of the dry weight of the car. That would be like my 3/4 T Burb towing a 3,000# trailer (which I often do using at least mid grade gas even though the comp ratio of the 8.1 L iron v8 is much less than 10-1. Common sense, and penny wise - pound foolish to use lower than factory recommended octane fuel IMHO.

[TheMercers]

Hey, don't get me wrong, I ain't got no complaint re the high-octane requirement, I was just saying that at the Smart Center my informal poll of buyers and lookers returned as the most common complaint the high-octane requirement. Just passing on info. Don't worry, our baby is gonna get its recommended joy juice every time. I only asked whu' 'appen if regular is put in it because sometimes the OEMs kinda overstate the Dire Warnings. Like, as soon as the Check Engine light comes on, go to the dealer... even if I knew it came on because I didn't give the gas cap enough clicks when closing. Given our litigious society, even if Smart felt that the occasional tank of regular was okay, they could hardly say that. (Imagine the manual: "Try to give it high octane, but if you blew all our money on pachinko this week, regular is okay.") (grin) So I was wondering if Experts had more insight than I do (they could hardly have LESS). I wasn't trying to save the pennies, just wondering what the true impact of regular gas would be. Given that I have now been told it could cook the engine, It Shall Never Pass My Lips (figuratively). Now calm down everyone, and by the way, most of our grocery dollar goes to Aldi's, so there! (grin)