Dealer Info

[Old smart]

Dunno if was a mistake or not, but I have wondered why MCG would go with a third party distributor (PAG) and not their own M-B dealers.

[Lewis]

From the reports I read in the press the USA Mercedes dealers did not want the Smartcar- they felt it would devalue the luxury brand. So MB had to choose between something like Penske or investing in a new distribution company of their own and given the fact Smart has never made money I doubt the MB board in Germany was thrilled with losing some more money on the Smart in the USA. So Penske was the cheap and dirty solution and I think we are all paying the price of having this shyster operation handling the Smart. Reminds me of all the Bricklin startup brands in how they operate.

[ok_smartie]

this is all so funny to me - you guys seem really bent out of shape over nothing.... smartUSA has said the cars come in the first quarter of 08 (still true and confirmed in numerous posts). the reservation said we will be contacted in the 2nd half of 2007...well, the second half of 2007 goes all the way thru december right? its not like March 08 and we haven't heard anything so everyone should relax chill out!

[PassionforPassionCT]

Originally Posted by Lewis

From the reports I read in the press the USA Mercedes dealers did not want the Smartcar- they felt it would devalue the luxury brand. So MB had to choose between something like Penske or investing in a new distribution company of their own and given the fact Smart has never made money I doubt the MB board in Germany was thrilled with losing some more money on the Smart in the USA. So Penske was the cheap and dirty solution and I think we are all paying the price of having this shyster operation handling the Smart. Reminds me of all the Bricklin startup brands in how they operate.

From what I come to believe is that the future of the brand itself lies in the US market, if it flops here, there may be no smart in the future. It is true that Daimler is as the end of their rope with patience in the car. I am no economist, but I have a hard time grasping that with 3/4 of a million cars built and sold and they have yet to make a profit. Maybe I am thinking too black and white with the issue, but it still doesnt make sense to me.
Aside from that issue is the issue of brand panache that MB has to Americans in general. The same reason that the B class and A class didnt come to America is the reason why many MB dealers wont be Smart ones ( my MB dealer it seems ignored that and signed on anyway) By muddying the waters of the image, MB could do harm, look at the C class Coupe, never did well. I think its a good idea that somebody like Penske stepped up to the plate and did this venture, otherwise frankly I dont think it would ever have happened.

I believe that if Daimler would have stayed with the twofor and not spent a lot of money developing the roadster and the forfour they would be in the black. I think that is the reason they dropped the other models. They have also reworked their manufacturing processes to reduce a lot of costs. Time will tell.

[SmartBob]

Foster: good points right there.

[Lewis]

ok smartie

I think some folks react worse than others to being screwed with. The time linelines are fine, the reservation for 99 dollars is fine and the date of reservation = delivery date is fine. What I hate is the bull**** that they have subjected us to regarding the stupid confirmation secret code nonsense and then going through another whole process with the dealer. My dealer tells me they are not allowed to do anything with us until Smart ok's us via their silly confirmation process. As I've said before all Smart should be doing is giving us a number based on the date of reservation and leave the rest to our dealers. This three part system is insane IMO.

[Fredvon4]

Lewis

I am with you brother...If this was not just a whim for me, and I seriously needed/wanted a economical small sized car right now I would already and passed on this frustration.

I don't need the danged thing and have the patience to wait them out.....

I am hedging a bet that I will be the only Smart in the Ft Hood area for several months and should be able to have a lot of fun with it then accept some ridiculously high offer... I have never made money on a car before and I think this may be the first.....grin

[ok_smartie]

Hi Lewis-
i see your point but i don't think any of it is as big of a deal as everyone seems to be making it. Personally i think its pretty cool that smart usa is allowing us to order our cars the way we want them...not how they choose to option them or even the dealers. What if there was no reservation system and come January 1st it was just a free for all at the local dealership? Someone who just heard about the cars in December camps out at the dealer, offers who know how much to the dealer to get a car fast and leave each of us(who have loyal followers of the brand for years) without a car and still waiting.

As for the reservation number... who cares the sequence - personally i have never scrutinized my confirmation number from amazon.com or southwest airlines to figure out what it means or how it will get my purchase to my house faster or even get me in the "A" boarding group at the airport on sw airlines... that too me is nonsense....yet if we want to fly on the cheaper airline - we all do it, right?

If we knew all the anwsers this waiting game wouldnt be nearly as exciting and personally...I'm still very excited.

[Lewis]

Hi Ok Smartie:

I guess that there are 2 problems as I see it-

1. This silly process is upsetting me and others- including my dealer- although I concede there are those who can accept it without feeling screwed around with.

2. On a more practical note it is 3 months from the alleged launch and (while we hear rumors) we still have no OFFICIAL word on 1. warrantee, 2. delivery dates, 3. dealers, 4. cost of destination and prep, 5. whether dealers will actually sell to us at list, and last but not least 6. Official NHSTA crash test and EPA mileage ratings.

So it is beginning to feel like vaporware as the leafs fall and the holidays get closer.

I would say the same thing George Bush said to "Brownie" after Katrina- "Heck of a job Penske!".