Not sure why you use the word "extraneous" but a lot of the negative crap I write is just fidgets. I try to be like StDickey who waited for his smart since the fifties with nary a disparaging word but I guess I'm just not as serene as he is.
<There was a long section here about a certain user being nosferatu, but I'm leaving it out because I'm in SUCH a good mood today. See?>
At this point you'd almost have to prove to me that the smart is the worst car ever made to keep me from buying one. I can recognize when my passions (no pun intended) have won out over rationality. I like these little bastards and I'm going to buy one at some point. I'm pretty miffed about the so-called reservation system falling through but I still believe the fortwo is the coolest bean to roll out of the can since the first VW Bug.
I bought a new '04 Ford Excursion with the 6.0l diesel engine. Going to the Ford Diesel site made me feel exactly the same as you. Here it is four years later and 119,800 miles and I have had ZERO issues. Cars/trucks are mechanical devices made by people. There can be errors, there can be tolerance stack ups and there can be "lemon"s where everything seems wrong. But if you live life worried about that, don't come out of your home/apartment/cave.
If you like the idea of the car, have a need for what it can do for you, like attention - just do it!
I am weighing in on the same things as well. Everything is refundable up until you sign on the dotted line. And, as far as I see it, even if I do sign, I can drive it for a while for free b/c I can probably sell it and not lose money. We shall see. I, too, started a blog with all of my trials and tribulations of the "Big Wait.." I got my hand on the name: http://smartcargirl.blogspot.com/
And I intend on passing out the fliers on the hood to the questioning folks when I deliver her....
I am weighing in on the same things as well. Everything is refundable up until you sign on the dotted line. And, as far as I see it, even if I do sign, I can drive it for a while for free b/c I can probably sell it and not lose money. We shall see. I, too, started a blog with all of my trials and tribulations of the "Big Wait.." I got my hand on the name: http://smartcargirl.blogspot.com/
And I intend on passing out the fliers on the hood to the questioning folks when I deliver her....
You will lose money, unless your state has no sales taxes and you put almost no mileage on it, at best. But you will probably lose money anyway. But you really don't lose money, you pay for fun!
Let's look at your concerns one by one from the viewpoint of a happy owner. We'll look at the smart vs. boring car.
1. dealer doc fees - anywhere from $50 - $699 (mine to be about $400)
Got to pay the doc fees no matter what new car you buy. Guess you'd have to take delivery in a low cost state to prevent that. Since its the same no matter what you buy, its a draw.
2. financing fees - 5% - 7.5%
Again, this is the same no matter what car you buy. Another draw.
3. buy a spare wheel & tire - $200 - $250 (really no place to store a spare)
No need to buy one. If you get a flat, use the included pump and goop to get you to a tire dealer. Or wait for the free smart 1 tow truck.
4. buy a jack for $50 -$100
Why? The tow truck will help you for free!
5. buy a lug wrench for $20 - $40
Again, the tow truck or the tire dealer will have one.
6. need to buy a torque wrench if you want to change your own oil - otherwise dealer wants $80 - (whew, what happened to $25 oil changes?)
You can get a $25 oil change from Jiffy Lube. But this happens only every 10,000 miles (about once a year). Forget the wrench!
7. buy a wheel and tire service add on contract ~$300
Again, why? You can buy a replacement tire for a whole lot less, get towed to a tire store for free for two years and buy a new tire for under $60 (they're small).
8. Poor or Limited spare parts inventory
Had to get a couple of parts replaced last week, they arrived the next morning, standard Mercedes Parts, if they were smart parts, it would have been 24 hours. No problems here.
9. Transmission linkage problems
Fixed for free, and cars delivered since February have this checked before delivery.
10. High service maintenance fees
One oil change per 10,000 miles? Major service every two years? Where do you see this being costly?
11. Poor insurance coverage
Not from Geico (now available), State Farm, Liberty Mutual and many others. Full coverage, low cost. You must be misinformed.
12. Limited 24K or 24mo warranty
Keeps initial cost low. Extra time can be purchased from your smart dealer. $395 for one more year.
13. Buy floor mats at $75
Again, allows you to choose between the carpet mats or all rubber ones. I like choice.
14. Storage shade or privacy curtain $130
Or the net option, too. Again, you build your own choices and control your costs.
15. No known resale value
New car, that happens. With the limited availability for the next year or so, it should be pretty good.
15. And all the negativism on this site. Seems I could get another car with a lot of dealer incentives thrown in for probably less money.
One word, trolls. Ignore them. Lots of us love our cars.
Let's look at your concerns one by one from the viewpoint of a happy owner. We'll look at the smart vs. boring car.
1. dealer doc fees - anywhere from $50 - $699 (mine to be about $400)
Got to pay the doc fees no matter what new car you buy. Guess you'd have to take delivery in a low cost state to prevent that. Since its the same no matter what you buy, its a draw.
2. financing fees - 5% - 7.5%
Again, this is the same no matter what car you buy. Another draw.
3. buy a spare wheel & tire - $200 - $250 (really no place to store a spare)
No need to buy one. If you get a flat, use the included pump and goop to get you to a tire dealer. Or wait for the free smart 1 tow truck.
4. buy a jack for $50 -$100
Why? The tow truck will help you for free!
5. buy a lug wrench for $20 - $40
Again, the tow truck or the tire dealer will have one.
6. need to buy a torque wrench if you want to change your own oil - otherwise dealer wants $80 - (whew, what happened to $25 oil changes?)
You can get a $25 oil change from Jiffy Lube. But this happens only every 10,000 miles (about once a year). Forget the wrench!
7. buy a wheel and tire service add on contract ~$300
Again, why? You can buy a replacement tire for a whole lot less, get towed to a tire store for free for two years and buy a new tire for under $60 (they're small).
8. Poor or Limited spare parts inventory
Had to get a couple of parts replaced last week, they arrived the next morning, standard Mercedes Parts, if they were smart parts, it would have been 24 hours. No problems here.
9. Transmission linkage problems
Fixed for free, and cars delivered since February have this checked before delivery.
10. High service maintenance fees
One oil change per 10,000 miles? Major service every two years? Where do you see this being costly?
11. Poor insurance coverage
Not from Geico (now available), State Farm, Liberty Mutual and many others. Full coverage, low cost. You must be misinformed.
12. Limited 24K or 24mo warranty
Keeps initial cost low. Extra time can be purchased from your smart dealer. $395 for one more year.
13. Buy floor mats at $75
Again, allows you to choose between the carpet mats or all rubber ones. I like choice.
14. Storage shade or privacy curtain $130
Or the net option, too. Again, you build your own choices and control your costs.
15. No known resale value
New car, that happens. With the limited availability for the next year or so, it should be pretty good.
15. And all the negativism on this site. Seems I could get another car with a lot of dealer incentives thrown in for probably less money.
One word, trolls. Ignore them. Lots of us love our cars.
In total agreement with your analysis -excellent reference for all concerned buyers. One exception might be the tire and wheel warranty. If you live in N.E. or other pothole country, its not unusual to blow out a tire in a pothole,especially lower profile tires like these. I know this all too well. Normal rims can usually handle it with little or not damage but these rims look pretty flimsy and may be designed as collapsible as part of the so- called crumple zone. Bend one of these babies and I am hearing $300 +/-. The warranty is for 5 years on the wheels and 5 years or down to 1/32 tread on the tires. Worth thinking about. I went for it, but bargained it down to $150 when I took their financing.
I do have questions too, but I have to answer to Myself if the smart is right for me. It is not as easy as going to a Big 3 or Honnissota dealer for me. The compromises we make for the smart are just a little more apparent with the fortwo than with some of the other cars out there. I.e: not a huge amount of cargo space, or rwd and needs snowies, or dealer is 3 hrs away etc. When I bought my 02 Neon, I had snow tires for it I had a nearby dealer and compromises (i.e.: Neons= no resale value) weren't as apparent.
Ultimately you have to say to yourself this is a good idea or not. All the complaints may or may not have merit. That is up to you to decide.
Let's look at your concerns one by one from the viewpoint of a happy owner. We'll look at the smart vs. boring car...
Spdickey,
OoOooo... how i love your analysis comparison!!!
I will get th tire/rims option when I buy my smart. Trust me, there is more potholes than driveable roads - until its warm enough to fix 'em. Worry free money for me. Actually, as you said, I love choices!!! It is true, the smart isn't for everyone. I know it's the right choice for me. I took a new job, I mostly drive all alone, more miles to cover and with the fuel cost increasing, this car was and still is a smart choice for "me".
"smart" people think for themselves and are willing to take a risk now and then for what they believe in.
If you like the 42 buy it!
If you don't, buy something else!
Not that hard really!
State Farm Insurance is gonna cost me $3 more a month than my 2002 Kia Spectra.
My 16 year old daughter can learn how to drive in it using automatic mode and I can shift it manually if I want to. In the last 40 years, I have never bought a new car with an automatic transmittion. So, even the "manual automatic" is a plus for me!
Life is short and I wanna have some fun! So let the fun begin!
Well, I haven't bought it yet!!!!......... I reserved one! I like the car overall, I think it is a smart idea and product. But now, I'm having some reservations. I'm not reading much here that is positive. Lots of glitches, etc. Maybe I'm just reading the wrong stuff in this forum.
Not sure where you're getting the "lots of glitches" feeling. My car is working perfectly and is the most fun vehicle I have ever owned (and I've owned many) but if you need to go a different direction I wouldn't lose any sleep over it. Lots of other choices out there.
Last edited by Smartdavis; 03-05-2008 at 03:34 AM.
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