Can I Hear From "red" Owners??

[widdle car]

Hi-all you RED SMART owners!
I ordered a Red/Silver/Comfort package Passion in May 07. My delivery is supposed to be in the next month or so.
I've been worried about this red color- ordered red for the safety issue, since my son will be driving it next year. Personally I don't care for red, and I've been hearing all this about the "tomato" color that it is. (I partial to white/silver Smarts...).
Let me know what you think about your red car, and I'm sure I'll be better with my choice...
Thanks everyone!!!

[SharonRB]

I love my red/black/black leather cabrio. I wouldn't like it as much if it was a "truer" red. I prefer orangey reds, so it's perfect for me.

[citroen]

nothing but complimentos on my red/bl/red

[smartyPantz]

I LOVE it !!!!

[Big Panda]

smarts' "red" is a bit different, especially the 'red' interior. the interior 'red' is VERY orange and the exterior 'red' has an orange hue to it, but is more 'red' than the interior.......if any of that makes sense.

i personally like the 'red' exterior, but only with the black interior. the 'red' interior i like with either white, silver or black exterior but not 'RED' exterior. to me, it just doesn't go well.

i think you've made an excellent choice in color combos. the red, silver, white and of course YELLOW are all excellent choices for visibility. myself, i'm leaning towards either white/silver, silver/silver or yellow/silver but should a 'red' orphan come at the right time, i would probably say it wouldn't be an orphan any longer......;)

[SmartOwner]

The "red" is in fact way towards the orange side. I hate to say it, but it looks "pre-faded" as in an overdone-by-the-sun '70's Toyota...

I searched through many, many reds, and finally had several test panels done and my wife picked her "Ultimate Red". These panels were checked under bright sun, late day sun, fluorescent lights, etc., etc.. It's pretty funny when you go on a "quest". Ferrari Red, & Porsche Guards Red were considered too orange, Viper Red, well you get the idea...

Then the car arrived & wife is not letting it go just yet for the rework.
My Plan B is to purchase a set of white panels (since the base for the Ultimate Red is white), do them, then probably swap them while she sleeps. Hopefully, we will never need the spares, but it does open the door to me doing a set I like, and playing with those.

My advice to you is a) Look for a Red one as they start to show up & see if you can live with it, and, if not, b) Start looking at "red cars". New Mazdas have a nice bright red, there's Corvette Red, etc.. If, while you're waiting, you find a car (perhaps at a dealership) that's your/your son's ultimate red, just get the Name/Code so you're ready when the time comes.

[Frankenstein_Casanova]

Yeah, the red is really orangey.. It's because they use a gold metallic in the paint, which gives it a yellowish sheen over the red. It's the reason my car was an orphan (not "red" enough for whoever ordered it) and the reason why I painted my car Matte Black.

( http://zenspeed.com/smart.html )

It's a lovely color if you like orange, but too orangey if you want red. The good news is that it's really easy to strip and paint one of these things.

Cheers,

Johnny

[HGB]

At first I was a little disappointed with the tomato red / black, because I had a small model smart with a real red/ black combo and I believed that would be the color I was going to get. Since there is a long wait for the car, I totally embraced the tomato red and am now pleased that I have it.
I believe that smart cars being what they are, should be brightly colored for aesthetics and for safety.
I wanted silver/silver at first then I read that silver was not easily seen from the side.
I believe a silver body with a small fire engine red sliver would look sharp, yet that would mean an outside paint job.
Apparently the websites of all countries that get the smart show that they have the same colors choices as we do.

[mikie]

I originally ordered a red/black. After looking at the "red" at the smart drive event last fall and realizing that the red was painted, I changed my mind.

I have a red interior, that is not red either, but goes well with the black/Silver that I have. See my photos.

As for painting the pannels, I'm trying to resist any temptation to do that. Part of the Smart car draw for me was the way the car is manufactured. Paint applied to the pannels, makes the car less "Green" IMHO. Remember that the car is suppose to be 95% recyclable. What happens when you paint the pannels?

[widdle car]

THANKS EVERYONE FOR YOUR FEEDBACK!!
It seems that everyone who first posted loves their red cars.
The posts later seem to not love the color red as well. My son doesn't care what color it is, I just ordered red because it seemed safer for a young/male driver.
The interior will be black ( I hope) and not the red that I keep hearing about. It's the comfort package with the black leather seats, etc-so just assumed the whole interior is black.....thank you all for your feedback. I am starting to feel a little better...
widdle