The Dumbest Question ...

[timhood]

I personally haven't fielded very many stupid questions. I don't consider any of these questions stupid, rather, legitimate:

What kind of car is it?
Who makes it?
What kind of mileage does it get?
How fast can it go?
Is it electric?
How many cylinders does it have?
How much does it cost?

Remember, fellow enthusiasts, just because you studied and researched the heck out of this car (how much time do we all spend on this forum! :-) ), at least half the people with whom I've spoken have never heard of the smart brand. I certainly don't think it's unreasonable for the average person to expect this could be an electric vehicle, or, because of it's unusually small size, wonder how fast it can go and how good the gas mileage is.

Usually after I'm done answering all of the questions and explaining all of the features, I make some funny comment about how I should be getting paid by the dealership. You would have to be extremely rude to me (on the order of trying to start a fight) for me to be less than civil in my responses.

[SnakeFarm]

New one...
Q: Aren't you scared of getting rear-ended in that thing?
A: Oh sure. But, no more than I am of getting rear-ended in anything else I drive.

[widdle car]

I don't have my Smart yet......

One of the girls said " Have you seen those 1/2 cars that people are buying?"
She was dead serious about thinking they are half of a car....

She sees them in the SF Bay Area. I spent the next 10 min. telling them ALL about the SMART!
I can't wait to get mine so I can show them all

[Springlering]

Went to Trader Joes with my youngest daughter yesterday afternoon. She hasn't really gone out in it yet, having just gotten her own license and wanting to drive her own self everywhere.

Was raving about the car, and the attention it gets. (Have turned into a raging exhibitionist, lol!)

She was in a beyotchy teenage girl mood, "Nuh uh. nobody cares about this stupid car!"

Well, we got stuck in heavy traffic, so I told her to watch people's expressions, while we were sitting. She realized real quick her old mom was telling her the truth, and after getting a "hang loose" sign and a big grin from some good looking boy in a truck, got all happy, and stayed that way all the way home.

It reminds me of that VW commercial where the guy rides the baby around to keep it from crying. Smart is the teenage version of that!

[stevenvillatoro]

Originally Posted by Springlering

She realized real quick her old mom was telling her the truth, and after getting a "hang loose" sign...

Can you teach me the 'hang loose' sign, please?

[bobarb]

HI all! I haven't been to this forum for awhile, but have been reading these comments with a smile....just yesterday I told my husband that I should get paid by smart for all the teaching I have been doing about the car. I agree that most questions are the same....what is it?, where did you get it?, how much?, is it hybrid, etc. I always tell them how much I love it, and mostly that I didn't buy it because of the gas mileage (altho I sure am glad about that), but because it's cute. And maybe because I am older, I think its great when the spikey-haired, tattooed boys come up to me to talk......and have really been curious. I usually say something like, "neat tatoo, where did you get it; or wow, how do you get the spikes to stay up?"!! Then they chat on for quite awhile. all in all, it's really fun, isn't it?

[angel]

Originally Posted by stevenvillatoro

Can you teach me the 'hang loose' sign, please?

[BHSpecialist]

Originally Posted by nicnichols

I get so many that I don't know which is best.. but the one that irks me the most is "that thing can't be safe.. aren't you afraid to drive in it?"

...so I have to go thru the whole story about how MB makes it, its very safe, and I do trust it. Then they usually reply "well I wouldn't drive it.."

Boy do I know what you mean. Working at smart center I'm pretty sure I hear that at least half a dozen times a day. As far as dumb questions go, the worst I've heard so far, was more of a comment than a question.

A pair of "princesses" came in one day, essentially hating on the car, calling it a toy, saying that it couldn't be a real car. Then one of them had an epiphany

"OH MY GOD. This car would be perfect for drunk driving. You can totally, just like crash it and walk away. You can just leave it behind, they're so cheap. We should get a pair of these and just take them out to parties and go drunk driving."

Now, granted, they did realize the safety of the vehicle and recognized that the cost was fairly cheap, but that would have hardly been enough to keep me from launching into a tirade about how inane, irresponsible and stupid their comments were, but then I recalled that I was still at work.

I sincerely doubt they were kidding. argh.