I've had Gidget for almost a week now ... we've driven almost 400 miles ... and I thought I'd provide a little feedback on the good stuff, the not so good stuff, and anything else I could think of that you might be interested in. Most of what I say here is to provide suggestions for product improvement so for those sensitive and defensive to our beloved little car, I'm not complaining here - just noting what could be better:
That little tailgate is the best !! I am sooo liking that thing. Very handy ... but need a couple improvements:
I needs to hold more weight ... like 2 normal people .... say 300 to 350 lbs instead of the 200 it's rated for. It would be nice to share the seat.
You should be able to open the inside panel (storage area) from inside the car with the tailgate closed. As it is now, you have to drop the tailgate to open that.
The premium stereo sounds good - it holds radio stations longer than my truck does (which might not be saying much) where they would otherwise fade-out (distance from the tower) ... the sound quality is great but would be much better if there were a couple speakers in the back area ... better balance that way. I haven't tried out the iPod in it yet ... I need to get the cable to hook it up. I did have the radio go on by itself after I closed up the car ... that was weird but it hasn't happened again ... ghosts of Fortwos past I guess ...
The lock on the glove box is useless ... leave it unlocked otherwise if someone breaks in you'll have to replace it when they trash it stealing your stuff. They're going to get your stuff regardless so minimize your damages.
The coin-holder is useless too ... unless you think holding 4 quarters is useful.
That would have been better off as an ashtray-like spot to throw loose change. Of better - to put a CRUISE CONTROL !!
I'll go on about that now ... Oh how nice a cruise control would be! the engine is drive-by-wire ... there are already speed sensors and brake sensors ... the only thing you need is the switch to set it and turn it on and off (and the program in the computer) ... the electronics are all already there. I'm not an electronics engineer ... can someone figure it out?
That's something I'd pay a couple hundred bucks for.
The seats are nice and comfortable - even after 160 miles on the road at once. It would be nice if they could recline back further though ... you can have the seat forward a bit and there's way-plenty of space to recline back but the seat just doesn't recline back much. It would help with carrying longer objects too (like my surfboard).
Road noise is noticeable but not bad ... again - I come from a diesel truck so anything is great to me! Those seeking a center arm-rest - I have a temporary solution: If you're driving alone, fold the passenger seat forward-flat, The back now makes a nice armrest!
The paddle-shifters are a neat trick ... I'm finding that I'm more comfortable with my right arm down and use the stick to upshift and then the left paddle to down shift. And trying to figure out where the paddles are to shift while you're turning is interesting ...
As you may have read elsewhere, I got 39+ mpg on the first half-tank in combined driving, 43+ on the second half (refilled) on a 70+mph road trip to LA. That surprised me (in a pleasant way). The ride was less than pleasant though ... rough and buffeted by winds. This isn't going to be a long road-trip car for me - nor was it designed to do so. San Clemente is about as far as I want to take it ...
Let's see ... what else ... People ... yes ... be prepared to answer a lot of questions. Most of the looks are cool ... some thumbs up ... a lot of double-takes. I haven't been run off the road by a Hummer yet so all is good there. Evidently it draws a cluster of folks when I leave it in front of a store (or bank ... or restaurant ...) I just hide and watch sometimes ... it's kinda like Candid Camera.
I think I'm going to track down a spare tire. I'll keep it inside if I go on a date or a long road trip but otherwise it'll stay home and I'll call AAA or a friend if I can't use the repair kit.
One last request is for a roof-rack ... or at least the ability to use Thule or Yakima rack systems. I plan on designing my own but it's something that should have been thought of already. That rear-mounted rack doesn't work in all situations (like carrying a surfboard longer than 6 1/2 feet). Since the top is polycarbonate, you could glue (double-sided industrial adhesive tape) some aerodynamic tabs or blocks down that a rack could clamp to. I'm just a little concerned about lift and what the roof could take.
Oh! and this is interesting ... I've shown Gidget to several groups of friends and every single one of them came up with "It would only take a few strong guys to tip it on it's side ..." on their own. Let's hope that doesn't ring true ... it seems to be one of the first things on everyone's minds...
It might not sound like it, but overall I'm very happy with the car. I placed my comments here with the hopes that some Smart folks read it and use the information to improve their handy-dandy little car.
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