How does SMART perform on ice?

[MRCan]

Hello. I am a new member just considering buying a Smart car, but I am based in Canada and I worry about how the Smart will handle on ice or snow - given short length of car and rear wheel drive.
Also I would plan on driving it on the highway sometimes so I am interested in any comments on the lack of cruise control on long drives, etc.
Thank you in advance for any comments anyone may have.

[rawlus®]

on ice? probably about as well as any other car.
chains and/or studded snows might help.
smarts have been in canada for awhile, i think pirelli snows are generally the choice.
there are far more canadian folk on the other smart forum.
Club smart car

[SmartShanna]

All could think when I saw this thread title is the next Disney production of "Smarts on Ice: The Musical" or some such Ice Capades-type thing. Sorry, that's no help, I know.

[fmaxwell]

Originally Posted by MRCan

Hello. I am a new member just considering buying a Smart car, but I am based in Canada and I worry about how the Smart will handle on ice or snow - given short length of car and rear wheel drive.
Also I would plan on driving it on the highway sometimes so I am interested in any comments on the lack of cruise control on long drives, etc.
Thank you in advance for any comments anyone may have.

The ESC (electronic stability control) and ABS will do a lot towards making the best of a terrible situation (ice), but, like any car, you better have studded tires (illegal in many places) if you expect to encounter ice for more than just a few feet here and there. Ice provides very little traction to rubber car tires and that means that an accident is likely if you have to brake or swerve to avoid something (deer, stopped or wrecked vehicle around a blind curve, child on sled, etc.).

An aftermarket cruise control is in the works if you want to retrofit (see Area 451 Parts Support Forum - Index). I've had cruise control in most of my vehicles but often find I've gone a hundred or more miles before I even remember that it exists.

I tend to be more of an active driver; I find that it tends to keep me more alert and on-game when going long distances. Things like cruise control that divorce me from the task of driving make me nervous. If I'm so fatigued that controlling my vehicle's speed is burdensome, it's probably time to pull over for a break or to check into a motel.

I drove 200 miles to get my smart fortwo and then turned around and drove 200 miles home. I've done 700-900+ mile days, so I may be talking from a different perspective than that of readers to whom a "long" drive is still measured in double-digits, but that's my take on the subject.

[rotate]

Like everyone was saying, ice is ice, no car will have traction. In snow/ and slush conditions though consider this. The engine being over the drive wheels in the smart means that there is favorable traction on the rear wheels. Also, narrower tires tend to do better in the snow than wide ones. Light weight helps also. This all means that inherently, the smart should be decent if not quite good. What I would do and what I might do is go pick up a pair of snow tires. Any car can be at least acceptable in the snow/ice with a good set of snows. I had a RWD RX-8 that was like a mountain goat with Blizzacks, and I anticipate the smart would be much the same.

The only problem I have with it is that the stability control is not defeatable. Sometimes when you get stuck in the snow you need to spin the wheels. It remains to be seen if thats a real problem though.

[jediknight36]

There is a video on here with a guy trying to spin or flip his smart in Feburary. Couldnt do it.

[SEEBURG200]

Check this video out.

SMART 42 In Snow

[buellwinkle]

Looks like fun, wish I can use a 2 wheel drive car for my mountain home but the roads and turns are so steep, some 2 wheel drive cars have trouble getting up in the rain.

[jwight]

Originally Posted by jediknight36

There is a video on here with a guy trying to spin or flip his smart in Feburary. Couldnt do it.

If that's the video, the car was spinning. ABS, traction control, ESC, etc. all depend on the tires having traction. Once traction is lost, the car is a ballistic projectile. Can't repeal the laws of physics, etc. Applicable to wet, dry or icy pavement, only the speed where the tires lose traction will vary.

[rotate]

^ Indeed but the one annoying thing about traction control is that when engaged, if you're already stuck, and therefore have no traction or very little, it will cut power and not let you spin the wheels. There are many times when I've been stuck in snow (especially in the rear drives benz's) where I needed to manually turn traction control of so the car would let me spin the wheels and free myself. But yeah, physics are physics and every car in every situation has its limits of adhesion.