Not safe on the highway....(lowering springs?)

[tvengineer]

I did feel the wind on a trip back from Florida on I-10 ...
A squal of heavy thunderstorms came thru.. and I did feel the car being pushed around a bit...
Never felt it was unsafe though..

Speaking of I-10 in Louisiana....
My previous car was a Miata.. I drove it across the Causeway bridge during the peak of Hurricane Rita (yea. the bridge was closed. ..but there was no one there to stop me)... the Miata didn't feel a bit of wind...

I know I can't do that in the smart....

[Critical Thinker]

Originally Posted by tvengineer

I did feel the wind on a trip back from Florida on I-10 ...
A squal of heavy thunderstorms came thru.. and I did feel the car being pushed around a bit...
Never felt it was unsafe though..

Speaking of I-10 in Louisiana....
My previous car was a Miata.. I drove it across the Causeway bridge during the peak of Hurricane Rita (yea. the bridge was closed. ..but there was no one there to stop me)... the Miata didn't feel a bit of wind...

I know I can't do that in the smart....

I once drove a rented Ford Escort (probably somewhere around a 1990 vintage) from NY to Florida and back. I remember driving at night at about 70 mph and being passed by big rigs one after the other. I couldn't believe how fast those guys all traveled during the night back in those days. Every time one of those rigs passed the Escort, it got sucked in towards the truck as his front bumper overtook me and then settled back until the rear end passed me, where it got pushed out by the "wake' of wind! I truly hated that car after making that trip.

[Neonspinnazz]

Originally Posted by tvengineer

Speaking of I-10 in Louisiana....
My previous car was a Miata.. I drove it across the Causeway bridge during the peak of Hurricane Rita (yea. the bridge was closed. ..but there was no one there to stop me)... the Miata didn't feel a bit of wind...

I know I can't do that in the smart....

I bet one could, although it might feel like you're about to tip over. There would be worse hurricanes to drive a car over a bridge in.

One great plus of the Miata is its "surf board" streamline shape. Wind must not have too much of an effect on it.

Oh and CT, that's possibly the best explanation to how the Envoy gets sucked in every time a big rig rolls by. If you have your hand out of the window the wind dies for just the moment of the passing then returns with suction as the rear of the trailer blows by, and the whole vehicle leans to the right for a milisecond.

[tvengineer]

Originally Posted by Neonspinnazz

I bet one could, although it might feel like you're about to tip over. There would be worse hurricanes to drive a car over a bridge in.

One great plus of the Miata is its "surf board" streamline shape. Wind must not have too much of an effect on it.
.

I really couldn't belive it... I drove the 24 mile lenght of the causeway that night.. and didn't feel a thing... got off the bridge on the south shore and stopped.. could barely open the drivers door against the wind..got out and had trouble standing upright... back in the miata.. felt like nothing..

sure gonna miss that miata.. but I LOVE my smart

[Critical Thinker]

Originally Posted by Neonspinnazz

Oh and CT, that's possibly the best explanation to how the Envoy gets sucked in every time a big rig rolls by. If you have your hand out of the window the wind dies for just the moment of the passing then returns with suction as the rear of the trailer blows by, and the whole vehicle leans to the right for a milisecond.

Yes, exactly... you get sucked in, then pushed out as you enter and exit the (for the lack of a better term) slip stream of the big rig.

But you get that in an Envoy? I've only experienced that in the Escort, not in a larger vehicle. The smallest vehicle I've ever owned was a 99 BMW M3 and it didn't have any such issues at all on the highway. The damn thing was rock solid no matter what it was passing or being passed by...

[Critical Thinker]

Neonspinnazz -- do you get that big rig push/pull thing in the smart?

[jwight]

Interesting question, from one who doesn't/wouldn't own one to one who hasn't picked his up yet.

[Ozzie]

6400 miles so far and when the wind is blowing I can definitely feel it when driving the highways down here in south Florida. I feel fine in it, but when I first bought the car in DC and was driving it around, I went several days with no adverse wind problems, but there was some good wind on a highway one day and I will say I was white knuckled the entire way back to Gaithersburg, It took a few days to get used to it. Now keep in mind I have a Brabus version which is a wee bit lower than a standard but it still was pushed along by the wind. What someone said above is very true. This is a "pay attention" kind of car. You shouldn't be texting, reading emails, or the paper while driving these cars at any speed. Because of the short wheelbase, and how tight the steering is, one slip of the steering wheel will see you pointing in a very wrong direction....couple that with speed and that can equal a bad situation...

[Neonspinnazz]

Originally Posted by Critical Thinker

Yes, exactly... you get sucked in, then pushed out as you enter and exit the (for the lack of a better term) slip stream of the big rig.

But you get that in an Envoy? I've only experienced that in the Escort, not in a larger vehicle. The smallest vehicle I've ever owned was a 99 BMW M3 and it didn't have any such issues at all on the highway. The damn thing was rock solid no matter what it was passing or being passed by...

Yes, the Envoy's suspension is really soft and you can definitely feel the wind pushing on the car, trucks and atmospherical.

Originally Posted by Critical Thinker

Neonspinnazz -- do you get that big rig push/pull thing in the smart?

I don't have mine yet, I'll post how it feels when I get it. There's this one road on a hill that gets nice updraft and downdraft. It'll be perfect to test the smart in the wind while going up/downhill.

Originally Posted by jwight

Interesting question, from one who doesn't/wouldn't own one to one who hasn't picked his up yet.

LOL. You beat me to the answer, left me laughing for 10 minutes.

UPDATE: Like I posted in Forest's thread I will know on Monday if financing goes through and if I could get the car Monday/Tuesday or in September.

I'm so hoping for this week though!

[jimvw57]

My Expedition gets pushed around by the wind sometimes, I figured it is from the large relativly flat sides that gives the wind something to push against. Since the smart is much smaller, it gives you more room to move around in the lane without encroaching upon the other lane. I guess it is something you get used to. I don't even notice it now. I have not been sucked around by a Semi or large truck on the highway yet. As mentioned, tire pressure makes a big difference.