Is smart German or French? - Page 2 - Smart Car of America Forums : Smart Car Forum

Big Panda · 09-05-2008, 06:02 PM

to me, "Heritage" refers to ones background. i, for instance, have German and Irish "Heritage", but i was BORN here in the States.

therefore, since my "Heritage" is considered "German/Irish", then the smart car is "German/Swiss".

**jediknight36** · 09-05-2008, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mike-in-sa

You can call it anything you want but in my book any 3-lug car is French!

Didnt know that was a standard...

MCMarathoner · 09-05-2008, 06:34 PM

IMHO, it's a product of the EU with a Japanese engine. What does that make it? Fun to drive...

26.2

micmou · 09-05-2008, 06:54 PM

U.S./Canadian 1%,Major Source of foreign parts content: Germany:44%,Japan: 15%.France is not mentioned.I'm sure the remaining 40% is French.

Dunerunner · 09-05-2008, 07:02 PM

Obvoiusly, it's Italian!

Macaw · 09-05-2008, 08:15 PM

Daimler is a multi-national company just like Ford so I would go by where the worldwide headquarters is located...

SmartPassion · 09-05-2008, 08:36 PM

Sounds like many Americans - a mutt.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MCMarathoner

IMHO, it's a product of the EU with a Japanese engine. What does that make it? Fun to drive...

mdfortwoguy · 09-05-2008, 09:31 PM

Judging by the fact that Daimler is a German company, the plant was built with funds from Germans, it is 44% German parts, the VIN is German... etc - I'll deduce that it is German.

That being said, I do give it credit for being built in France... especially with the job that they did. The fit and finish is leaps and bounds above anything else I have seen in the price range, and better than many much more expensive cars.

WilyB · 09-05-2008, 09:45 PM

Mr. Nicolas Hayek, the smart's father, is Lebanese... He cavorted, in fine, with Mercedes to produce the smart in France.

If we follow some of the reasonnings above, the smart can be Lebanese, German or French!

PS: Almost fogot, but Mr. Hayek was the savior of the Swiss watch industry and I bet he is a Swiss citizen by now, so yeah, I voted for "SWISS"!

hgtan · 09-05-2008, 09:57 PM

The poll is "What heritage is smart?" ... None of the above

Design - Nicolas Hayek (parents are Lebanese, but he is now a swiss national)
Brand Ownership - MB and Daimler (both from Germany)
Manufacture in - smartville (France)
Parts content infor [accordingly to the window sticker]:
US/Canadian = 1%
Germany = 44%
Japan = 15%

Conclusion: smart is a multi-nationals product - a combination of all the best available