So what do you think so far? Is Smart still the car for you?

[Kobold]

I would not want to swap mine for anything else.
Regarding the mileage, at the beginning I had the same experience that mileage was not as good as expected, but your mileage will get better over time.

I started at 36mpg and now currently I have 47-50mpg depending on my speed of travel, with the 82HP 700cc engine.

[Karl Roth]

Originally Posted by rrrucke

Ok, I've experienced heavy winds & blinding snow flurries which ended up being a scarey situation but I made it home safely. Yesterday I experienced a cold start at 19 degrees and the smartie did just fine. However, it's funny but the radio didn't come on until the car got warm. Also, although I am happy I have heated leather seats, I think the sensor is on way too high because less than 5 mins later I felt like I was burning my arse off so I turned it off. It needs a high/low setting for sure like my Acura TL. Other than these few things, all is well and I'm still happy I bought my cabrio. Next up, going to the gas station because I'm on my last blob. It doesn't matter to me that I'm not getting 33/43but I love the idea of filling up only once in a 2-3 week period instead of every weekend. Right now I think I have 251 miles on it but I'll be sure to check it and flip the tripometer to zero so I can track the next gas up against miles per gallon. Thanks

push once two red blobs= high push agin one red blob = low push again off
the high setting really cooks
karl

[Smartdavis]

I really do enjoy driving the car. I find I keep looking for excuses to go for another drive, like "honey do we need anything at the store"......so far it has exceeded expectations. I love the view from the cockpit window. Vrooooom!

[2micro4u]

Im still a DIE HARD for the Smart. I am still waiting but. I look at it as the way of transportation for the future. The only thing better that the FORTWO would me the FORTWO (Micro Hybrid).
So I will enjoy mine till then.

[bmx43]

Originally Posted by Kobold

I would not want to swap mine for anything else.
Regarding the mileage, at the beginning I had the same experience that mileage was not as good as expected, but your mileage will get better over time.

I started at 36mpg and now currently I have 47-50mpg depending on my speed of travel, with the 82HP 700cc engine.

47-50???? really????? do you go downhill a lot? no offense, but that just seems a little unrealistic to me and is only going to cause a bunch of people to get really angry when they can't get close to that number. i can see mileage improving by a couple of miles a gallon, but 10pmg?

i'm looking at my window sticker now. for highway MPG, it lists 41 with the subtext "Expected range for most drivers 36-46". so your stated numbers aren't even in their range.

i'm on my second tank now, have tried to shift when directed at all times and still have not beat the 34MPG in the city. i think it's very important to report honest, real numbers to people who really want to know. as i've stated before, the car is everything I expected it to be including the mileage but can't ever forsee how this car could get 47-50MPG unless you are always coasting downhill.

[mkaresh]

My site, TrueDelta.com, includes a real-world Fuel Economy Survey. It'll be interesting to see what figures people post, under what conditions (the survey asks about these).

So far the buzz I've been receiving is that people expected better EPA figures.

[Smartdavis]

The engine feels "peppy" to me for a car trying to squeeze out mileage. I don't have any trouble keeping up with traffic. I would imagine Smart engineers made some choices between performance and mileage for the American car market in the first version of the car thinking they could always tweak it later with future models. I'm still on my first tank so I don't have a good idea of the mileage yet, but it seems pretty darn good. After several days of driving I haven't cracked half a tank.

[MinnySmart]

Originally Posted by bmx43

47-50???? really????? do you go downhill a lot? no offense, but that just seems a little unrealistic to me and is only going to cause a bunch of people to get really angry when they can't get close to that number. i can see mileage improving by a couple of miles a gallon, but 10pmg?

i'm looking at my window sticker now. for highway MPG, it lists 41 with the subtext "Expected range for most drivers 36-46". so your stated numbers aren't even in their range.

i'm on my second tank now, have tried to shift when directed at all times and still have not beat the 34MPG in the city. i think it's very important to report honest, real numbers to people who really want to know. as i've stated before, the car is everything I expected it to be including the mileage but can't ever forsee how this car could get 47-50MPG unless you are always coasting downhill.

He said he's got the 82 HP 700 cc motor... not the 70 HP 999 cc motor we're getting.

[rrrucke]

Another observation: I was in NYC this weekend with the smart for the first time. Drove in during the early am (1-2am) and had to avoid subterrainnean black holes (also known as pot holes). At one point when I was driving home in the daylight, I had to pull over to handle a call while on the city streets. When I went to pull off I must of forgotten a huge smooth pot hole to my left. When the smartie entered the hole, I actually thought she was going to tip over. It was touch and go but funny. I felt like I was off roading it. Another good reason to love the smartie - she keeps me guessing! Regina

[Gortok]

Originally Posted by bmx43

47-50???? really????? do you go downhill a lot? no offense, but that just seems a little unrealistic to me and is only going to cause a bunch of people to get really angry when they can't get close to that number. i can see mileage improving by a couple of miles a gallon, but 10pmg?

DUDE! Re-read his quote...He says he's driving a 700CC engine. That would make it a 450...which DID get much better mileage.