What I just learned, CAUTION

[ASmartMan]

Hey All

As most know I drive a 450 but I know what I just experienced is transferable to the new 451 drivers.

I have been exclusively driving my 450 since Sept. of 07, well today is SUCH a beautiful day here in New England, the wife and I decided to go for a cruse in the Z3 with the top down. Today is the first time since Sept. that I have driven a different car, and WOW did I make some goofs.

Every car I have ever owned was a standard, but I found myself having too think "What gear should I be in"

My Z has a long nose (see my gallery to see the difference) and sure enough, I bumped the hedges (glad it wasn't another car or something hard).

Moral of the story, don't jump into another car (after driving the Smart exclusively for awhile) and think it will all come back

I am really surprised how 9 month of only driving the Smart has made me have to relearn how to drive other cars (I would not of thought it would happen). So you 451 owners, keep this in mind. If you spend a lot of time in the Smart, realize you need to be cautious when driving another car.

Sharing the Experience


AFM

[stevenvillatoro]

Your knowledge is right-on, but not quite timely enough to have helped me. I know, because the same @#$% thing happened to me.

When I bought my smart in January, I had to sell my Scion Xb, which was in impeccable condition at that time.

The Scion had sat undriven for a month while I drove my new smart...

Then, when a prospective buyer came to look at the Scion... WHAM! I crunched the (seemingly huge) Scion while backing it out of the garage, causing $700 damage to the car.

Sharing the embarrassing experience. And grateful for now having a plastic car.

(By the way, I sold the Scion to that same buyer and made an adjustment for the damage.)

[Chris and Thelma]

Unluckily I don't get to drive our Smart exclusively so I have had no problem getting into a larger vehicle, although your comment reminds me of when I would jump back into a car after 40 minutes of indoor go-karting. Man-o-man the drive home was always real awkward.


Chris

[bumblebee]

I've been switching back and forth between my smart and my truck pretty regularly so I don't have this problem just yet.

[jonnysan]

Originally Posted by ASmartMan

Hey All

As most know I drive a 450 but I know what I just experienced is transferable to the new 451 drivers.

I have been exclusively driving my 450 since Sept. of 07, well today is SUCH a beautiful day here in New England, the wife and I decided to go for a cruse in the Z3 with the top down. Today is the first time since Sept. that I have driven a different car, and WOW did I make some goofs.

Every car I have ever owned was a standard, but I found myself having too think "What gear should I be in"

My Z has a long nose (see my gallery to see the difference) and sure enough, I bumped the hedges (glad it wasn't another car or something hard).

Moral of the story, don't jump into another car (after driving the Smart exclusively for awhile) and think it will all come back

I am really surprised how 9 month of only driving the Smart has made me have to relearn how to drive other cars (I would not of thought it would happen). So you 451 owners, keep this in mind. If you spend a lot of time in the Smart, realize you need to be cautious when driving another car.

Sharing the Experience


AFM

And I know what you mean! I almost clipped the front end of the Honda driving out of the storage barn!
One thing is for sure....It is ALOT easier getting in and out of the smartie than it is the S-2000!!! Holy crap have I been spoiled!!

[kannonvaggon]

I have to watch what I'm doing with the various vehicles I drive in any given day...

I always ride my sidecar rig motorcycle every morning. No problems with visibility there, but the handling is sort of like an antique MG with one front wheel missing.... way fun though.

I sometimes drive my Mercedes SUV although probably only once a week or so.

I drive a rather large and lofty motorhome on trips, and our Cabrio is meant to go in the back end of the coach, which has a large garage for hauling big "toys" or very small cars... When I get out of that coach and unload the Cabrio, it seems like I'm about the height of the axles on the previous vehicle.

My wife's previous vehicle was a Scion xB, which looks pretty much like the crate the Smart came in.... That car is quite small but seems almost like an SUV compared to the Smart. The xB was a very nice little car with great visibility at all quadrants, lots of seat room, head room, ease of entry, and gobs of storage with room for four in comfort. On the other hand it won't fit in back of the motorhome, hence the Cabrio has taken it's place.

Interestingly, both the xB and the Cabrio feel like they have a huge turning radius angle compared with both my SUV AND the giant class-A motorhome. The steering is much lighter on the big rig and also the brakes have a lighter feel to them.
I end up almost always parking the Cabrio way to the left in a parking space and also seem to have a bit of an issue trying to tell exactly where the right side of the car is compared to the other vehicles. The visibility out the right rear of the Cabrio is not all that great and the mirrors are not as useful as they seem to be sometimes. Ya gots to turn yer head and look into that blind spot behind the passenger seatback or you'll miss the large truck passing on the right....

I DO appreciate having so much extra room in the garage. I could ALMOST get both the xB AND the Cabrio into the same side of the garage but a short workbench made it just a couple inches too short. The xB will be gone in a couple weeks when it's new owner picks it up. A nice little car for a " carryall " .... but did I mention that the Cabrio Smart can ride in the motorhome?
:-))

[stevenvillatoro]

Originally Posted by kannonvaggon

I end up almost always parking the Cabrio way to the left in a parking space and also seem to have a bit of an issue trying to tell exactly where the right side of the car is compared to the other vehicles.

I can picture the smart with a nice set of curb-feelers!

(The Xb will always have a soft spot in my heart... what a great vehicle.)

[Karl Roth]

Originally Posted by jonnysan

And I know what you mean! I almost clipped the front end of the Honda driving out of the storage barn!
One thing is for sure....It is ALOT easier getting in and out of the smartie than it is the S-2000!!! Holy crap have I been spoiled!!

Think of it as a fitness program
karl