Would you buy one if more than 3 hours from dealer?

[thomasw98]

Here's a question that I am facing and wondering what others are thinking about it: Would you buy a smart if you were located 3+ hours away from the nearest dealer (one way)?

I could easily make the trip to buy it/pick it up the first day. But what about maintenance and/or repairs?

Would I be able to get the car worked on anywhere other than the dealer?

Will they have a parts support system up and running? when? will it be based at smart headquarters or run out of the dealers?

Thanks for any feedback on this issue.

[jwight]

Originally Posted by thomasw98

Here's a question that I am facing and wondering what others are thinking about it: Would you buy a smart if you were located 3+ hours away from the nearest dealer (one way)?

I could easily make the trip to buy it/pick it up the first day. But what about maintenance and/or repairs?

Would I be able to get the car worked on anywhere other than the dealer?

Will they have a parts support system up and running? when? will it be based at smart headquarters or run out of the dealers?

Thanks for any feedback on this issue.

Thomas,

Many folks on this forum are faced with the same decision; there are big holes in the dealer network once you get away from the two coasts and the large cities in the middle. I'm concerned about a 1 1/2 hour drive to our dealer, so a 3 hour drive would make me really think about buying a smart.

This car is new to the States so initially it will be the dealer or nothing for service; you can certainly do minor things yourself and the 451 smart has a 10K mile service interval - about 2 years for an average driver. Penske will also provide roadside assistance for the first two years of ownership (along with a "generous" 24K mile/2 year warranty.) No idea whether Penske will make parts available via the Internet, and there's no USA based third party vendor network yet, so the dealers will have a lock on things at least for a couple of years. Stay tuned!

[Old smart]

I would ask myself some questions:

a. What necessary or important characteristic does the smart have that no other vehicle has?
b. Will I be asking the smart to do something it wasn’t intended to do? Is Humboldt enough of a city to justify it?
c. If I commute to work away from my home area, what distances and road conditions are between destinations?
d. If returning to the dealer for warranty work, will I have another chase vehicle and driver available? Humboldt is far too far from SFO or Portland for courtesy van service.
e. Assuming that routine service can be done at other than the dealer, do I have a competent and willing local repairman? It will most likely have to be an “independent.�

I think it would be better to thoroughly analyze your own circumstances than to look for a consensus from others.

[amoore007]

I have less problems with NEW cars now ( 15 years ). Like tires they are just better today than in the past. I expect smart, having built 770,000 cars and being associated Mercedes, to have their act together by now. Both my Hummer dealer and my Mini dealer were some distance away without big problems. For me it adds to the fun of having the only smart in town. Even if its only for six months. I suspect a lot of families could use a CITY car even in a small town and the smartfortwo will soon be a regular sight. Therefore I say, " Not a problem."...............

[RLove]

Originally Posted by amoore007

I have less problems with NEW cars now ( 15 years ). Like tires they are just better today than in the past. I expect smart, having built 770,000 cars and being associated Mercedes, to have their act together by now. Both my Hummer dealer and my Mini dealer were some distance away without big problems. For me it adds to the fun of having the only smart in town. Even if its only for six months. I suspect a lot of families could use a CITY car even in a small town and the smartfortwo will soon be a regular sight. Therefore I say, " Not a problem."...............

Well, at least by having the Hummer you can just load the Smart in the back for the ride.

[eqwalker]

My closest dealer will probably by 5 hours away. But I will still go ahead and buy mine. I'm hoping that by the time I need warranty service, or service otherwise, that there will be a dealer closer to me by then. I already know of a PAG owned dealership about 45 minutes away that has applied for a smart dealership but probably won't get it this first year, but I bet they do in 2008.

[OC1Dave]

I am located equidistant from three dealers at about three hours drive each, and would not even consider buying a smart if it were my only car. We now have three cars for two drivers and could survive downtime for the smart. I have resigned myself, and am capable of routine maintenance, and can handle most mechanical problems if I can get parts, but shudder at the thought of electrical or electronic/computer problems. Without the dealership computer system(Star?), it would be a nightmare to diagnose and repair "check engine" light stuff or worse. I also have a 7 X 16 closed trailer and a Burb to tow it, and could drop off a dead car to the dealer in Pittsburgh, involving a nightmare of two 6 hour round trips, and who knows what "Mercedes Dealer" cost. I haven't talked myself out of the purchase yet, and I am hoping that my local Merc dealer can be a resource somewhere down the road as they have indicated that they are interested in becoming a dealer in the future. They were told that the first round of dealers would only be in "large metro areas", whatever that means. I guess a worst case scenario would be to schedule a "Viking funeral" for the smart after the 24 mo, 24,000 mi guarantee runs out LOL.

[gamernotwatcher]

Plan a trip or two/year into the City. Enjoy the opera, stroll broadway, service your smart, park where you want, and test the hill assist feature while traversing nob hill. Buy the car, find a local shop that specializes on Mitsubishi engines, I'll bet they'll rise to the challenge.

[spdickey]

Originally Posted by thomasw98

...Would you buy a smart if you were located 3+ hours away from the nearest dealer (one way)?

Sure with Smart One road side assistance powered by the Penske organization free for two years. Why not. They'll come to you if you break down. Free tow if needed. Penske guys are everywhere servicing their rental fleet.

[Old smart]

Originally Posted by spdickey

Sure with Smart One road side assistance powered by the Penske organization free for two years. Why not. They'll come to you if you break down. Free tow if needed. Penske guys are everywhere servicing their rental fleet.

So, what happens after Penske picks you up off the road? Where do they tow your smart to? What time of the day or night, or day of the week? What is your circumstance at that point? Now, two years hence ... how do things change? All that has yet to be seen.

Not to be negative, but the original inquirer needs to be encouraged to think clearly beyond all the emotional stuff. Lots'a people do.