Thanks folks, I really appreciate the help! I have an '09 Passion (451) and acquired a remote controlled battery switch. It supposed to be installed on the positive post. I don't think that is a problem. I've tried turning the ignition off, waiting for the dash lights to go off, and noticing that the shift light stays on (seemingly forever, although I've not done it overnight). Upon disconnecting the battery, there are some relays clicking and finally the shift light goes out. The dealer said to install a switch, maybe that's the easiest solution.
Thanks again for the help and suggestions!
...one more thing bud...when you re-connect the battery the radio will come on and scare the crap out of you plus a whole bunch of other crazy noises...
... I've tried turning the ignition off, waiting for the dash lights to go off, and noticing that the shift light stays on (seemingly forever, although I've not done it overnight)...
When you turn the key off the dash display goes off first then the shift light, but it will take many minutes before it does go off.
Just arrived home from a "towing" trip - total of 5400 miles behind my bus, then another run of 1300 miles driving from So. Cal to my home in NW Montana. I used the bungee cord, as recommended by Blue Ox, a battery disconnect switch as recommended by Smart, and no aux brakes per my own decision. The best thing, in the BIG carbon footprint machine (my bus) my fuel economy increased by an average of 10% vs towing my GX470. There were no problems WHATSOEVER! until driving down hwy 62 into the Palm Springs area, the winds were gusting up to 65-70 mph off the starboard side. Watching the car in my rearview camera monitor I was surprised to see the front 'hood' blowing around on the windshield of the Smart, tethered by the safety strap. I stopped the rig and took a look. The hood latches had been pulled (or sucked) off the latch pins. Out with the NASCAR solution - duct tape - and the hood was secured. A minor inconvenience for me - but for those having to go around me - maybe it wasn't so nice....
On the 1300 mile return trip, I15 via Salt Lake, I got my best mileage between Vegas and Salt Lake. 52.2 mpg, A/C off, averaging 65-70 mph. The worst, from Palm Springs - via 29 palms and Amboy to Las Vegas - big long grades, lots of A/C, heavy winds - was 34 mpg. Overall for the 1296 miles, the average turned out to be just under 45 mpg. Not bad really when you look at the first 5400 miles with the new and improved mileage on the bus of 7.2 mpg. This meant my overall average for the 6700 miles was 8.6 mpg. Whopee!
Hi New to your forum. I live in Northern Ireland. I tow my 2003 smart passion with an A frame attached to my motorhome which operates the foot brake by cable on the smart. As the brake lights still operate on the smart when the ignition is off if I stoped and did not shunt forward to release the tension on the cable the lights stayed on and on one occasion came back to a flat battery. Anyone know a solution to this problem.
Bill,
Are you installing your base plate yourself? We're planning on doing our own next month -- just received the plate and lighting/wiring kit yesterday.
My husband built an experimental plane so we're figuring he can install this.
Blue Ox has a 10-page manual with pictures and says 4 hours; so maybe it'll take us 8. But estimates for doing this (where I could find someone to DO it) varied from $1K to $2K. And the smart dealerships were the most expensive!
Bill,
Are you installing your base plate yourself? We're planning on doing our own next month -- just received the plate and lighting/wiring kit yesterday.
My husband built an experimental plane so we're figuring he can install this.
Blue Ox has a 10-page manual with pictures and says 4 hours; so maybe it'll take us 8. But estimates for doing this (where I could find someone to DO it) varied from $1K to $2K. And the smart dealerships were the most expensive!
H
4 hours for this install is not possible unless you have done several, have all the proper equipment, have a willing and competent assistant, and don't run into installation problems or having to deal with fitment problems as I did.
It took myself and a friend about 10 hours to do mine. That was before they redesigned one of the components, though, which required a creative and time consuming refit.
Another installer who had experience with installing baseplates on other cars also took about the same length of time to do a smart.
Count on at least 8 hours and expect more. It can be done by anyone with a good assortment of tools, patience, a creative mind, and a helper. Have fun.
Hampyoung, yes I installed it myself. Fortow is right, you would have to install these all the time to get it down to 4 hours. A lot of time is spent taking the car apart. Drilling not a big deal. Getting the nuts on inside a channel took a little while. I have the base plate on and the bumper back and next is to put the plastic back on. Probably need about one hour to finish. I've spent about 7 hours at this point. Stopped at this point to order electrical connector and wiring kit. Should have done this before. I am adding a 6 pin connector and will run the coach battery to the smart's battery, thus no battery shut-off switch. UPS tracking shows that my wiring and an 8" drop receiver should show up today. Should be towing soon. I took several photos as I proceeded. I attached one of the base plate completed before the safety cables were added.
Bill
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Installing Blue Ox base plate today)
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