[russell_314]

I just purchased a 2014 Smart Fortwo "W451" and I'm looking for advice. Since I've had it (About a week) I've changed the engine oil and transmission fluid just to be safe. The old oil looked dark and transmission fluid while not terrible had some metal in it. The label with the tire pressures on the door looks like it was damaged by some type of cleaner so I can't read it. I'm not sure if that's replaceable. The insulation on the mat that goes over the engine is cracked in two but it's not visible when it's down. Just something I'd consider replacing in the future.

It's my primary car and I drive about 20k miles a year. It's mixed about half city and half highway but just short trips. I try to keep about 60-70 MPH on the highway so as not to kill the little engine. The speed limit here varies between 60-75 MPH so I figure if I'm doing 5-10 under they can pass. I love driving it and love how the transmission shifts. I think it's funny how CR made this into a bad thing :shrug:

I'm just looking to say hi on the forums and some general advice from people who learned the hard way with their first Smart car. Thanks >

Russell

 

[jwight]

Welcome to SCoA!

FWIW, the 451s will cruise all day at 80mph with no issues, other than reduced fuel economy. The engine likes higher rpm, so drive it like you stole it.

 

[russell_314]

Thanks for the reply. I'm still getting used to it so no driving it like I stole it yet LOL. I'm only a little bit sad because it's going away by the time I bought one. Maybe Mercedes will make a Smart car version one day.

 

[Goofybutsane]

Yeah I bought my 08 passion used and did a 6 hour drive on the interstate at 80mph with no problem only stopping for gas once drive it like you would any other car except for speed bump slow down for speed bumps lol

 

[russell_314]

I just replaced the spark plugs because I don't have any maintenance records on the car and it says every 30K. I went to my local parts store and they recommended NGK LKR7AIX part #93911 . I installed them and was happy to see that it looks like the spark plugs might have been replaced recently. They were Denso FXU22HR8. I'm pretty sure those aren't factory. The only concern I have was they were gapped to about .027. Was there a reason these plugs could have been gapped smaller than the factory recommended .035? The car ran and still runs smooth except a little rough idle but this might be normal for that engine IDK. I managed to attach a picture of the old spark plug.

 

[Jo e Lefors]

Thanks for the reply. I'm still getting used to it so no driving it like I stole it yet LOL. I'm only a little bit sad because it's going away by the time I bought one. Maybe Mercedes will make a Smart car version one day.

I wouldn't bet on it. I think MB micro car days in the US are over. This country is into trucks and SUV. As much as I love my 180 mpg Chevy Volt, I'm considering selling it for a small SUV. Something easier for me to get in an out of.

 

[Miss Mercedes]

Welcome to SCoA!

Feel free to drive it like you stole it. I drive my 2012 like it's a pickup truck, rally car, and racecar. 159k and still going strong!

What tire pressures were printed on the label will depend on if your car originally came with optional or standard wheels. Worst case, use the markings on the tires as a guide. I know some people run 30psi on all four and have no complaints. Personally, I run 35-40, but then again I have larger tires than stock.

If the insulation mat you're talking about is the carpet that you have to roll up to access the engine bay, I wouldn't worry about it. They all do that over time.

 

[Bar None]

I also have a 2014 that is new to me. Also I changed the engine and transmission oil as there was no maintenance records. Why people don't document maintenance is beyond me. Anyway so far so good with it. I need to do something about the pealing clear coat on the top. Other than that she is in almost perfect condition. Guess I need to change the spark plugs too.

 

[russell_314]

Welcome to SCoA!

Feel free to drive it like you stole it. I drive my 2012 like it's a pickup truck, rally car, and racecar. 159k and still going strong!

What tire pressures were printed on the label will depend on if your car originally came with optional or standard wheels. Worst case, use the markings on the tires as a guide. I know some people run 30psi on all four and have no complaints. Personally, I run 35-40, but then again I have larger tires than stock.

If the insulation mat you're talking about is the carpet that you have to roll up to access the engine bay, I wouldn't worry about it. They all do that over time.

Wow that's crazy. You never have problems with it breaking down or anything? It has the 15 inch alloy wheels but I'm not sure if they made more than one version.

I also have a 2014 that is new to me. Also I changed the engine and transmission oil as there was no maintenance records. Why people don't document maintenance is beyond me. Anyway so far so good with it. I need to do something about the pealing clear coat on the top. Other than that she is in almost perfect condition. Guess I need to change the spark plugs too.

You might want to take one out and look at it first. If I did that I probably wouldn't have changed them but since I bought the plugs I didn't want to return them. I'm saving the old plugs just in case. Take out one of the two on the left as your facing the back of the car. The one on the right is a bit of a pain. The coil packs are held in with one bolt and that one is hard to get to. I used a combination wrench with the closed side on that one. The YouTube video "Smart ForTwo Spark Plug Replacement" by Nathan Chiu was most helpful to me. If I could say anything it would be don't drop anything like the bolt or coil pack in the engine because you might not be able to get it out.

 

[russell_314]

Here are pictures of the wheels. They are 15" but from my understanding the rear one is wider than the front. For my use I love them because they don't look ugly, they match the car, and I'll never go off road with it.

 

[AztroRover]

Russell_314, that mat above your engine you mention will be replaced for free by Mercede Bens. I just bought my car in April and gotta a notice from the DMV here that my VIN had a recall pending I called Mercedez of San Diego's Smart Center and they scheduled me to get it replaced. It's free. Appearently as of Abril 2018, all Smart Fortwo will have to have that pad replaced due to them shredding and then caching fire. You can also run your vin here https://vinrcl.safercar.gov/vin/ and it will tell you to go get the mat changed if it hasn't been yet.

 

[1983JZR3W]

Russell_314, that mat above your engine you mention will be replaced for free by Mercede Bens. I just bought my car in April and gotta a notice from the DMV here that my VIN had a recall pending I called Mercedez of San Diego's Smart Center and they scheduled me to get it replaced. It's free. Appearently as of Abril 2018, all Smart Fortwo will have to have that pad replaced due to them shredding and then caching fire. You can als run your vin here https://vinrcl.safercar.gov/vin/ and it will tell you to go get the mat changed if it hasn't been yet.

Let me help you clear up something. The years effected are 2008 and 2009 to have the mat replaced under the recall. It is not the padding under the metal engine cover, but the mat at the rear of the car. If you hold a mirror over your engine reflecting toward the back of the car, you can see the mat under the recall. The mat at the front of the engine bulkhead tends to fall away from the top, but it's up to you to re-seal it. It's very easy to do and only takes a few minutes. The off white foam cover under the metal engine cover really takes a beating, but that is not a recall item either.

 

[russell_314]

It says no open recalls so I guess if it had a defective mat it was replaced. The mat I'm referring to is the carpeted mat that covers the entire "trunk" area. It's not the stuff on the bottom of the engine hatch. The carpet isn't damaged but the insulation under it is torn all the way across.

 

[AztroRover]

I C, There is a place here in San Diego that buys the Smart fleet cars from Car2Go and have a huge amount of parts. If your looking for good priced parts, they have every single part you might want to replace. Autobahn Used SMART 451 PartsAutobahn Smart Car 451 Parts

 

[1983JZR3W]

It says no open recalls so I guess if it had a defective mat it was replaced. The mat I'm referring to is the carpeted mat that covers the entire "trunk" area. It's not the stuff on the bottom of the engine hatch. The carpet isn't damaged but the insulation under it is torn all the way across.

You have a 2014, so there are no recalls for the engine insulation mat on your car. If it is out of factory warranty and it most likely is, you are on your own as far as the carpet backing you are referring to.

 

[russell_314]

You have a 2014, so there are no recalls for the engine insulation mat on your car. If it is out of factory warranty and it most likely is, you are on your own as far as the carpet backing you are referring to.

I wasn't expecting warranty replacement of anything on a 2014 car. I was just listing in my original post the minor faults I found with it. These were things that I was considering fixing when I get spare $$$

 

[Miss Mercedes]

It says no open recalls so I guess if it had a defective mat it was replaced. The mat I'm referring to is the carpeted mat that covers the entire "trunk" area. It's not the stuff on the bottom of the engine hatch. The carpet isn't damaged but the insulation under it is torn all the way across.

Ah yeah, that mat cracks on all smarts over time. No danger there and there isn't a recall for it. Worst case is a little less sound deadening.

Your 2014 is not covered under the engine bay mat recall (that mat is inside the engine bay, not the carpeted one) so you should be fine.

Wow that's crazy. You never have problems with it breaking down or anything? It has the 15 inch alloy wheels but I'm not sure if they made more than one version.

Nope! It caught fire once due to losing its oil filter (cheap oil filter literally rusted itself to pieces, not the car's fault) but other that it's been solid. Towed heavy trailers some 10,000 miles and the majority of the past couple thousand miles were offroad.

It looks like you have the standard passion wheels. Not sure what the recommended pressures are on those but certainly someone knows. Mine came with optional wide wheels so my door sticker is different.

 

[AztroRover]

Me Either

I wasn't expecting warranty replacement of anything on a 2014 car. I was just listing in my original post the minor faults I found with it. These were things that I was considering fixing when I get spare $$$

I also would have never extpected to get a recall notice on a car 11 years old! With Mercedez being the parent company, I guess fancy brand car companies do it. My other car is a Land Rover, Range Rover Sport and even with that 8 yr old car the first thing the service rep at the dealer does is check for recalls. I was wondering how long they will keep doing that, I guess forever. When it was new I sort of expected it.

 

[Bar None]

When I changed the ownership of my 2014 to me last month the lady at Mercedes Benz wrote that there were no recalls on it.

 

[DreamCarOwner]

It appears you have the factory size tires and wheels. The front is 155 and the rear is 175. The factory sticker for your tire pressures are 29 lbs in the front and 34 lbs in the rear.DCO