After asking for some opinions from forum members a few days ago in my Undecided post, I have today decided and signed the lease for a brand new 2014 Smart ED Cabrio.
Thanks for everybody's responses to my questions, though towards the end the thread seemed to have gone astray a bit with Lemon Law technicalities.
After the Tampa dealer had told me they didn't have any EDs, not even to test drive, and the closest one in Florida would be in Coconut Creek, on the opposite Florida coast, some four hour drive away, I had pretty much lost all hope to meet one in person any time soon.
On a whim I went to my more local Clearwater dealer. To my astonishment they had one in stock. I couldn't believe it after having read about the EDs being concentrated in "green" states, running other states' stock dry and trading freezes between dealers.
It was their last one. A convertible. I didn't want a convertible, just the basic model, but after experiencing this grin-inducing peppy box, I couldn't help it. I had to get it.
My reasons for getting an ED are:
I'm not planning on getting a Level 2 charger just yet, and realize that it will be somewhat challenging on days that I need to do a little more driving than my commute, which is 54 miles round-trip. But, I have a rather convenient fallback option in the form of four Chargepoint stations right next door to my work. Very unexpected in a relatively sparsely populated area and only a handful of offices around.
Unfortunately, my employer will not be allowing me to plug in the slow charger in their parking garage. They plan on installing charge stations in the near future, though, possibly within a year.
Here are the things I don't like:
Couple of questions:
I was a little confused at first looking at the dash display when charging, since it says "Charge Now." To me that sounds like "not currently charging, you need to charge now," but everything was connected and the charger was blinking away in green.
But apparently, the somewhat inconspicuous plug symbol in combination with the blinking squares on the charge progress bar on the dash display is the indication that it's charging. And "Charge Now" is just the title of the menu, as opposed to the menu "Charge and Depart" for the delayed charge. Adding to the confusion is that the manual seems to say "Instant Charge" for the actually displayed "Charge Now" menu title.
Other than that I'm quite the happy camper. I've never leased a car before, though I don't know if I would want to own a battery-powered car anyway. Too scared by it failing after the warranty expires and uncertain about resale value after the battery warranty or Battery Plus program would expire.
Thanks for everybody's responses to my questions, though towards the end the thread seemed to have gone astray a bit with Lemon Law technicalities.
After the Tampa dealer had told me they didn't have any EDs, not even to test drive, and the closest one in Florida would be in Coconut Creek, on the opposite Florida coast, some four hour drive away, I had pretty much lost all hope to meet one in person any time soon.
On a whim I went to my more local Clearwater dealer. To my astonishment they had one in stock. I couldn't believe it after having read about the EDs being concentrated in "green" states, running other states' stock dry and trading freezes between dealers.
It was their last one. A convertible. I didn't want a convertible, just the basic model, but after experiencing this grin-inducing peppy box, I couldn't help it. I had to get it.
My reasons for getting an ED are:
- Perfect size for my daily commute,
- No ICE maintenance,
- Power recuperation,
- Insane acceleration (for its size).
I'm not planning on getting a Level 2 charger just yet, and realize that it will be somewhat challenging on days that I need to do a little more driving than my commute, which is 54 miles round-trip. But, I have a rather convenient fallback option in the form of four Chargepoint stations right next door to my work. Very unexpected in a relatively sparsely populated area and only a handful of offices around.
Unfortunately, my employer will not be allowing me to plug in the slow charger in their parking garage. They plan on installing charge stations in the near future, though, possibly within a year.
Here are the things I don't like:
- Somewhat uncomfortable seats. I feel a little like sitting on a too narrow board with no side support for quick turns.
- The seats don't recline enough for me to take a snooze.
- The seats don't move up or down. Could really use some down adjustment. At some traffic lights I have to crouch to see them. And: Looking through the rearview mirror, the rear window is not high enough. I can't see back far enough.
- Intermittent wiper with sensor takes a little getting used to. Sometimes it wipes when I don't need it, and doesn't when I do. Also, missing a quick wipe option that doesn't lock in the lever.
- Weak dome light. Missing light in rear.
Couple of questions:
- Are there aftermarket seats available with better side support, up/down adjustment and more back tilt (I know there isn't much space to tilt back)?
- What is that black round puck stuck to the windshield to the left of the rearview mirror? The rain sensor?
- Can I assume that when recuperating - whether by applying the brake pedal or "coasting" - and the power gauge dial not pointing all the way to the Off position that braking is done by the recuperation mechanism only and the brake pads are not being applied? Likewise, is it possible to come to a complete stop without the brake pads ever engaging by braking slowly enough so that the power gauge never hits the Off position?
I was a little confused at first looking at the dash display when charging, since it says "Charge Now." To me that sounds like "not currently charging, you need to charge now," but everything was connected and the charger was blinking away in green.
But apparently, the somewhat inconspicuous plug symbol in combination with the blinking squares on the charge progress bar on the dash display is the indication that it's charging. And "Charge Now" is just the title of the menu, as opposed to the menu "Charge and Depart" for the delayed charge. Adding to the confusion is that the manual seems to say "Instant Charge" for the actually displayed "Charge Now" menu title.
Other than that I'm quite the happy camper. I've never leased a car before, though I don't know if I would want to own a battery-powered car anyway. Too scared by it failing after the warranty expires and uncertain about resale value after the battery warranty or Battery Plus program would expire.
If so, you get more recuperation in D+ without brakes, but in either case you need to apply some pressure to the brakes to get maximum recuperation. It's not easy to tell when the friction brakes start working.
