[PennyR]

Hello,
I am new to this site, im from Hawaii and very interested in getting a smart car. I am looking into 2 used smart cars right now, a 2011 passion hard top from a dealer and a 2013 passion convertable from a private owner. I'm so torn between the 2! So far i've only seen pictures as of yet but plan on viewing both soon. The 2011 looks really good in pictures body wise though the inside looks like it could use an intensive cleaning, as for the 2013 the body has little scratches here and there nothing big and the interior looks very clean. Mileage are low on both and similar to each other. The 2011 has had 2 owner and the other 1. I don't have many options because people that have them seem to keep them and are hard to come by. Are these cars a good investment for someone who does'nt have a Mercedes dealer/mechanic shop around? Any and all advise would be great and very appreciated, i look forward to it!

Thank you.

 

[jzchen]

I saw the 2013 it's a nicely optioned car and motivated seller. Wishing I could have but at this moment the stars aren't aligned...

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[PennyR]

Well my options are now narrowed down to 1!! 🤦‍♀️ The 2013 sold today! I won't be able to look at the 2011 until next Wednesday being that it's on another island from where i'm at! 😬

 

[wahi]

Interesting that the 2013 sold the day you wanna buy it. Anyway, don't be deceived by the fact that Daimler made it, that it would be a superior car to own. Far from it, the smart has always seem to be a stepchild for the company. You'll buy the smart car hoping that it wouldn't need any special assistance from the parent company especially after the (451) model's discontinued in 2015. Some of us here at SCOA have developed a cooperative of sorts, banking on crowd-comments and tips to help save our cars from financial abuse from the stealerships. So yes, buy this exciting car, but know what it means when you have the title in hand: You are on your own.

 

[1stiski]

^^^^agree 100% on this .. weird how detached the mother ship seems to be. Having a good knowledgeable mechanic is a saving grace , otherwise you need to have good skills and capabilities to repair these vehicles yourself .

 

[smartiealbert]

Double the effect of the 2 prior posts. Also be aware that you MUST use the mercedes star system to
do even the simplest repairs to the car. The star system is expensive, so only the stealership and very
few independant garages can/will work on a smart.........................

 

[jzchen]

You can get a clone star system, and share with your friends, who may have Mercedes or smart, another way to look at it...

 

[PennyR]

Should I look into another type of small car then? I know you are all being honest with me which I appreciate truly but at the same time opening my eyes perhaps to look somewhere else.

 

[jzchen]

I ended up getting a Scion iQ to replace my totaled smart. Drove 400 miles to pick her up in Sacramento, (literally 400 mi per GPS).

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[jwight]

There are no other small cars like the smart you can buy new, except the Fiat 500. I've owned 3 smarts and never needed a Mercedes clone computer to work on it. Any good shop can do the basics, and if a computer is needed most shops that work on Mercedes-Benz cars will have one. If you want a car that puts a smile on your face every time you drive it, you want a smart.

 

[1stiski]

Should I look into another type of small car then? I know you are all being honest with me which I appreciate truly but at the same time opening my eyes perhaps to look somewhere else.

Well, that all depends on your willingness and risk assessment on the Smart brand. They are super fun to drive (we have three) and hold up with good regular maintenance. If your not opposed to doing that , you could theoretically have a Smart that gives you many miles of smiles with that dependent on the previous owner’s upkeep and driving style . All are risk factors in the used car area regardless of brand . Good luck on what you finally do .

 

[PennyR]

Actually I’ve seen a picture of the Scion iQ and only seen 1 in the islands that were for sale but it sold already. The only other small car I can think of is the Mini Cooper and that we have lots of here. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Regular maintanence is a given and I would definitely be doing that as I do now with myTacoma. I’m always scared to buy second hand being the past history is so un known and anyone can tell you anything. What would high mileage be for a smart car? The one I will go see next week (hopefully it will still be available) has 34k on it and with the dealer owning it now that makes them the 3rd owner. Would this be a bad thing? Do you think something is wrong with the car? Thank you.

 

[PennyR]

This is what I’d be looking at and in the picture it looks good and clean but in person that might be a different story! 😬

 

[1stiski]

That’s low miles, no worry there

 

[1stiski]

Lots of helpful Smart owners out there, free advise & guidance is always a welcome part of ownership.

 

[PennyR]

Exactly and that’s why I am thankful I stumbled onto this site. Being that this 2011 has had 2 owners already would that be considered a bad thing? I don’t really count the dealer being a 3rd owner because they are only going to turn around and sell it.

 

[1stiski]

Our 09 had two previous owners , but they kept good records . Plus we couldn’t resist the price . Once you see it and drive it , you may want it regardless .

 

[jzchen]

Take it for a good test drive make sure there are no issues like misfire/check engine light. Biggest concern seems to be bent valve, or something similar. It happened to a new owner of a 2nd hand smart around that mileage, member ID @DreamCarOwner . He ended up splitting the repair cost by providing labor dealer providing parts....

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[PennyR]

I will definitely be checking things out as best as I can and wrote things down that’s I’ve read to check for when buying a second hand smart car. What is a bent valve? And what would I be looking for?

 

[mildensmart]

The only other small car I can think of is the Mini Cooper and that we have lots of here.

Unless you can do your own work do not buy a Mini Cooper. I have one and have had three others. Fun cars but terribly expensive to maintain by anyone else.