My friend Paul was the one driving in the video and he had 6 months of car payments to go. (It's funny that he told the sales guy he had only 2 weeks to go.)
The model was the Passion Cabriolet and the A/C was ON when Paul did the test drive. (It was a very warm day.) I'm not sure if the car had the power steering or not. I think it did, but I'm not 100% sure. I can always call the dealer and ask if you want me to.
When the camera was turned off, I spoke with my friend Paul at length about the drive of the car. Paul pointed out there was a clear cut change from first to second gear, as well as from second to third, but with each higher shift, the jump seemed less. Once he understood that this is the way the cars shifts, it was no big deal to Paul. Other than the shifting, Paul felt that the ride was smooth and solid. The car was comfortable to ride in; it did NOT bounce all over the road. The car will never "burn rubber", but did a respectable start from a stop. As for a hard stop, the car did very well.
Paul's test ride was about 9 minutes long and I edited out all the bad (as in boring) sections of the video. There are a number of people who have driven the Smart Car for over a year and can go into greater detail as to the feel of the ride under different road conditions.
I hope this helps...
Bob Diaz
