I had heard about the little Smart cars a few years and figured they would be good little cars for those who live in metropolitan areas. They're good on gas and not all that expensive. I never really looked into them any further than that, because they all have under 100 hp (which sounds boring to me).
Low and behold, I arrive in Japan and the father-in-law has one. Since then, I've learned a bit about Smarts, which I'll share with you (whether or not you care
).He has a Brabus edition Smart, which has a whopping 74 hp, while lesser Smarts have 61 hp. Earlier model Smarts may have as little as 43 hp.
There is a choice between a coupe and cabrio model, and while he has the cabrio model, I've never seen the top down.
It looks odd with the top down IMHO, because the B pillars remain in place:
The car can be left in fully automatic mode or manual mode. When left in manual mode, the engine can be bounced off the revlimiter, but if you bounce off the limiter a few times the car will shift for you. In manual mode, the car can be shifted via paddle shifters or a more conventional sequential shifter (forward to upshift, backward to downshift):
The paddle shifters can be seen behind the steering wheel in this picture:
The Brabus model comes with Brabus badges, a Brabus bodykit, Brabus wheels, a Brabus shift knob, a Brabus handbrake cover, Brabus springs w/Bilstein shocks, a Brabus exhaust, Brabus floormats, a Brabus gauge cluster, but best of all, it comes with this nifty badge on the engine:
Yes, that's a plastic badge that's simply glued to the intake manifold. No expenses spared here. :p
The first time I drove the car, I was amazed. It's a blast to drive. The car is tall, relative to its narrow wheel base, and you sit eye level with people in SUV's. The turbocharged three cylinder engine provides more than enough torque to propel the car around town, considering the car only weighs 750kg (1653lbs). It easily gets up to freeway speeds while getting over 50 miles per gallon (non-Brabus models see over 70mpg :O).
On crowded city streets, the small stature of this car makes it a breeze to maneuver through the tiniest spots. This is a huge advantage here in Japan, especially when you're navigating through streets infested with taxis that will slam on their brakes and swerve randomly and mopeds who weave through cars illegally. Also in many parking garages there are small stalls marked for "kei" cars (vehicles under 600cc), into which the Smart fits with ease.
If/when the Smart is available in the States, I would highly recommend looking into one as a daily driver. Its turbocharged engine makes enough noises to keep you entertained, while getting good gas mileage at the same time. It is fast enough to drive comfortably on the freeway, while not fast enough to cause you to lose your license. It is among the least polluting cars in the world, which helps to make up a little for your ITR that has no cat.
I'll be installing an intake and a scoop on the Smart shortly, then perhaps dynoing the car at Super Autobacs.
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