I think MJHOLMES has gotten it down correct. If you like it, enjoy driving it and saving money is not a big factor, buy it! For me it’s not an option at this time. I can only admire and be jealous of those being able to do so. I would love to drive one just for fun. Riding a motorcycle use to give me a sense of freedom and i can see how driving this car could do the same. For most of us now,due to the situation in gas and food prices, when we buy something it has to be related to making our money go further but it’s always good to see people that can spend and maybe help save a few jobs for these kids out there living on the edge.

mjholmes, its great if you can afford it and are not concerned for safety reasons, but the average american, people on limited income, single low income families are stuck. i firmly believe in choice, but the money it would take to make payments or cash price for these new vehicles would out weigh the cost of fuel for about a year and by that time it could go down to where it does not matter.

Ms. Peyton, I’m the owner of the third smart car that you met outside Ruby Tuesday tonight.  Your segment was a good introduction to the smart, and it could take hours to properly debate and discuss its pros and cons.  Gas mileage is not its only benefit, and for others that are seeking high MPGs, there are a number of American and foreign cars that get comparable or better mileage.  For me, I wanted a brand new car that got great mileage and was fun to drive.  I can’t get the same experience in a Pinto or Ford Festiva, so I chose this car.  I liken it to the 1968 VW Bug which had a fanatical fan base.  For hauling, I take the Explorer SUV which I still love.  Going to work every day, I take the smart and fill up once a month.  It costs half what I would spend on a similar Prius.

Like Ms. Houston, I get questions all the time… 10 people stopped me just tonight, after your story aired.  It will pass as the novelty wears off in a year, and I’ll still be happy with my choice.

yeah the good ole days but one thing for sure they all ran on gas. of course this is off topic
but on americas most wanted tonight they are doing a special about the children from oklahoma one of the websites someone from there was asking people to watch to help catch killers.

Yea, I remember the pinto. I bought one that that had been driven in one of those parades for azalea trail maids or something like that, that had a couple of hundred miles on it. Boy! was that a mistake! The engine was fine, everything else was falling off of it though. Here’s the shocker, the best auto I’ve ever bought was a ford festiva, built in Canada with a Kia engine. It was a flood vehicle from Mississippi, a couple of years old with few miles on it. It could get as good of mileage as this smart car, had a rear seat and a hatch back. I have carried 4’ by 8’ sheets of plywood in it after letting down the back seat. I got it for $1700 and put about 4 cans of wd40 into the doors and switches and under the dash ,had no problems with it for 4 years and had to sell it for $1100 so i could kill the added cost of insurance,tags,etc. Sure wish I had that car back now! Now that was a smart car.

remember the ford pinto, the fuel savers of the past. i noticed this morning going down airport, there really are not that many as the news likes to say “gas guzzlers” but yet regular is still at 4 dollars a gallon. diesel is eating our truckers up, and after the flooding iowa there goes ethanol. wonder if that car comes with a trailor to haul groceries and the kids in. next it will coal can’t use steam then people would scream about the water waste have to pay a steam permit.
we just need to drill our own oil, that off the coast of cuba with china drilling really concerns me, only 60 miles from florida.

It’s different but not all that impressive in price,gas mileage and room. I couldn’t afford to buy it just to save gas, i would have to drive it over 200,000 miles just to get the purchase price back, not to mention maintenance and it doesn’t really look like it would last that long. Throw in a few other variables and you might even go in the hole, money wise that is. Energy wise you should save some but considering having to make more trips because of size you would loose a portion of that. If you like it and got the money to get rid of, buy it! To me it doesn’t look like a good investment to save money. We have a couple of American small cars that come very close to that gas mileage, at half and less of the price and twice the room inside.

where do you put the children and the groceries ?who can afford to go out and buy a new fuel efficent automobile, i can’t. 21,000 still buys a couple of gallons of gas.

MSRP
pure
coupé    $14,990
passion
coupé    $18,250
passion
cabriolet $21,250

Funny up until they started passing US DOT regulations this past year, the ForTwo Coupe was only $9,995 cad. Now that there’s a higher demand for them in North America, the price went up almost $5,000.

source: http://www.mercedes-benz.ca/mbccustom/smart_pricecard_eng.pdf

Another thing about the smart car is that it is a 2 seater. You can buy a Geo Metro/Suzuki Swift and get the same or better from a 4 seater. The Smart is a neat car, but it is not anything revolutionary. Other countries have beter small car choices. When you look at the UK, where there are desiel cars everywhere (that get over 50mpg.) In Japan there is a classification called Kei cars. These are small cars with around 600cc engines.