When is it available?? How much?

[tongzilla]

When will Smart Car become available? Would it be sold through Mercedes-Benz dealerships or are they exclusively sold through "Smart/Penske" dealership?? How much will they go for?? I see a few on eBay but I wonder if you would have to pay PREMIUM for these??

[Mark Cummins]

Originally Posted by tongzilla

When will Smart Car become available? Would it be sold through Mercedes-Benz dealerships or are they exclusively sold through "Smart/Penske" dealership?? How much will they go for?? I see a few on eBay but I wonder if you would have to pay PREMIUM for these??

Trying to become one of the first buyers of the Smart minicar — likely the most-talked-about car to hit U.S. streets next year — will involve patience and $99.
To sort out those who are more serious about buying one of the 8-foot, 8-inch minicars, Smart USA plans to start taking "reservations" on its website, smart USA - open your mind to the car that challenges the status quo, starting in about two months, says Smart USA President David Schembri, speaking at a conference here.

The cars arouse interest because there's nothing else like them on the road.

Featured in movies such as The Da Vinci Code, the three-cylinder, twin-seater Fortwo, about the size of a golf cart, conceivably can be parked headfirst into a parallel-parking space.

The new model, which made its U.S. debut at the Detroit auto show last month, was redesigned to pass U.S. crash tests.

When cars are available, those who filled out reservations will be contacted by Smart dealerships to see if they are still interested.

If they are, the $99 reservation fee can apply to the Fortwo's purchase price, expected to be less than $15,000 for the base model.

If they aren't interested, the fee will be refunded, Schembri says.

The fee "gives someone ownership and a production reservation," he says. He said the step was necessary because of high interest: The website has had 540,000 visits since June.

That was when DaimlerChrysler announced that an updated version of the French-made Smart car would be coming to the USA.

However, the automaker turned sales over to an independent distributor, United Auto Group, which is headed by former race-car driver Roger Penske.

Schembri, a veteran auto industry executive, says dealers are still being picked. Most will have connections to DaimlerChrysler brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Chrysler or Dodge.

A demonstration roadshow to introduce Americans to the Smart car kicks off this summer in 44 cities.

The Fortwo will come in three versions, including a convertible.


smartenthusiast.com - Index

[Txhurdle]

Expect availability in the first quarter of 2008. MSRP's ranginf from $12,000 - $18,000. US.

[smartcarofamerica.com]

Originally Posted by Txhurdle

Expect availability in the first quarter of 2008. MSRP's ranginf from $12,000 - $18,000. US.

Expect to initially see them on the road in Q1 and to start receiving them if you live in NY, LA or Detroit the top 3 DMAs for smart sales, BUT don't plan on getting your reserved one until Q3 if you live outside of these areas.

[drivesmart]

Originally Posted by smartcarofamerica.com

Expect to initially see them on the road in Q1 and to start receiving them if you live in NY, LA or Detroit the top 3 DMAs for smart sales, BUT don't plan on getting your reserved one until Q3 if you live outside of these areas.

I think other cities will get them sooner then Q3. I just got an email that states when they will go onsale and in which cities. I put a copy of the email here.

[CA-B200]

Penske West Covina, CA has them in right now and they have a couple of Smarts available for a test drive. I just drove one about a half hour ago. This dealership is scheduled to get about 30 a month.

The only way to get one through a Smart dealer is to go on line, configure the car the way you want and place a $99 refundable deposit. The price is not negotiable. Since all the cars have been spoken for there is a waiting list. If the perspective buyer does not want the car when it comes in the first person on the list gets the next car. When you order a car it will go to the dealership closest to your zip code.

[MB-SV]

10-12 month wait here for Smart car. All display models were sold. They have 2 available for demo purposes. I think I'll make an appointment to drive one.

[MB-SV]

Originally Posted by CA-B200

Penske West Covina, CA has them in right now and they have a couple of Smarts available for a test drive. I just drove one about a half hour ago. This dealership is scheduled to get about 30 a month.

.

And how was the test drive??

[CA-B200]

Originally Posted by MB-SV

And how was the test drive??

The interior is actually quite spacious and comfortable. Controls are fairly simple but it pays to take the time to get acquainted before you take off just so you know where and how everything works.

The driver’s seat is not adjustable up and down so I was a bit uncomfortable as I am barely 5’4” but a folded towel or small pillow might do the trick. I drove a 2008 Smart in Canada with cloth seats and they were more comfortable than the leather seats. The seat heaters worked very well.

The interior heater worked well. I don’t know how well the AC works as we did not turn it on in either this car or the one in Canada.

The rear view mirror is just about useless. There are two rather large blind spots on either side of the mirror.

The 5-speed automated manual transmissions whiplash shifting can be exhausting. Using the paddle shifters would make it smoother. I did not use the shifter paddles when I got on to the freeway and this made the ride up the ramp quite an experience. It is slow to get going, it seemed like it took forever to get to 65 mph but don’t forget it only has 70 hp. I had it a bit over 65 but the ride is a bit shaky on the freeway. By that I mean that you could feel every big rig driving past you. It was not hard to handle when they drove past but to me it brought back flashbacks of the retched 1960’s VW bug. The faster I drove the more I felt the wind effects of other traffic.

Street driving was comfortable and stable.

The brakes require a hard foot. I don’t know if that makes sense but to me it felt more like driving an older pick-up truck, with a rather heavy feeling to it. It does stop straight and true though.

I drove the hard top in Canada and the cabriolet here. The wind noise was quite noticeable with the cabriolet, almost like it had a window cracked open but neither are very quiet inside.

It’s a tight squeeze in the cargo; I don’t care what the brochure says.

Parking it is a breeze.

The Smart sold in Canada now is the same as the one sold here in the States except that the Canadian one is in kilometers not miles per hour.