The New York Times reported today that DaimlerChrysler is planning on introducing the Smart car to the U.S. market starting in 2008.
“The German-American carmaker is calculating that with stubbornly high gasoline prices, mounting concerns about global warming, and waning interest in sport-utility vehicles, consumers in the United States will welcome a car that is no larger than a good-sized riding mower.”
The car is going to be marketed to drivers in overcrowded cities like New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, and San Francisco. The model that’s going to be hitting the streets is called the “Fortwo” a two-seater that fits on top of a regulation pool table and advertised in Britain as getting approximately 46 miles to the gallon in the city and 69 miles to the gallon on the highway. I’d certainly rather see these cars buzzing around the city on my daily commute rather than the monsterous Hummer, Hummer Jr. , and their counterparts.
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and, as the european representative of the group (Theo doesn’t count, he’s just confused), I’ll say that they look cooler (and even drive better) than most of those SUVs. Though I am sure Jersey meathead won’t be squeezing into these…
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I could finally fit in those tiny parking spots around the village. But say one of the SUVeat Heads were to merge into my lane without seeing me? Smart Car becomes Squash Car. At 69 mpg, I’ll take the risk!
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arguably, even cooler than the smart car itself are the vending-machine-look-a-like storage/parking structures they use. perfect for the manhattan-style vacant lot parking lots.
you want the pink one, pablo? swipe your credit card and press C-6. just hope it doesn’t get stuck against the glass on its way down..
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check out these crash test videos of the smart car:
http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=smart+car
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The Smart Cars are already available in the US from ZAP http://www.zapworld.com ZP (NYSE). A California based company who is also planning on brining a Brazilian made car to the US, the Obvio! 828, that is a hybrid that can run on any combination of ethanol and gas. Zap is also the only car company who is selling a Chinese manufactured car in the US the 100% electric Xebra city car.
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Smart Vehicles, Now In The US!
I need not watch ‘The Da Vinci Code’ just to catch a glimpse of a Smart car. This unique vehicle would be starting to roam the country come 2008. Auto Parts Fast would be surely updating its parts list and all Smart car owners could simply find parts…