mech, I bought the second Smart Car into California in 2008. I immediately put a receiver from Red Trailer on it and hauled 1/2-ton loads from Chicago and Houston, no problem. I didn't care about the warranty because I am a mechanic. Never had any problems, tho. I looked at the Mirage as my next replacement. Too many doors. Otherwise ok. I calculated my mileage costs for the Smart vs. my Dodge truck and the Smart car was free after the fifth year. Small Featherlite trailers are a match made in heaven for these little cars. The little cars don't care about trailers as long as you don't use a lot of throttle. The auto trannys just think you're driving uphill. No reliability issues whatsoever at 60k. No clutch issues. This is the manual/auto tranny everyone *****es about. I love it.
Smart Car with Trailer: CA to IL - CleanMPG Forums