Would you Drive a Smart if ...
 

It looked like this? It would be awesome if the rights could be purchased to make these photochopped mini's that would fit over a smart frame. Imagine a modular Smart car, that allowed you to change bodies with minor modifications.

Enjoy ..

trikkonceptz -

From a safety POV, I think the design would have to incorporate the "safety cell" or at least a brand new safety cell design. I think the (failed) Smart Roadster would make a better platform for your idea because the safety cell is "already low" by design :

Smart Roadster - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...1&d=1231548848

CarloSW2

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Hey what about the smart in my avatar.

Trik: those look fun, but I still like this modded smart:

http://metrompg.com/posts/photos/jetcar.jpg

Tandem seating a la VW 1 liter car means both reduced frontal area and lower Cd.

Escaping from the original car's poor aerodynamics to this shape results in 2.5 L/100 km / 94 mpg US / 113 mpg Imperial.

Based on the previous gen smart (with the diesel): Modded smart car: Jetcar 2.5

Woohoo!

(Sorry for the threadjack :o)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQqJv...eature=related

Sorry but no way.
I test drove the Roadster when it was released here and it was about the worst car I have ever been in.
Horrible dynamics and the rest of the car was about the same.
The salesman kept telling me it was the "new Fiat X-19". Clearly he had never been in one of those.

I felt like it had been a design study from a third year art college class.

Lots of blurb about "elements" , style and little substance.

My wallet stayed firmly closed..

Pete.

I think the Nido safety Car from Pininfarina looks more like the Smart, and better than any of those funny cars, as well as the original. I have long been tempted to make a 7/10 scale model of an already small car, though, just for the reactions. For serious production, though, I think that design is an iterative process - starting from a given external shape can really twist the guts inside to fit, or waste space if it is available.

Like a dolphin, a tuna or marlin, a vehicle shape belies its handling and performance.

Ha ha, Jetcar's using the word "uncompromising". :D

Engineering is all about compromising.

MetroMPG -

That's cute. It reminds me of a smaller sharp-cornered version of that late 1970's "banana car" that had a fantastic Cd. Can't remember the name so I can't find a picture.

CarloSW2

"Pininfarina was one of the first companies to install a wind tunnel (in 1972). A direct result of testing in this environment was the PF-CXR family- size car, which achieved a world record Cd figure of 0.161 and had a curious banana-shaped form: Pininfarina proved it could be practical by creating a version with air intakes, lights, and mirrors (though the Cd figure increased lo 0.23)."

Frank -

Thanks, that's the one! I'll bet that Russian car styling website has a picture of it.

CarloSW2

Frank -

Got it!

1978 Pininfarina Studio CNR (Pininfarina)
http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...1&d=1231698787
CarloSW2

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Good work! :thumbup:

So, why "failed"?

basslover911 -

From the same wiki :

But when I read the Wiki more closely, it seems that someone's still making their own versions in limited production.

This also makes me want to mention the Smart Forfour :

Smart Forfour - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...rt_forfour.jpg

I really wish this version had succeeded, because of it's aesthetics and more "general-purpose" practicality.

CarloSW2

I'd drive a smart if it had better base milage, enough room to put the groceries, and was cheaper.

I'd drive a Smart if they come with the Suzuki GSX-R engine as an option.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cV4HdsDZX6c

And the Jetcar 2.5 video made me want to get out some glow sticks.

How can you drive with the engine as your passenger? I guess it would be great for keeping your lunch warm. The noise and fumes would probably drive anyone insane.

Not to say it is not cool .. LOL

I've driven an 08 smartfortwo, not a bad car, but my mazda 3 is MUCH more fun!!!

Mercedes-Benz Canada offered me an '08 fortwo to test for a day or two in & around Toronto.

I asked for more time to do a review worthy of EcoModder on my home turf, but they were reluctant since the majority of visits to this site are from the US, and their mandate is to work with Canadian media only. (Roughly 12% of our traffic is from north of the 49th. Seems like throwing the baby out with the bathwater, but there you go.)

I might still take them up on it, but I'm not as enthusiastic about a 2 day loan. It'd be hard to get a good sense of the car and generate some good information in that short a time.

Ya just hafta drive the snot outta it in 2 days! :eek:

MetroMPG -

I agree with Frank. 2 days may not be enough per se, but your Eco-butt-dyno will be better than 90% of the rest.

CarloSW2

Hi,

I would drive a Smart car if it had as many seats as the Scion iQ!

Really? I drove one half a mile and found it to be so dynamically fantastic I was hooked and bought one. It's the best car I've ever had, simply because it's so much fun to drive and it gets good economy. Of course, it's noisy, there's no escaping that but I prefer it in every other way to the BMW 330d it replaced.

As for the JetCar. 48000 Euros? I could buy 8 low mileage Smart Roadsters for that!

I've driven a friends Smart car, it's an ok commuter DD, but the base mpg is not all that impressive IMO, handling is ok, noise level is kinda high, but fun to drive. I bought a mazda 3 HB 2.3 mtx, much more fun, can get out of the way of other traffic if needed, and i get mid to high 30's mpg consistently as my DD with mild hypermiling techiques. Have gotten 40 dfe before on some days.

I've got a lifetime ~37mpg (US) driving mine as fast as I can. That includes track days at the Nurburgring, Hungaroring and a test track in the UK, a road rally and an AutoSolo. I don't use hypermiling techniques, I use 6000rpm daily, I use full throttle much of the time, yet I still get these figures. Show me another car with these attributes and I'll buy one. I can get mid-40s (US) if I want to and most people seem to get that in normal use.

If I were given one for free, Id rock a smart... hardcore

the main reason thats stopping me is the price

To my eye, the Pininfarina Studio CNR,

http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...1&d=1231698784


looks a whole lot like a pregnant, four-wheel, four-passenger Aptera... :rolleyes:

All the better for getting Federal EV/PHEV development funds. :thumbup:

Are they expensive there? Over here, they're cheap. I bought a 4 year old Roadster for £5000 (~$9000). Show me another car of a similar age and the same class (two seat roadster) that can be bought for that little money! The ForTwo is pretty cheap for a base model too. I'd give you a price but the Smart website is too interested in looking cool to actually function or give me some information! I think they start at around £8000 (~$14400).

...I'd "test drive" one...but only until the first accident.

...then I probably wouldn't have to worry about it (or anything else thereafter).

...analogy: Hindenberg is to hydrogen as Smart is to too small.

You could say the same about motorcycles...

Are you suggesting that the Smart ForTwo is a dangerous implementation of small? If so, you probably need to do some research. It's one of the safest cars in its class and is renowned for being so. If you mean it's small and is therefore unable to be safe, just remember that big does not equal safe. If you're just trying to belittle Smart drivers, I could say that Hindenberg is to safe flight as the Pontiac Vibe is to economy.....

...a "motorcycle" is merely a self-propelled "hood ornament" for cars!

...uh, can we recognize a "tongue-in-cheek" analogy when you read one? My opinion is it's WAY too small to provide adequate safety at OUR (USA) highway speeds should an accident occur. Obviously, in europe, with its lower speeds (but equally insane drivers!), this MASS vs. SPEED ratio would probably be sufficient to live with.

...and, yes, the Vibe is merely a "gasoline"-powered go-kart, assembled by laid-off americans in a Toyota factory, wearing a defunt PONTIAC badge, but at least it has (a) far more safety-restraint airbags and (b) better MPG than the '99 Malibu that we were driving!

...it's all relative.

Lower speeds in Europe? Here in the UK, the national speed limit is 70mph. In mainland Europe, national speed limits are normally 120kph (~75mph) or 130kph (~80mph). I believe you must be rather ill-informed or a troll. You realise the Smart has four airbags in its "unsafe" design, right?

andylaurence -

It's a pretty common perception in the USA, but the Smart seems to be selling well anyway. The argument here is that the overall larger/heavier makeup of the US auto fleet puts the Smart in a more "dangerous" F=MA environment. But I do think you will agree that the Smart was explicitly *over* engineered for safety to the point where the "exoskeleton" is part of the overt design ... by design, ;) .

I just wish they offered a real stickshift on this side of the pond, :mad: .

CarloSW2

You're right. Smart knew people would question the safety of such a small car, which is why they made it so safe and made the safety cell visible from outside. As for a manual gearbox, I don't think it needs one (the lack of clutch pedal was why I bought it) but I do think it'd be better off with a 5 speed gearbox than the 3*2 speed it has. The lower gears are too close ratio and the higher gears are too far apart. It all stems from the car using a 3 speed gearbox and a 2 speed final drive. Still, it just means an extra gear change, in reality.

...guilty! the last time I was in either Keflavik, Iceland; Prestwick or Ayr, Scotland; Weisbaden or Frankfurt, Germany; Bodo, Norway; or Paris, France (ugh!) was back in 1965...so, yes, my knowledge & experience are "dated."

...BTW the '09 Vibe/Matrix has front pillar, steering wheel & dash, and side-seat airbags...six in front alone.

...and, I test drove a Smart before we decided on the Vibe.

But why all this emphasis on hitting stuff?

id honestly feel safer in a smart than my crx

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Lg3kg2QFgg