just drove a Smart car

[RWebb]

George - transit worked great for me when I lived in SFO. The old Muni stuff was grimy (tho not by NYC stds.), but the refurbed street cars were great.

Bicycling was not an option due to nasty crazy drivers.

And... a Ducati has got to be the ultimate personal transportation device in the city (well, one friend had a sailboat he docked at various places around the bay - that worked great for everything near the water).

But, a sufficiently small car in a fairly moderate climate is really going to have to compete with a motorcycle -- and I'd much rather go desmodromic, personally.

[dd74]

Originally Posted by RWebb

desmodromic

Uh-oh. New word alert!

[legion]

Desmodromic Valves

[Porsche_monkey]

Some real world data from drivers in my office:

Smart car; 4 liters/100km (60 mpg American)

VW Jetta diesel 6 litres/100km (40 mpg American)

And this is a turbodiesel Smart car, which I don't think they sell in America, you guys just have the gasoline engines. So now you're at what 50 mpg vs 40 mpg?

Now compare the utility of a Jetta vs a Smart car. Actually don't, there is no comparison, the Jetta is 100 times more practical and useful than the Smart car. Take your child for groceries to feed four people for a week. Oops, I need a trailer. Take your son to hockey. Damn, I need a roof rack. Go to Home Depot and buy a few things. I guess I'll leave the car here rent a van, go home, etc. You get the picture. Yes, the Jetta uses 10-20% more fuel, but the returns at that consumption rate are diminishing, you're not saving a lot more money over a year compared to driving a truck.

The Smart car should be called the Start car, because it's only a start. It is either too small or too expensive. You can't be high priced and small. It needs to be either more practical or way less money.

Maybe Tata has someting closer to what the market really needs. There will be a big market for the right car. But the right car is not here. Yet.

And while I'm not a safety freak by ANY stretch, I have some Smart car vs. transport truck photo's that are somewhat disturbing and would give anyone a valid reason to restrict their driving to the city.

[The Gaijin]

I want a TATA NANO and going to keep the change...

[Porsche_monkey]

Or use it on repairs.

[dd74]

Originally Posted by PBH

Some real world data from drivers in my office:

Smart car; 4 liters/100km (60 mpg American)

VW Jetta diesel 6 litres/100km (40 mpg American)

And this is a turbodiesel Smart car, which I don't think they sell in America, you guys just have the gasoline engines. So now you're at what 50 mpg vs 40 mpg?

Now compare the utility of a Jetta vs a Smart car. Actually don't, there is no comparison, the Jetta is 100 times more practical and useful than the Smart car. Take your child for groceries to feed four people for a week. Oops, I need a trailer. Take your son to hockey. Damn, I need a roof rack. Go to Home Depot and buy a few things. I guess I'll leave the car here rent a van, go home, etc. You get the picture. Yes, the Jetta uses 10-20% more fuel, but the returns at that consumption rate are diminishing, you're not saving a lot more money over a year compared to driving a truck.

The Smart car should be called the Start car, because it's only a start. It is either too small or too expensive. You can't be high priced and small. It needs to be either more practical or way less money.

Maybe Tata has someting closer to what the market really needs. There will be a big market for the right car. But the right car is not here. Yet.

And while I'm not a safety freak by ANY stretch, I have some Smart car vs. transport truck photo's that are somewhat disturbing and would give anyone a valid reason to restrict their driving to the city.

Interesting, and probably correct. For the U.S. market, I believe a lot of hipsters will probably drive the Smart; single, no kids, possibly owns a small dog, etc. Or, rich environmentally-concerned persons who commute with the Smart while hiding away the hybrid Suburban for Sunday family outings.

[dd74]

Originally Posted by legion

Desmodromic Valves

Thanks, Chris.

[Porsche_monkey]

Originally Posted by dd74

Interesting, and probably correct. For the U.S. market, I believe a lot of hipsters will probably drive the Smart; single, no kids, possibly owns a small dog, etc. Or, rich environmentally-concerned persons who commute with the Smart while hiding away the hybrid Suburban for Sunday family outings.

Likely not the intended market, but a sub-segment of their intended market. And it explains the relatively low volumes that are sold here.

Once a car has a latte holder you know it's going nowhere.

[Craig 930 RS]

Yep, and more like 34 mpg overall. No back seat, noisy, wobbly on the freeway.
Redeeming qualities are: Novelty, very small size, more than enough room for 2, safe.

Hell, I'd drive one around for fun for a bit, but......

[Porsche_monkey]

Agreed, aside from safety. Bouncing off an impact is only a good idea if you can survive the G-force. I'd choose the deceleration of a healthy crumple zone any day.

And I do not understand why the turbo-diesel is not sold in the U.S.A.

[Craig 930 RS]

Good old US bureaucrats who make unknowledgeable ***** decisions make it extremely rough for any diesel passenger car to be sold in the US -

[Porsche_monkey]

Maybe it's the new diesel emmission laws? VW does not sell any diesels in Canada right now for that reason.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Crappy diesel fuel, combined with high emissions standards kill the diesel in the USA. BMW and MB had urea-injection systems (Bluetec, etc) that knock down the emissions, but add cost and complexity. In Europe, on the other hand, they have high quality diesel fuel, govt subsidized for lower cost to encourage diesel ownership. I think some countries also give tax breaks. But don't worry, our govt has the answer.......hybrids!

[Craig 930 RS]

We HAVE the low sulfur diesel here in the US, right now.

Still........the USA is run by d!p***** bureaucrats that do not understand -

[GothingNC]

I'm hoping the bring the TDI VW Polo to the US

http://www.popularmechanics.com/blogs/automotive_news/4219904.html

http://www.webwombat.com.au/motoring/news_reports/vw-polo-tdi-review.htm

60-70 MPG for under 20k

[81turboporsche]

a dealership just sprouted up in my town,the way my car has been looking lately i prob should get something a little more reliable and practical,i think those cars might help bring the gas prices down enough if they sell like i think they will

[Porsche_monkey]

I think it will be a long long time before those cars make a dent in fuel consumption.

[Craig 930 RS]

A Smart car with attitude!

[Porsche_monkey]

Yes, a faster Smart car would be way better.




The rest are too gross to post.