Smart Story

I noticed in car news today....that Smart (the sub-brand off Mercedes) was ending sales in the US at the end of 2019. 

Chief reason? Well....when they started US sales in 2008....they sold a fair number of the vehicles (in the 25k range). It'd been drifting downward for five or six years, and last year.....they went with only the battery version.  That was a total failure....barely selling 1,200 Smarts.  The range of that battery Smart?  108 miles on one charge.....dismal.

I owned a Smart for three years....all of 51 hp. 

It was a death-trap.  No spare-tire.  Hot as heck in the summer with the marginal AC unit, and the glass roof.  The thing had no real suspension.  If you pumped the gas hard, you might get up to around 65 mph.  The gas tank barely held four gallons of fuel.

The list went on and on.  I think at one point toward the end, I had forty issues with the car.  Just changing a lightbulb on the front.....I required the services of a 8-year old kid with small hands.  Changing the oil was next to impossible because it had to be 'sucked' out (there was no drain plug). 

It made sense if you were just living in a small town, and wanted something to haul groceries, or get your dog to the vet.  Oh, and the mpg situation was terrific, but since you had only room for four gallons, you still had to refuel about every five days.