Not sexy, but Smart
Feb. 9th, 2007 08:44 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lauraanne_gilmanSmart Fortwo Set to Come Across the Pond
By Matthias Pfannmüller (Road & Track, via YahooNews)
"When the Smart Fortwo arrives in the U.S. in early 2008, parent company DaimlerChrysler doesn't want to repeat past mistakes. The first Smart hit the European market in 1998, but the brand has never been profitable. With the new Fortwo, Smart is starting anew with a car tailor-made for the United States. Standard safety features include four airbags, ABS and stability control. The U.S. Fortwo will have increased cabin and trunk space and a new 1.0-liter 3-cylinder engine making 84 bhp, mated to a refined semi-automatic transmission. Company executives claim the car will get about 40 mpg.
Three models will be available: The Pure with optional air conditioning starts at $11,000; the better-equipped Passion will cost $13,000 and the Convertible will be $15,000. A Brabus version with more power will be presented at the Geneva show in March. Roger Penske's UnitedAuto Group will be the exclusive distributor in the U.S., and they will be taking orders in about two months on their Web site, www.smartusa.com."
----------
They're ugly. They're very very ugly. In a bulldog-cute sort of way. And I think they're overpriced, compared to a basic Toyota, fer'ex. But you can park them anywhere, and if the mileage holds up over time.... for short-haul commuters and grocery-getters, at least, this may be the Next Car To Own.
I wouldn't want to drive more than an hour anywhere in it, tho.
ETA: and, best quote of the day: Speaking to MarketWatch's David Weidner about why a hedge fund would want to go public, a finance professor said, "When the smart money is pulling out, it's time to start selling to the dumb money." OUCH!
ETA2: second-best quote of the day: "People on the Internet? Really like porn. Who knew?"
ETA3: I may have had too much caffeine already today. Or maybe it's still yesterday's caffeine. I dunno.
By Matthias Pfannmüller (Road & Track, via YahooNews)
"When the Smart Fortwo arrives in the U.S. in early 2008, parent company DaimlerChrysler doesn't want to repeat past mistakes. The first Smart hit the European market in 1998, but the brand has never been profitable. With the new Fortwo, Smart is starting anew with a car tailor-made for the United States. Standard safety features include four airbags, ABS and stability control. The U.S. Fortwo will have increased cabin and trunk space and a new 1.0-liter 3-cylinder engine making 84 bhp, mated to a refined semi-automatic transmission. Company executives claim the car will get about 40 mpg.
Three models will be available: The Pure with optional air conditioning starts at $11,000; the better-equipped Passion will cost $13,000 and the Convertible will be $15,000. A Brabus version with more power will be presented at the Geneva show in March. Roger Penske's UnitedAuto Group will be the exclusive distributor in the U.S., and they will be taking orders in about two months on their Web site, www.smartusa.com."
----------
They're ugly. They're very very ugly. In a bulldog-cute sort of way. And I think they're overpriced, compared to a basic Toyota, fer'ex. But you can park them anywhere, and if the mileage holds up over time.... for short-haul commuters and grocery-getters, at least, this may be the Next Car To Own.
I wouldn't want to drive more than an hour anywhere in it, tho.
ETA: and, best quote of the day: Speaking to MarketWatch's David Weidner about why a hedge fund would want to go public, a finance professor said, "When the smart money is pulling out, it's time to start selling to the dumb money." OUCH!
ETA2: second-best quote of the day: "People on the Internet? Really like porn. Who knew?"
ETA3: I may have had too much caffeine already today. Or maybe it's still yesterday's caffeine. I dunno.
