The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety crash tested the 1,800-pound Smart ForTwo, and it earned the agency’s highest rating, Good, in front and side impacts. Its seats and head restraints earned IIHS' second-highest rating, Acceptable, for protection in rear impacts.
But IIHS president Adrian Lund stopped short of saying the Smart is safe.
We’ve crunched some numbers and come out with our latest Best Bang for Your Buck list of affordable rides. The list factors in the base price of a new car plus the cost of filling it up for eight years. We used an average gas price of $3.40 — which just a month ago was the national average — and a projected 15,000 miles driven per year, 55% city, 45% highway.
The results had the Smart ForTwo on top with a lifetime cost of $23,863. Less than $5,000 separated our top 10 list, which also includes the Toyota Yaris, Nissan Versa and Honda Fit.
We also have a separate list for hybrids. All five of the top hybrids had a more expensive lifetime cost than any of our top 10 traditional gasoline-powered vehicles. Check out the full list here.
The tiny Smart ForTwo already passed European safety standards, and recently the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also cleared it for the U.S. Side-impact scores were high — five out of five stars — but NHTSA raised concerns over the driver’s door opening during impact.
NHTSA usually gives high ratings because its testing system isn’t as strenuous as the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s, which Cars.com prefers. The Smart received four stars for front crashes on the driver’s side and only three stars for the front passenger. Its rollover rating was also just three stars, a rating usually reserved for large SUVs. (Three stars is the rollover score the 2008 Ford Explorer got.)
In comparison, the small Chevy Aveo and Toyota Yaris get higher front and rollover scores, but lower side-impact ratings. And, of course, no added warning about the doors flying open.
NHTSA Smart crash test page with video (Safecar.gov)
More Smart News (KickingTires)
Toyota unveiled a production version of its iQ microcar at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this month, and now AutoWeek is reporting that the company may import the iQ to the U.S. if it can meet federal safety standards, which are more stringent than those overseas.
The iQ is slightly larger than a Smart ForTwo and has rear seats that bump up against the rear hatch and glass. We’d guess those seats would have to go if the iQ were to meet safety requirements. We’d also guess Toyota will wait to see if the Smart is successful before making a business case for the iQ.
Toyota announced that it will unveil a production version of its tiny iQ concept (concept shown here) at the Geneva Motor Show in March. About the size of a Smart ForTwo, the iQ — hmm, the names rhyme — is only planned for sale in Europe at this time.
Interestingly enough, even though it is so small it can seat three people, although how comfortably is anyone’s guess. The iQ will also run on a tiny little engine that hasn’t been confirmed yet, but could be smaller than the 81 hp powerplant in the Smart. This car will most likely not come to the U.S. but if you think the Smart needs competition let us know.
New Toyota iQ & Urban Cruiser World Debut at Geneva (WorldCarFans)
Friday Fleet Notes is back, and even in its absence our staff has been diligently recording thoughts on the latest cars to come into the Cars.com offices. The new Smart elicited the most comments we’ve gotten in a long time, but a Lexus hybrid and Lincoln SUV made an impression too.
Smart ForTwo Passion (original expert review w/video)
There’s an auto-manual mode that helps a lot with the jerkiness, but it’s a pain to use paddle shifters at low speeds. The paddles turn with the steering wheel, so midway through a left turn, as the tachometer quickly approaches the redline, you’ll be left to reach frantically for an ever-moving target. Why this car doesn’t have a plain-old manual transmission is beyond me.
The ergonomics inside aren’t bad, though the seat adjustments aren’t very smooth. My biggest gripe here was that the cargo shelf behind the front seats is inaccessible without moving the seat forward, and that handle is on the inside of the driver’s seat. That means that if you need to toss anything back there (like, you know, a purse), be prepared to reach across the seat and get smacked by the seatback before you can do so. — Beth Palmer, copy editor
Cars.com reviewer Kelsey Mays delivered his review of the Smart ForTwo — hitting still-unopened dealerships in January — a few weeks back. Today we get a look at the video he shot of the convertible version of the micro-car. Yep, it really is as small as it looks.
After conquering the European and Asian markets, Smart brings its popular urban-crawling ForTwo to the U.S. Coming in a full 3 feet shorter than a Mini Cooper, but still yet to undergo crash testing by the government, the ForTwo comes with a series of question marks hovering over its compact body. Cars.com reviewer Kelsey Mays took the ForTwo for a spin to try to provide some answers. 2008 Smart ForTwo Expert Review
2008 SmartForTwo Expert Review (Cars.com)
If you've paid any attention to the automotive headlines this year, you already know the golf-cart-size Smart ForTwo is headed our way. Smart invited journalists to San Francisco this week to drive the second-generation ForTwo, which has been on sale in Europe since last spring. We tagged along and gathered some more details on its U.S. arrival. The word from Smart president Dave Schembri and chairman Roger Penske is that 74 dealerships have signed on, with around 50 set to be ready at launch. The first '08 ForTwos hit showrooms in January.
Smart is a subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz, so about two-thirds of the dealerships are affiliated with the three-pointed star. Most Smart dealerships will be a "store within a store," Schembri said, where each dealer has a walled-off Smart showroom complete with its own entrance and white, black and yellow décor.
Ever since Smart announced the ForTwo minicar was headed our way, the brand has cultivated an image of environmental responsibility a Sierra-Club tree-hugger could trade in his Prius for. And why not? The ForTwo is the picture of footprint frugality: It's more than 3 feet shorter than a Mini Cooper, and when Smart invited journalists to California this week to check it out, we easily fit two of the cars into a standard parking space. Using the EPA's revised 2008 ratings, Smart estimates that the ForTwo's 70-hp, three-cylinder engine should achieve 33/40 mpg city/highway with the standard automatic transmission. That puts it well ahead of the 118-hp Mini, which the EPA figures to get around 26/33 mpg with the automatic.
Here's the catch: Smart recommends premium fuel.
The ForTwo will run on regular, Smart president Dave Schembri said, but in order to achieve the best power and efficiency, 91 octane is recommended. That puts a damper on the mileage figures. Smart isn't the only one who does it — Mini, too, recommends premium fuel for the Cooper. Both brands cast their cars as premium niche vehicles. Does that explain why their customers can pay a few bucks extra at the pump? Share your thoughts below.
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More Smart News (KickingTires)
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