Apparent $15,000 USD for Two Seater Smart Car

I noted some
in France a couple of years ago., and had wondered why they weren't
sold in the U.S.

Well, apparently they soon shall be.

A city driver will sorta squeeze it into an impossible parking place in
Paris--perpendicular, I've seen such, with some of it on the sidewalk.

Don't ask me what happens when the smart car is banged into--or perhaps
is literally carried away by a couple of drunken weight lifters or
inebriated frat rats.

Hey, I'm trying to have fun, so please ignore the more stupid parts of
this referral to the NY TIMES article about the Damlier-Chrysler SMART
CAR, which I hope is a huge success.

It does seem somewhat
overly-priced; but that price would tend to go
downward to meet competition, which I hope GM, Ford, Hyundai, etal will
join.

The question here:

Can you see yourself in a Smart Car?

Me? Not at $15,000, but maybe at $10,000 or hopefully less.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/27/a...&en=0ab7c9b76a339b6f&ei=5094&partner=homepage

 

Chrysler had this piece of shit beat long before Damilar bought them
out. The original Neon was supposed to be a 60 mpg 2 cycle direct
injection setup (no 2 cycle oil required...), with *awesome*
aerodynamics. Unluckily after the EPA got done, it had some
mitsu-reject crap under the hood that dumped more fuel and heat out the
tailpipe than what actually pushed the pistons down, and still managed
to get 40 mpg-ish on the highway.

The 2 cycle engine had more power and produced less emissions than the
mitsu junk it ended up having. The EPA insisted the 2 cycle engine have
oxygen sensors, which ended up killing the deal as it wasn't worth
paying the extra money for the advanced injection system on the engine
*and* the crap to make the EPA happy. **** a bunch of Dick Nixon and
his EPA.

Personally, I'd buy a $10k accent... $6k buys a LOT of gasoline, and
the Accent can actually run highway speeds safely with you, 3 of your
closest friends, and a week's worth of groceries in the back...

JS

 

Not me, perod. Not enough room for two people and groceries let alone
"stuff".

 

why would anyone pay that kind of money for a rollerskate...Gullible
people, I guess! Hyundai makes some itsy-bitsy cars around the world but
we don't need them here either!! Accent Rules!!

 

This is an item in today's Atlanta Journal-Constitution that a $10,000
base-price electric car from Canada will be marketed in the U.S.

Well, if it were $5,000, then I might...uh, I live now in the country,
approx 15-25 minutes from a Walmart.

Nevertheless, I HOPE IT'S A SUCCESS, while there have been electric
cars being tried-out at least since the 1970s.

http://www.ajc.com/search/content/auto/epaper/editions/saturday/wheels_445aad2343ea225e10c0.html

Tiny electric car to arrive in selected U.S. markets
Richard Truett - Autoweek
Saturday, July 1, 2006

A Canadian company plans to start selling a tiny $10,000 electric car
in the United States by the end of the month.

The Zenn --- short for zero emissions, no noise --- is a French-built
two-seat hatchback that can go about 35 miles on a single charge of its
lead-acid batteries and is limited to a top speed of 25 mph.

Ian Clifford, 43, CEO of Feel Good Cars Inc. of Toronto, says he has
signed 20 U.S. dealers in the Southeast and Southwest --- mostly
Florida, Arizona and California. He says he expects to expand to around
45 dealers by the end of the year.

Clifford thinks he can sell 2,000 of the micro cars in the next 12
months.

With an overall length nearly 2 feet shorter than a BMW Mini Cooper,
the Zenn is smaller than small. Most states allow registration of
limited-speed electric vehicles for nonhighway use. The vehicle also
requires insurance in most states. In Georgia, limited-speed vehicles
can be operated on roadways with posted speed limits of 35 mph.

Zenn meets or exceeds U.S. and Canadian safety standards for its
low-speed electric vehicles but doesn't have to meet standards for
full-sized passenger cars, the company says.

Clifford said he sees the front-wheel-drive Zenn being used mostly by
drivers running errands who don't need to go fast or far and who want
to be in a carlike vehicle that is weatherproof.

Unlike other small neighborhood electric vehicles, such as Chrysler's
GEM, the Zenn is a fully enclosed car with an aluminum frame. It has
automotive-quality lighting, heating/defroster, switch gear,
instrumentation and seat belts.

About 31,000 GEMs have been sold since the vehicle went on sale in
1998, said Chrysler spokesman Russ Kiefer. He said about half are sold
through retail to consumers who live in gated communities or who drive
short distances. The rest are sold to fleet buyers who use them on
college campuses and in industrial settings.

Feel Good Cars buys the Zenn from Microcar, a French company that is
part of the Beneteau Group, a large sailboat manufacturer. Clifford
says his company buys the Zenn from Microcar minus the drivetrain. At
the company's Montreal plant, about 20 assembly line workers install
the 5-hp electric motor, controller and lead-acid battery pack. From
there, the vehicles are shipped to dealers.

Clifford says electric parts are bought from General Electric Co. and
other name-brand companies and have been designed specifically for use
in neighborhood electric vehicles.

The Zenn's base price is $9,995, not including delivery charges.





ajc Ad Links

 

Robert Cohen wrote:

Unlike other small neighborhood electric vehicles, such as Chrysler's
GEM, the Zenn is a fully enclosed car with an aluminum frame. It has
automotive-quality lighting, heating/defroster, switch gear,
instrumentation and seat belts.

For under 10K and no air , 10 CD changer, I think Ill pass till they come
out with the Zenn LX

Tunes

 

It's $10K with a top speed of 25mph. Try pulling out into traffic in
it. There's no new technology here, it's like any number of small
generic electric vehicles.

For $2K you can buy a gas scooter that will get 80mpg and haul you at
35mph. Or for $1200 you can get one of these:
http://www.egovehicles.com/

 

Hmmmm damn !!!! I could get 2 of those and jook them together with a board
for a seat and for $4 Grand I could get a four wheel scooter that gets 160
MPG and does 70 MPH hahahahahaha......... Believe it or not when I was a kid
I had soemthing that looked quite similar to that thing and had pedals along
with a 2 HP gas engine you could pedal it like a bike or hit a switch and
the pedals would start the little motor... it didnt go very fast but a quart
of gas seemed to last for a month hahaha

Tunez

 

For $10-15k you can buy a 'dead' SMART and a Suzuki GSXR1100, another
$5k (or a few weekends, cases of beer, easy access to a junkyard and
plenty of wire and gas for the ol' MIG welder) should get the two
integrated into a vehicle that runs something like this:
(a GSXR1100-powered electric
SMART)

How would they know your SMART just left Wal*Mart? The burnout donut
and cloud of white smoke. Bet it'd still get decent fuel economy
assuming it was well tuned and you didn't drive it like a nutcase.

JS