Europe's little 'Smart' car to hit U.S. streets

[Sporkman]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20080109/ts_csm/osmart


Europe's little 'Smart' car to hit U.S. streets

By Robert Marquand Wed Jan 9, 3:00 AM ET

PARIS - Behold, with a microscope if necessary, the Smart car. The Mercedes-built European two-seater turns on half a dime, loves to park where even MINIs fear to fit, and is counterintuitively comfortable.

This month, after six years of delays, the panda-cuddly car comes to America.

Europeans already have a love-hate relationship with the feisty little vehicle, designed partly by the Swatch watchmaker Nicolas George Hayek. But Daimler-Chrysler figures this is a perfect moment for the American market. The car combines French savoir-faire with German engineering, is cheap on gas at a time when oil is above $100 a barrel – and will target buyers concerned about emissions and ecology.

Already, 30,000 US residents have plunked $99 down to reserve the first 3-cylinder two-seaters sold in their country.

On the Upper West Side in Manhattan, promoters recently displayed 42 Smarts parked on a block that would fit 21 regular American cars. The US model is 7.5 inches longer than its European cousin, but still four feet shorter than the MINI Cooper, its main competition on the diminutive front. Smarts were also test driven in some Whole Foods store parking lots last year, which might say something about the intended market.

"The Smart is as good for an 18-year-old girl as for her father," says Jean Fourier, a Smart owner in Paris pulling out his iPhone during an interview. "That's one reason I like it. But basically, it is the perfect urban vehicle."

"If you want to be a chic urban Parisian you are driving a Smart, not a big car," says Christophe Petay, a Smart dealer near the Trocadero here. "In Europe, we don't think of it as a car for the countryside. But that's tradition. Americans can drive it coast to coast."

All the rage in Europe
It took some time for the Smart to catch hold in Europe. Now, Paris sports 30,000 Smarts, and Rome 50,000.

On European city streets, the ubiquitous Smarts are like darting schools of tropical fish, or a swarm of flies, depending on the beholder's eye. Some are swathed in brightly painted ads. (Smart will lower the sticker price for buyers willing to drive around as a billboard.)

Those who love the Smart can find no faults. On Smart e-forums, owners debate a Miss Smart contest, take part in a Smart world relay race, revel in what they call "the Smart spirit," and share secrets of successful long trips.

Naysayers find the car "simply ridiculous," as one Parisan says, for reasons of aesthetics and cost. They find it a bourgeoise vanity vehicle driven by smug urbanites, and say it is family-unfriendly and pricey. "It's the car for people who won't take the metro … and who have another one to go on holiday," says Anne-Gael Moulin, a young financial consultant in Paris.

At upwards of $20,000 for the Smart model popular here, the price pains Europeans who want cheap plus small. At a time when Indian automakers are designing a $2,500 car, and Chinese half-price Smart knockoffs are showing up in Italy, some Europeans hoped Smart would be more in reach of the ordinary pocketbook. The new small Euro Fiat city model, for example, is about $12,000.

US Smarts will go from $11,590 for the basic "fortwo," to $16,590 for a deluxe fortwo convertible.

Inside the Smart cockpit, there's an uncanny sense of spaciousness with full bucket seats and business class legroom – like Snoopy's doghouse, which supposedly contains pool tables and large sofas. As Mr. Petay points out, the design specs for the front are the same as any medium-sized European car, while the size savings are taken from the rear of the car. Some Smart dealerships even used former semi-pro basketball players to sell the vehicle.

Americans first widely encountered the Smart through the 2006 Hollywood blockbuster, 'The Da Vinci Code,' in which a female French detective adroitly spins the little Smart through Paris streets to elude the bad guys.

Selling a small car to America
Daimler first planned to decode the American market by proposing a four-seat mini SUV. But tests showed Americans liked the original two-seater better. The American Smart is slightly longer, and has a slightly larger 3-cylinder engine than the classic Smart seen in Europe. The new Smart jumped from 61 to 71 horsepower, and 84 horse is also available.

The Americanized Smart is what European dealers will be selling as the 2008 model.

How Smarts will fare in the US is still uncertain. Daimler executives think it will be a big city hit. On Dec. 17 Daimler reported the 30,000 Americans who paid $99 to get on the Smart list exceeded expectations, and that US fortwo demand is outstripping supply. The unusual $99 car deposit is like a refundable waiting list reservation. The company will contact those on the list to see if they are still game, and put the money toward the car, if they are.

"I think America is a country too big for a car as small as Smart," says Frederic Bidault, a political consultant in Paris. "I can't picture it in L.A. Maybe New York City."

An auto writer in Business Week last year argued, perhaps wryly, that the Smart may be too smart for Americans in love with "preposterous" vehicles like the Hummer H2. "Vehicles like the Chevy Tahoe and GMC Yukon are necessary for people who pull boats and horse trailers, just as many buy them because they have irrational and selfish insecurities about riding around in anything smaller than a tank."

Some American expats in Paris suggest the Smart car will please women. Smart officials say buyers in Europe is evenly divided between men and women.

[bonzodog]

The Smart is a great little car, my brother in the UK owns one. It actually does long journeys really well, though not very fast (60 MPH top speed).

[Lem]

The Smart is a great little car, my brother in the UK owns one. It actually does long journeys really well, though not very fast (60 MPH top speed).

The missus has a soft-top one. Top speed is electronically limited to 83mph, although it will read 90mph on the display. A plug-in module gives you more bhp via an increase in boost pressure and removes the limiter. Not sure I'd fancy doing 100mph+ in one though.

[kamaboko]

I would hate to even experience a fender bender in that thing. It could mean a life flight. Got to love the EPA estimates from 2007 to 2008 now that they're under new guidelines.

40/45 (EPA 2007) ~ 33/41 (EPA 2008)

[billgoldberg]

Despite what the article says (for 18 year old girls and there father) I haven't seen any men driving that "girl power" car.

I mean common wich man would drive this?:

http://www.pinklily.com.au/images/media/smartcar.jpg
:lolflag:

[wieman01]

Despite what the article says (for 18 year old girls and there father) I haven't seen any men driving that "girl power" car.

I mean common wich man would drive this?:

http://www.pinklily.com.au/images/media/smartcar.jpg
:lolflag:
Lol! No way...

[mcduck]

Despite what the article says (for 18 year old girls and there father) I haven't seen any men driving that "girl power" car.

I mean common wich man would drive this?:

lolflag:

Most likely not. NOt the pink one. However I wouldn't mind driving this one, fitted with engine from Suzuki Hayabusa motorcycle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cV4HdsDZX6c

[lvleph]

I would hate to even experience a fender bender in that thing. It could mean a life flight. Got to love the EPA estimates from 2007 to 2008 now that they're under new guidelines.

40/45 (EPA 2007) ~ 33/41 (EPA 2008)

That is because you haven't seen the crash tests (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwk8f_5Yw00).

Also, if you want a fuel efficient car VW TDIs are the way to go. Mine could get 50mpg, and I kept a record of all fill ups. My avg mileage was 41mpg with 60%.

[Onyros]

I've driven one (surely not a pink one, I guarantee that), but I didn't really like the automatic transmission. I abhorr those things, I like to drive stick and that's it. I don't know how people in the US grow so used to driving automatic.

There are actually a few companies here in Portugal renting Smarts at 1 euro per day (supported by advertising on the outside of the "car"), and you have to do a minimum of 30 km per day (around 19 miles).

The steering wheel feedback is interesting, and it eliminates a few of the troubles of parking in narrow spaces, especially here in Europe... but I feel they're overpriced for what they are. I'd get the CDI one, but over 15.000 euros for one is way, way too much.

Try checking out the Fortwo Brabus. That's a little beast of a car (98 bhp on such a tiny car), but I surely wouldn't drive one.

[insane_alien]

don't drive them in a cross wind. very scary.

[bash]

This article is a great read, because seems like the reported didn't check all his facts. I don't know how the french "savoir-faire" (know how to do it) came in there. Hayek is from the french speaking part of Switzerland. Still doesn't make it France though.

And I never knew "savoir-faire" was a saying in English. I know "laisser-faire" as a saying, but "savoir-faire" is new to me.

[Bungo Pony]

I never knew that the stupid car wasn't available in the US. We've had them in Canada for quite a few years.

If you plan on going grocery shopping with that thing, make sure you leave your mate at home as you'll need room for the groceries.

Although it may be great on gas, it's only a basic transport vehicle. A bicycle essentially does the same thing. I prefer a vehicle that can be put to good use, like a 1/2 ton.

[Lostincyberspace]

I've driven one (surely not a pink one, I guarantee that), but I didn't really like the automatic transmission. I abhorr those things, I like to drive stick and that's it. I don't know how people in the US grow so used to driving automatic.

There are actually a few companies here in Portugal renting Smarts at 1 euro per day (supported by advertising on the outside of the "car"), and you have to do a minimum of 30 km per day (around 19 miles).

The steering wheel feedback is interesting, and it eliminates a few of the troubles of parking in narrow spaces, especially here in Europe... but I feel they're overpriced for what they are. I'd get the CDI one, but over 15.000 euros for one is way, way too much.

Try checking out the Fortwo Brabus. That's a little beast of a car (98 bhp on such a tiny car), but I surely wouldn't drive one.
Thats cheap for the US. Anew car even if it is last years model would sell for at least that much most likely 20,000+ easy.

[Lostincyberspace]

This article is a great read, because seems like the reported didn't check all his facts. I don't know how the french "savoir-faire" (know how to do it) came in there. Hayek is from the french speaking part of Switzerland. Still doesn't make it France though.

And I never knew "savoir-faire" was a saying in English. I know "laisser-faire" as a saying, but "savoir-faire" is new to me.
It is now I guess.

[RussianVodka]

I never knew that the stupid car wasn't available in the US. We've had them in Canada for quite a few years.

If you plan on going grocery shopping with that thing, make sure you leave your mate at home as you'll need room for the groceries.

Although it may be great on gas, it's only a basic transport vehicle. A bicycle essentially does the same thing. I prefer a vehicle that can be put to good use, like a 1/2 ton.

So what's the reason you drive a tank? Insecurity or irrationality? Or irrational insecurity? :)

[RussianVodka]

About the Smart. I understand why it would be good for small cities. But otherwise wouldn't it make more sence to buy a two door Civic or something? It may not be as small but it's small enough, and it's cheap and gets good millage. And if you are in a small city, why not just staple an umbrella to your bycicle?

[Onyros]

Thats cheap for the US. Anew car even if it is last years model would sell for at least that much most likely 20,000+ easy.But that's exactly what I meant: I'd rather have a normal car @ 20.000 (and we're talking euros, not dollars) than a Smart @ 15.000 euros. Don't forget the conversion, 1 euro = 1.40 bucks, the Smarts are more expensive this side of the pond ;)

[gn2]

The Smart car really isn't that smart unless you live in a massive city.
For the same money you can buy a more conventional four seat small car that's just as fuel efficient, for example the Toyota Aygo.

[Lostincyberspace]

If you want small build an electric car people.

[Bungo Pony]

So what's the reason you drive a tank?

To haul stuff. If I want to take a snowblower from one place to another, I can do it :)

Mind you, I could always top the snowblower with gas, throw it in gear, and let it tow the smart car :D

It's also good for moving furniture, and taking the empties in.

[bash]

They have sold it here in Switzerland for quite a while. Actually since it came out. But I still think it's a mighty ugly car. I mean who wants to be seen in something like this?

Here, it is still mostly associated with beeing unable to afford a "real" car. "Oh I'm gonna impress my date with my smart car." Good luck on that. So it comes down to majorly beeing used as a company car for firms that need their employees to drive around.

[rye_]

Last thing I heard, the smart car will be the basis for next batmobile.

You heard it here first:)

[Onyros]

Have you seen one of the other versions of the Smart, the Smart Roadster?

We actually call it "Batmobile" here in the house :)

[mcduck]

About the Smart. I understand why it would be good for small cities. But otherwise wouldn't it make more sence to buy a two door Civic or something? It may not be as small but it's small enough, and it's cheap and gets good millage. And if you are in a small city, why not just staple an umbrella to your bycicle?

The car is built by Mercedes Benz, and you'll sure notice that when you sit inside one. It definitely isn't targeted for people who might buy a Honda Civic or ride a bike to work. Or those who have to worry about the price. :D

It's not a practical car for everybody. It's a small car for those who would otherwise drive Mercedes Benz or BMW.

[Paqman]

Have you seen one of the other versions of the Smart, the Smart Roadster?


They're actually supposed to handle pretty well. Even Jeremy Clarkson liked it.

[hyper_ch]

"Oh I'm gonna impress my date with my smart car."
If you have to impress your date with a car I tend to think there are a lot of other things you're lacking ;)

The Smart Roadster looks quite nice I think:

http://arabam.e-kolay.net/fuar/2002/paris/mmc_smart_roadster_xx.jpg

And I agree, for city traffic the Smart is really great - but then i still think it looks like it had already two accidents...

[tact]

I've driven one (surely not a pink one, I guarantee that), but I didn't really like the automatic transmission. I abhorr those things, I like to drive stick and that's it. I don't know how people in the US grow so used to driving automatic.


Actually they HAVE stick transmissions (manual transmissions). They are "automated manual" transmissions (AMT).

It has a clutch, but no clutch pedal. A computer controlled electric actuator does the "pedal pressing" for you.

The shifter - the stick on the floor (and in the "Pulse" model I bought the F1 style shift paddles on the steering wheel) - is also electric.

It has no torque converter like an auto-transmission has. Thus there is no "slippage" at all as you drive. It IS a manual box. Believe it. :)

My model has a switch on the stick shift that I can press and let the computer do all the gear changes - but its still a "manual gearbox" or stick shift despite the fact the clutch and gears are pushed around by electric actuators.

[tact]

They're actually supposed to handle pretty well. Even Jeremy Clarkson liked it.

I have owned one here in Kuala Lumpur for the past 18mths and find it IMPOSSIBLE to drive the car sedately. It is just SO MUCH FUN that I find myself driving everywhere at 110%.

They do handle well with decent tyres on them. I use Michelin Pilot Preceda II and they are perfect. With lesser tyres there is a LOT of understeer. With the PPII's it corners like on rails and I have raced several times on hill climbs lifting inside front tyres clear off the road on switchback after switchback!

There is a Jeremy Clarkson video on youtube that makes it look like they handle badly. Pls note that is NOT a current model. The original model, some years old, did handle like a pig.

[PartisanEntity]

Oh come on, anyone who watches Top Gear knows, if you want to be hip, you don't drive a French car. You drive something Italian or German which can do 0-100km/h in under 4 seconds and spews out as much exhaust as 20 Smarts :)

[wieman01]

Oh come on, anyone who watches Top Gear knows, if you want to be hip, you don't drive a French car. You drive something Italian or German which can do 0-100km/h in under 4 seconds and spews out as much exhaust as 20 Smarts :)
That is indeed sad but true.

I was about to get one myself last year, because it is a great city vehicle and fuel consumption is rather moderate. That said, I don't consider is fully-flegde car but rather a fun vehicle which is good for city traffic and short weekend trips. I am still tempted, the new model looks great (despite the fact that it is a bit on the expensive side for such a small car).

By the way... I did a test drive in a Smart last year and it can go about 90 mph (150 kph). Amazing. But don't try this at home! ;-)

[Sam]

Being from Switzerland, I see a lot of them every day. A friend has one, and it's really great if you live in the city. This is a dream for parking. In Switzerland, you can even park perpendiculary in the park places if it fits.

[wieman01]

Being from Switzerland, I see a lot of them every day. A friend has one, and it's really great if you live in the city. This is a dream for parking. In Switzerland, you can even park perpendiculary in the park places if it fits.
Is that legal in Switzerland?

[PartisanEntity]

We have loads of Smarts here as well, and here too many people park perpendiculary (depending on the amount of space) and yes it is legal (again depending on the markings on the floor).

[Sam]

As long as the four wheels are inside the place it's ok.

[hyper_ch]

but who pays then for the parking fee? ^^

[PartisanEntity]

Here in austria we do not have one marking per car, we have a designated area next to the curb where cars can park. Each car owner must then either have a parking ticket visibly on the dashboard or purchase what is called an sms-ticket.

[kvonb]

-

[Sporkman]

...but then i still think it looks like it had already two accidents...

Yes, or one clean, well-timed multi-car pileup.

[GMU_DodgyHodgy]

If I wasn't married with four kids - it would be kool. Howeve, its too small for my needs.

[wieman01]

If I wasn't married with four kids - it would be kool. Howeve, its too small for my needs.
You could buy 3 of them, however. ;-)

[gn2]

If I wasn't married with four kids - it would be kool. Howeve, its too small for my needs.

You just need one of these (http://thescooterlounge.com/images/124IndianFamily.jpg)
Bolt an extra chair on the front and you're sorted!

[GavinZac]

They have sold it here in Switzerland for quite a while. Actually since it came out. But I still think it's a mighty ugly car. I mean who wants to be seen in something like this?

Here, it is still mostly associated with beeing unable to afford a "real" car. "Oh I'm gonna impress my date with my smart car." Good luck on that. So it comes down to majorly beeing used as a company car for firms that need their employees to drive around.

Seems rather pathetic that what you drive influences your self-esteem, but hey, good luck on that date, I'm sure the bigger car will make up for other things...

[tact]

Erm, yeah, but you guys in KL drive like loonies at the best of times!

Yer I will accept that. :) True is true.

[steelbreeze]

I didn't know how I felt about these cars the first time I saw one, but owners really seem to love these <a href=”http://www.askprimerica.com/smart-car-turns-heads-saves-gas-for-a-primerica-home-office-employee%e2%80%99s-daily-commute/” title=”smart car” target’_blank”>Smart car</a>

[starcannon]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20080109/ts_csm/osmart

If they get to price down to around $8,000.00 U.S. I'd consider one; but at $20,000.00 its just not going to happen for me, not on something that can not haul my family of 4 around.

I look forward to family friendly smarts, and would like to see those going for around $16,000 base price; then my appetite would be whetted.

[MikeTheC]

Oh, how to even say this without making this some kind of political screech...

While I understand what's trying to be achieved with the SmartCar, the problem (particularly here in the U.S.) is how this whole "let's go green" thing is being handled, and how politicized it has become.

Moreover, having seen these vehicles on the road, frankly I feel my Chevy Aveo is far more substantial a vehicle than one of them, and I don't even regard my vehicle all that highly to begin with. I also don't like the oft-expressed notion I hear that "Well, they'd be safer if just everyone would buy one." I'm sorry, but it's the attitude and approach that I have to take exception to.

Without getting into a litany about it, the fact of the matter is that our now-crumbling U.S. auto industry has had the capability for quite some time to get into building far better cars than they have, vis a vis fuel economy, emission standards, crash safety, and so on; yet, they chose instead not to pursue any of those things. Simply look where it's now finally led them if there yet be any doubt how badly and misguidedly our auto industry here has run itself.

The problem is that we as a society have become all about pain- and responsibility-avoidance, and simply "putting the government in charge" isn't, in my opinion, going to fix things.

Ok, so bringing this back to the more proper topic of this thread, why is there this "need" to make these things so small? I've seen some of the Australian, British and French prototypes for vehicles, all of which are more environmentally friendly, and all of which look 10x more safe (and are much more family-friendly) than these little matchbox "SmartCars".

[sydbat]

Having not read the entire thread, I'm not sure if this was discussed yet...

We have had the "Smart" car in Canada for a few years now. The safety record is anything but stellar. Just a few weeks ago a woman was driving her "Smart" car on the freeway here (Calgary) and was literally run over by a semi. The semi driver did not even realize he had driven OVER the little car (apparently, as the semi passed, the tiny vehicle was sucked under the trailer from the resultant slipstream wind). Fortunately, the woman driving survived, but has a broken back and pelvis.

I can see this type of vehicle working well in Europe or other places that have clustered inner cities with narrow streets and slower moving traffic where people ride mopeds or bicycles, but in large North American urban centres the "Smart" car is really out of place. Freeways and highways are dangerous for regular vehicles let alone one that can fit into most car trunks!

[swoll1980]

For as dinky, and retarded as they are, they don't even get that great of a mpg rating. There are many cars that achieve the same mpg w/o sacrificing size, or power.

[gnomeuser]

Despite what the article says (for 18 year old girls and there father) I haven't seen any men driving that "girl power" car.

I mean common wich man would drive this?:

http://www.pinklily.com.au/images/media/smartcar.jpg
:lolflag:

I would.. of course I have no drivers license (*grumble* stupid doctors) but I like it (perhaps not that specific paintjob though).

I think it looks handy and kinda cool.

[cariboo]

My neighbours own one, for the type of driving we do around my area, it is the perfect car for day to day use. Most of us drive to town to work, or just make quirk runs to the grocery store. Using a diesel powered smart uses a lot less fuel then firing up the F350 just to run to the corner store for a liter of milk.

The only real problem I have with them is that from anything bigger than a 4X4 pickup they are pretty hard to see, especially if they are in the blind spot.

[gn2]

Ok, so bringing this back to the more proper topic of this thread, why is there this "need" to make these things so small?

Smart cars are city cars designed for cities with crowded narrow streets, that's why they are the size they are.
The short length makes it much more easy to find a parking space.

http://images.stanzapub.com/readers/scienceray/2008/05/04/151098_0.jpg

[tsali]

How about an electric hot rod (http://www.streetrodderweb.com/tech/0904sr_the_electric_powered_hot_rod/index.html)?

http://image.streetrodderweb.com/f/15077213/0904sr_03_z+the_electric_powered_hot_rod+e_roadste r.jpg

[arcdrag]

These would be awesome if you lived in a downtown metropolitan area. There's nothing worse then driving past 10 close parking spots that are just a little bit to small and having to park a mile away. The only downside to it is that it could in no way be your only car unless you never drive out of the city.

[Sporkman]

...uses a lot less fuel then firing up the F350 just to run to the corner store for a liter of milk.


...for a what of milk??

:p

[eolson]

I can see them in Dallas, Austin (maybe), or Houston (or other large cities). I don't know what the break down is between rural and city drivers is, but suspect there are more city drivers than rural drivers. That being said, I've got a Mustang and a Dodge Ram and the Mustang spends most of it's time in the garage. I love it too much to expose it to the treatment the Dodge gets. Neither it or the smart car have adequate ground clearance for where I drive. Then again, maybe the smart car could be jacked up a bit??????

[gn2]

~ maybe the smart car could be jacked up a bit??????

Would this do?

http://craziestgadgets.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/smart-car-monster-truck.jpg

[MikeTheC]

Would this do?

http://craziestgadgets.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/smart-car-monster-truck.jpg

Why not just tie a boat anchor to it while you're at it? :)

[steelbreeze]

A co-worker of mine drives a Smart car through Atlanta traffic. Here is a small article on her and her car with some great pictures http://www.askprimerica.com/smart-car-turns-heads-saves-gas-for-a-primerica-home-office-employee%e2%80%99s-daily-commute/

[agarzon]

The Smarts are very practical when it comes to finding a parking spot, but it simply is cheaper to take public transportation (excellent on most European cities) and have a little bottle of hand sanitiser... No insurance, denting, scratching, traffic, taxes (ridiculously high taxes!!!) etc...
They may be a hit in NY, SanFran, Seattle, or LA, but they will not "take over" the US [-X

[Grant A.]

Let's see how smart of a car it is when someone gets t-boned by an 18-wheeler in one...

[pbpersson]

I have very mixed feelings about these cars.

Several of them have been appearing here in the Phoenix area.

I read a safety article about them and it said they are very safe as long as you don't collide with a larger vehicle. Well.....duh.....everything here is larger.

I had a friend who looked at a picture of it and said it looked like a pregnant roller skate. I read the ride was bumpy and noisy, the handling was not that great, and the gas mileage is not all that great for such a tiny car. I can get 33mpg with a relatively huge Camry, this thing is 40% the size and only gets 30% more gas mileage.

On the other hand.....Europe has been using cars like this for years because their gas prices are way more. I wish we had some smaller cars here. Although this large of a jump.....I don't know. :confused:

I will tell you - when I see one zooming down the highway at 70mpg I don't know if they are brave or just foolish. They look like glorified golf carts. :(

[cariboo]

...for a what of milk??

:p

I speak Canadian english, and use the us dictionary in Firefox. :)

For you Americans a quart of milk :)

[pbpersson]

I speak Canadian english, and use the us dictionary in Firefox. :)

For you Americans a quart of milk :)

Yes, speaking of liters and quarts, back in the 1960's I was in school and they taught us all about the Metric system, they said we were going to be converting very soon.

I forgot now....what century was that conversion going to be getting here? I could have SWORN they said the second half of the 20th century, but I must have gotten the date confused because I have not seen it yet. :o

[gn2]

Let's see how smart of a car it is when someone gets t-boned by an 18-wheeler in one...

This might sound utterly ridiculous, but your chances of survival in a Smart are quite good compared to many other types of vehicle, particularly if you specify the side airbag option.

http://www.euroncap.com/tests/smart_fortwo_2007/303.aspx