The most frequent question I get about the Smart Car is whether it is all-electric. The answer is "no." It's not even a hybrid. It's a regular 3 cylinder Mercedes built gasoline engine that gets around 40 miles per gallon.
The second most frequent comment/question is whether it is safe. People in the USA have been conditioned by the USA automobile manufacturers to associate size with safety. I've found it very interesting that sometimes the person asking the question about safety is himself or herself driving a vehicle that has failed or gotten low marks on standardized US Government and Insurance Institute tests. The answer for the Smart Car is that its design meets or exceeds US Government crash test standards including a 5-star side crash rating, and the highest scores for front and side crash worthiness and roof strength. The details are on the Smart Car web site. And for those of you who might have seen the rampant internet forward that purports to show a Smart Car squished between two semi's for gas-guzzling propaganda purposes, just know that the photo is NOT of a Smart Car.
I won't wax on and on about the Smart Car -- and I fully admit it's not for everyone. I'm happy to admit that it does have it's drawbacks as a car -- but none of the drawbacks relate to its safety, especially not for me/Deb who essentially use it as a motorcycle subsitute.
In addition, contrary to popular misconception, the Smart Car does NOT have a small passenger compartment. The passenger compartment (for two only) is very large -- larger than many other cars. The cargo compartment is on the smallish side -- but still larger than people assume when first seeing the car.
Deb and I are very light packers anyway -- most often backpackers in our travels -- but in getting ready for this trip we decided that we could easily pack our regular carry-on rollers -- as the photos here show.
Don't misunderstand me -- I do notice the size difference when passing a semi on a freeway -- but like my motorcycle riding -- the awareness only makes me remember that I'm traveling on roads that I'd rather not be traveling on -- freeways/highways. That's why this Nuggle trip has been planned to avoid freeways just as I do on the motorcycle.
And we love the expansion moon roof, shown below.
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