I'm talking myself into a smart car

[Heynow999 0]

Here is where I am at.I am doing my best to reduce my use of fossil fuels. I have solar panels on my house that make electricity and some that make hot water. I install solar systems for a living. I need a truck for work to transport equipment and occasionally tow a trailer. I also plow snow in the winter so I need a 4x4 truck. I can't change that. With that in mind I looked for the most fuel efficient truck I could find that suited my needs. I settled on a 1996 Dodge 12v Cummins diesel. I keep detailed records with an iphone app and I am averaging 13LHK. Not bad for a 1 ton dually 4x4. I actually think pound for pound it gives a smart car a good run for its money in that it has high utility while still giving reasonable fuel mileage.As I was driving to a job last week I started doing some calculations in my head about how many kms I had driven so far this year and then I estimated I would probably drive 40,000 km for the year which would use about 5200L! This really bums me out, not just the cost but the excessive use of fossil fuelsSo I started thinking that I don't always need the truck, often I just have to get myself to the job once all the equipment has been delivered. I also go out and do a lot of quotes where a car could be used. Maybe half the time I need the truck.So how does the math work out? If I were to drive 20k in the truck at 13LHK and 20k in a diesel smart car at 4LHK I would use 3400L for a savings of 1800L, which is about $1800 at today's diesel prices. This would almost cover the car payments, not including repairs, maintenance and insurance. Of course if I could drive the smart car more I might actually break even.The smart car I have my eye on is a 2006 diesel coupe pure with only 30k on it.To me, it seems like the right thing to do.Any thoughts?

Edited September 25, 2010 by Heynow999

[Leadwing 565]

It's the smart thing to do. ;)Maintenence costs can be severely cut by making use of local members who will do it for a fraction of the cost of MB service.Where are you located?The '06 diesel with 30,000 kms on it sounds good. Do you know the cars history? (regular maintenence, accidents etc.)

...pound for pound it puts the smart car to shame.

There is a limit to how small you can go and still have a usable vehicle. The smart is pretty much there. On the other end of the stick, even 18,000 lb. tractors can get respectable fuel mileage, when their weight is factored in.BTW, to the club. Stay tuned to the recent posts for activities that might peak your interests beyond the fuel saving mode.Ron Edited September 22, 2010 by Leadwing

[MikeT 744]

Yeah, "putting it to shame" is over the top....old trucks with inline sixes could do that 50 years ago....Mercedes Unimogs can too. The Law of Diminishing Returns applies to all things, including the smart. Very well driven examples are in the mid 3.5 L/100 km range. You can't ask for more than that in an ICE powered car.Should you get one? If you are committed to the idea and prepared to maintain the car properly, I would say, go for it!

[passionateaboutRUBY 0]

We are not all using 4LHK; some of us (with a realistic driving mix) are using 5-ish LHK with the diesel. 30,000 doesn't sound like much. No warranty left; that doesn't seem to concern you. If you do your own maintenance it will be a bonus (as with any vehicle).If you are promoting your business, the smart has another advantage - it's an excellent platform to wrap with your logo etc., and will appeal to some customers.Welcome, and we look forward to hearing more!

[ganisa 0]

To give you another exemple, I am a contractor too and my CDI does min 22 km/l and my Dakota 5/6 km/l. Within three years my smart paid itself. Go for it.

[Ghost 0]

Here are my 2 cents:My commute to work are exactly 100 kilometers (one way). I did that drive in the last 6 month with my 2002 Pontiac Sunfire, with the 2.2 liter Ecotec engine a car which most people would call "easy on gas".Without calculating now every cent and every kilometers, my total gas costs in a month for this vehicle were about $ 450.00.It took me 2 month to decide for the Smart. I drove a Smart before (first generation in 1998), so the vehicle itself was not the question for me. Is it really the right compromise between costs - comfort - safety.I bought my 2005 CDI with 55000 k one month ago. First the costs for fuel - in the first month (exact same usage then the Sunfire before) I spent about $ 180.00 on diesel.Insurance is exactly the same like the Sunfire.Is it more expensive to maintain the Smart? Yes, if something is wrong I have to go to the dealership. Parts are more expensive, I need special oil, filters, can't buy mut tires on every corner, etc.I can live with that. It is fun to drive the Smart, the stop at the gas-pump cost me only 16 dollars, the car definitely "pays for itself". The savings on gas are huge!My usage is average at 4.22 liters, but to be honest - I still have to learn how to drive the CDI. Often I catch myself running the engine between 2500 and 3000, I should get used to it and run it around 2000 - guess I will be below the 4 liters then.I will buy another one - no doubt! A bit more power would be nice - maybe a newer gas-model next time. Let's see......Ghost

Edited September 22, 2010 by Ghost

[Coast Steve 1]

Heynow999, welcome to the forum!Great to hear of someone else that cares for the enviroment, and yes get the Smart,...........it's got you're name writen all over it!

[Leadwing 565]

Is it more expensive to maintain the Smart? Yes, if something is wrong I have to go to the dealership. Parts are more expensive, I need special oil, filters, can't buy mut tires on every corner, etc.Ghost

If you read through the forum here, you will find there are alternatives to MB for servicing and some parts. (Oil can be had at CTC for a fraction of what MB charges). Some members are quite capable of doing a lot of the normal maintenence stuff. Find one of those and hang on to him/her.Down towards the London area, we are lucky enough to have "Uncle Glenn" (Smart142). He does complete "A" and "B" sevices along with many other jobs that the average Joe couldn't handle due to a lack of tools, hoist, other equipment and talent.I'm pretty sure there is someone in your area that could help you with this. Edited September 22, 2010 by Leadwing

[Heynow999 0]

OP here

Thanks for all the replies.

I want to apologize about what I said in my first post about my Dodge putting the smart to shame (I edited it ). It was a dumb thing to say in my first post on a smart car forum. What I really meant to say is that I think it is a failure of the automotive industry in North America in that they offer so few fuel efficient vehicles. The automakers have no problem developing cars with lots of horsepower but it seems very little thought and development goes into high MPG vehicles. I know that if they they put some effort into it we could have 5 passenger 100MPG cars to drive. I looked at a smart several years ago but we had one son at the time (now two) so the smart was not for us. I remember MB had plans to bring the fourfour over to Canada and I would have bought a new one of them if I could have.

I drove the smart car today. It was exactly as I expected. I had driven one briefly before at the Green Living Show.

I have also been thinking that the money I can save in fuel is going to pay for the car, which is an asset. If I keep driving my truck and burning all that fuel it just goes in the oil companies bottom line. Again also, I am really depressed at the thought of burning all that diesel. For a few days now I have been thinking about it. It is a huge amount of pollution.

some interesting reading

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Partnership_f...ion_of_Vehicles

Edited September 25, 2010 by Heynow999

[MikeT 744]

Even in Europe the green-ness is questionable....for example, the Audi A2 is the only Audi I would have bought (in a heartbeat!), a 70 MPG five passenger car with superb space and aerodynamics. But it was a sales flop. So now Audi inherits regular VW TDI variations, good cars but not as stunningly avant-garde as the A2. And most of their cars are muscle-bound luxo-barges.When the smart came out - especially the diesel when it was announced in 1999, I never for a second thought that it would be sold over here. When it became apparent that smart would be available in 2002, we put a deposit down and when the diesel was chosen for Canada, it was a bonus. I guess people really have to think about their impacts on this little blue speck in space that we all live on and make choices that minimize them.With 183,000 of combined smart cdi km, we have burned half the fuel that the old Peugeot 405 would have burned, so that is 7200 litres not burned, a fair whack of change (say $9000 given the higher prices for much of that time) and a lot less carbon dioxide. And the 405 was light on fuel usage, at least most people would call 8 L/100 km very decent for a family car with a gas engine.Yeah, go for it. A little bit of residual warranty would be good to have, just to make sure any teething issues have been resolved.

[OilerCdi 0]

Very interesting thread. For partly selfish reasons, I hope you end up going for the Smart cdi. From what I have read, I think you would be a great ambassador for the car when people ask why you purchase it. I find that a lot of people just dismiss this little car right away, saying "I just do not understand it." But then after talking about it for a bit, they are much more receptive to the idea of a car that gets people from point A to B in an economical, fun, efficient manner.Plus, if you get that Smart, you have a great excuse to peruse this forum - the perfect procrastination tool!

[Heynow999 0]

So I put in an offer today and they accepted it and I am waiting to see if I get approved for financing. It is at Midtown Mercedes in Toronto. You can see it on the website. It's the grey one. %1.9 financing over 5 years, nothing down, payments just under $200. I am not the type of guy to buy from a dealer, I usually buy older cars for cash, but this just seems like a good deal. The low financing rate is like (almost) free money so why not finance it? Comes with a 2 year extended warranty. The original price was about $27k as it has options like power steering and panoramic roof.As for service, they say it was serviced at Midtown,and all service is up to date. I am going to make sure to get that written into the final agreement that they do whatever service is needed, within reason. What I mean is that if a service B is due in 1k, that they do it now. Any other ideas of what I should ask for?

Edited September 25, 2010 by Heynow999

[MikeT 744]

Great!

[MikeT 744]

When you say "grey" do you mean silver?

[Heynow999 0]

When you say "grey" do you mean silver?

Ok, i guess it really is "River Silver Metallic"

[MikeT 744]

So it looks like a passion with the premium pkg (sound and tach/clock). Nice.We bought our last car from Midtown, even though we live 4000+ km away!

[Heynow999 0]

Update...I was approved for the financing. My payments will be under $200 a month.So here is where it gets interesting. I had told my wife I wanted to buy a Smart car for the reasons I have mentioned. She agrees it is a good idea. But I have several old trucks that I have to get rid of and an RV that we haven't used very much. My wife says I have to get rid of all my old vehicles before I can get the new car. I bought the car knowning this, and I also bought the car without telling my wife. When I bought the car from the dealer I told them I could not pick it up until the end of October. So I now have 30 days to get rid of a few vehicles. I think if I can just sell the RV I will say that is good enough and will go and get the Smart car from the dealer. I am really looking forward to it. I already bought snow tires for it!

[smart142 605]

Good luck!Your wife is probably right. Best to sell some of the other vehicles. I found my other vehicles got neglected because I enjoyed driving the smart so much!!!And then the next thing you know you start to mod your smart to make it even better, further neglecting the other vehicles.Enjoy!

[Leadwing 565]

So here is where it gets interesting. I had told my wife I wanted to buy a Smart car for the reasons I have mentioned. ..... But I have several old trucks that I have to get rid of and an RV that we haven't used very much.

I run into the same "problem" with my wife every time I see a bike (motorcycle) that really catches my eye. You will most likely need to bite the bullet and sell at least one of the trucks or the RV to keep things quiet on the home front. (if you really need an RV once in a while, renting is not a bad way to go.) Good luck and congrats on the purchase. I know you will enjoy it as most of us already are doing.

Ron

@ smart142 --- I chuckled when I saw the 'smiley' by your signature. Reminded me of every time Spike and I go for a drive. (notice the passenger's mouth never stops?) She'll smack me upside the head when she reads this, but that's one of the prices I pay for having my toys.