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Joe Atlanta

WSJ: smart WILL launch fortwo in East & West USA in 2007

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That article is from 2001. It mght have been $10K US then! More like $14+ now.....still cheap compared to the aftermarket imports.

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Starting them out at a loss doesnt really help their goal of making smart profitable does it?

Besides the exchange rate is negligible these days...

S

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I'll raise the ante. I figure around $16,000 USD. What is also a concern is if this engine is the turbo charged 3-banger they have been using in Japan in the i car. From what I have read it has been immensely popular there. It would be interesting if one could find a Japanese "Consumer reports" on how that engine has fared. Is it junk or have MB and Mitsubishi given birth to an engine with some quality. MB said in one of its releases that it expected its parts suppliers to get up to snuff and start giving them quality parts. Hey - what the hell. It's 9:25am here deep in the Carolinas and maybe we shall know some more from the Motor City pronouncement!

And yes I know you know - today is Carolina Day. In 1776 the British navy attacked Charleston, then the largest city south of Philadelphia, only to be repelled by the patriots on Sullivans Island. Sic 'em y'all.

Cmdr. Cody

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Well that answers my immediate buying issue. Looks like I'm signing off on the Smart for ANOTHER year or so. Oh well, anybody got a Suzuki 4wd for sale with a blown engine?... www.acmeadapters.com here I come. Tracker or Samurai preferably. I want something SMALL that I can stuff in a corner of our garage. I'm looking at them as a A street legal 4wd ATV with side by side seating. It will suffice any commuting needs I'll have until the Smart's come for sure. Maybe another motorcycle, I don't know. I wonder if Mercedes is aware of how much this is dissapointing people like me who have been waiting for this to only be put off for another year again :( That's almost as bad as releasing the car here with no real time test reports.

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Sure looks like your car, Dave, minus the plate!

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And the Canapods on the back are missing as well! Well this should be interesting - I can hardly wait to read all the misinformation the far right Republican press is going to put out to disuade people from trading in the H2.

Cheers,

Cameron

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I figured they digitally altered the plate but after further inspection, it does appear that the rear fender bumperettes are not there which means it is not my car. I drove my car through there about 20 times with the top down and it was photographed probably 100 times. What a coincedence. Oh well.

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Cool! Even cooler is that the picture (see link below) is of my wife and I driving through Times Square!!!

http://www.daimlerchrysler.com/dccom/0-5-7...-0-0-0-0-0.html

The photo has got to be doctored, there is no trash in the street, the cars are more than 5 ft apart, and there's not a single person dodging between the cars. Just being able to see more than 1 side of the car at once is asking alot as it is. Maybe the freaks with the armageddon signs and bullhorns scared off the traffic for a few seconds?...

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I can hardly wait to read all the misinformation the far right Republican press is going to put out to disuade people from trading in the H2.

Cheers,

Cameron

The right wingers are praying for the liberals to drive these cars, can you imagine the fatalities of a head on H-1/ smart impact?.. They see them as rolling coffins that will reduce the numbers of voters against them :roll:

If enough of the eco friendly types drive these cars, it will offset the HumVee's emissions levels without ever hanging to change their restrictions. Why make them change standards when they can "credit" the auto industry with a low emissions category like the Smart will create to offset the big rigs.

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in the first quarter of 2008!!!!!!!

I just got an e mail from Mercedes stating when it is to get here. What is with these companies waiting so long to get it here!!! That is another 1 1/2 years. And Volkswagen just announced the Rabbit is coming back and will be for sale this year, I'm in the market for a new small car, sorry smart, you are a day late and a dollar short. This is just like back in the 70's, the foreign car companies were the first to offer small cars, it took the big 3 - 4 yrs to get their act together and lost a lot of business. This is the same thing, VW is here and will have to buy that no matter how much I wanted a smart.

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From Autoweek

According to DCX, the initial rollout of retail outlets is expected to start in mid-2007, with the official launch of the brand planned for later that year. The vehicle is expected to be sold beginning in early 2008.

Now they have to select 'participating dealers' and get tools, training and support systems rolled out, for a brand new marque.

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in the first quarter of 2008!!!!!!!

I just got an e mail from Mercedes stating when it is to get here. What is with these companies waiting so long to get it here!!! That is another 1 1/2 years. And Volkswagen just announced the Rabbit is coming back and will be for sale this year, I'm in the market for a new small car, sorry smart, you are a day late and a dollar short. This is just like back in the 70's, the foreign car companies were the first to offer small cars, it took the big 3 - 4 yrs to get their act together and lost a lot of business. This is the same thing, VW is here and will have to buy that no matter how much I wanted a smart.

Me too! they remembered... :lover:

Dear Keith,

Recently, you inquired about smart automobiles and opted in for future information.

We are excited to announce that smart is coming to the United States!

The one-of-a-kind, urban-friendly smart brand will soon be sold here in the U.S., and UnitedAuto Group has been appointed as the distributor of smart vehicles in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

Although the next generation of the smart fortwo isn't expected to officially go on sale in the U.S. until the first quarter of 2008, we wanted you to be the first to know of smart's arrival.

The smart fortwo will offer an advantageous price point, exceptional fuel economy, and environmentally friendly features.

Visit the newly redesigned smart website to learn more. If you want to remain a smart insider and continue to receive correspondence about smart products and events from UnitedAuto Group, remember to register when visiting.

Hopefully, better late then later...

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in the first quarter of 2008!!!!!!!

I just got an e mail from Mercedes stating when it is to get here. What is with these companies waiting so long to get it here!!! That is another 1 1/2 years. And Volkswagen just announced the Rabbit is coming back and will be for sale this year

Thanks for the VW tip, I hope their TDI makes it into them, I wonder if they're going to just rebadge the VW POLO/LUPO with the 3 cylinder TDI engine that's available in German (european) models. That will be a nice rig for scooting around town in, though the Smart is much more impressive in power take off speed.

Here's the Smart link for those that may not have received it, though I can't imagine anyone not reading it by now:

http://cps10.00b.net/513/content_load/Y060...newsletter.html

Good to see Chrysler is just as slow to respond to any market needs as it was when it was independent of Daimler. Either that, or Mercedes has become ignorant to their once quick to respond marketing tactics, probably a plague Chrysler passed on to them in the takeover. :scowl:

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After reading up on the VW Rabbit, it seems its nothing more than a rebadged Golf. I don't see the Golf in their lineup anymore, strange. Seems like a marketing gimick more than another model to choose from. Pics on VW's website are somewhat poor angled, but it sure looks like its every bit the size of a Golf, no TDI listed in the build your own VW function of the site. The standard power windows and locks scares me too, I've had to troubleshoot too many of the lock systems all the VW line of cars of recent model years to trust them with anything but manual crank windows and pull knob locks. Last car I worked on had an integrated dome light circuit board go out and throw the ignition fuse circuit everytime the owner started the car. Talk about a nightmare to find, who would think a bad dome light would render the car useless?!!!

I think I'll be sticking to the Acme setup on second thought until the Smart's hit the streets afterall.

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Yep the Rabbit is really a Golf - one of the guys at work was looking at getting one. I was disappointed it wasn't the Polo. Lady across the hall has a new VW - she couldn't close her sunroof - apparently it is tied in electronically some how and won't close - an the dealer doesn't have the part.

Given the reaction of the tourists up here - it will mainly be middle class folks that need to cut back on fuel costs rather than the liberal types buying them.

Oh well the Right wing hasn't got much use for working people either - unless they are building Hummers for them. All us smart owners can wait for them to come to one last grid lock - then drive through the spaces in between. :biglaugh:

Cheers,

Cameron

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I got the e-mail from DC as well, with the link to the "NEW" website if you want to continue to receive updates. Fat lot of good it does me, you need an upgraded flash player to see the website. I don't have admin so I can't install it at work and it won't install on my home PC. Lets make it hard for consumers to see our website - what a bunch of idiots!Oh well, I already have my smart anyway and I'm sure all of you will keep me updated on anything cooking on their new & improved website.

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Dennis, I can't even get the flash software to dowload here at home on a broadband connection :mad: Good to know the car's marketing and release info is in such able hands that have considered not even a 1/3 of the population has up to date software. What a bunch of out of touch morons who chose a single viewing option :steamed:

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Nah, I think the webpage is gorgeous. I keep loading the intro with the bridge flyover over and over and over... It's not their fault if your Windows PC is trying to eat itself alive installing drivers and whatnot :)-Iain

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After reading up on the VW Rabbit, it seems its nothing more than a rebadged Golf. I don't see the Golf in their lineup anymore, strange. Seems like a marketing gimick more than another model to choose from. .... no TDI listed in the build your own VW function of the site.

The Rabbit is a new/old name for the Golf platform 5. ... Just to please the american taste for rabbit.... haha ! No more Tdi, just the 2,5 liter. Price C$19,980 about. There will also be a ""new"" golf later this year, called Golf City (and also Jetta City). It will be the old Golf platform 4 from Mexico (gas engine only), renamed City at a much lower price starting at $15,000. Very good low price for an old new car. It is supposedly to fight the new sub minis like Yaris... but at 2850 pounds.

I had 3 Golf and was supposed to buy the new platform 5. Now I am very happy I didn't wait and bought the Smart.

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Nah, I think the webpage is gorgeous. I keep loading the intro with the bridge flyover over and over and over... It's not their fault if your Windows PC is trying to eat itself alive installing drivers and whatnot :)

-Iain

Yeah, you're right on the coughing and choking PC. That's what I get for buying a Dell, cheap parts, with even worse support services. :banghead: XP Professional has been burping alot on me.

Do you have the backdoor web address to post since you can get through the front page intro? I'm surprised they aren't giving a skip intro option right off the bat for the techno non savvy types, I'm sure there will be many who get upset about this. Regardless of the user's connection quality, it isn't doing much to help with promoting their product. They need to make provisions for the AOL challenged types :D

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