[Ramius]

The Smart car is too expensive for what it is, but aside from that I can see a niche for it. For somebody that drives on mostly city streets it makes for a pretty good commuter vehicle, plus you can park the thing literally anywhere.

And all jokes aside they do have a startlingly strong cage. Sure, they lose the mass end of the equation, but they are very strong. I don’t know if I’d take it on the highway very much, but in town it would be nimble and maybe even useful.

... and yeah, I’ve seen that picture before and it’s a Honda in that mess. In fairness pretty much any car would get crushed just like that.

[ErnBatavia]

In May, wifey and I were on a cross-country driving trip when we spotted a Smart Car at a Texas rest stop northwest of San Antonio....with Florida tags. We figured it was some RV's tow-behind.

Uh uh....after we did the wee-wee thing, we saw a sole gray haired lady hop in and head southeast....A couple of hours later we saw her again at a gas station.

I would not be comfy trying to pass (or be passed BY) a big rig in one of those light little thingies.......our Camry is light enough, thank you.

[webschooner]

Correct. The Smart car is a dumb purchase. Leave aside the safety issues for a second. For what it costs, you can buy for the same money or I think less, either say, a Honda Fit or a Toyota Yaris, and get just about as good mileage, be safer, and prolly have better resale too.