Smartimes…Time To Blaze…

Hello…welcome to Smartimes…time to blaze…

My name is Tony Godfrey and I have been a Smart enthusiast for almost two years now. I am really not sure how it got started, but maybe it was one of those things that found me. Maybe like Karma? Fate? Who knows?

The idea of a something a little more “green” came to mind several months ago and I started looking at alternatives of getting from point A to point B. I have an SUV and it is actually used, gets dirty, and fits in perfectly when originally purchased. The vehicle still has a place and I do not see getting rid of it anytime soon. 

Other considerations went from small cars, to hybrids, and to even a scooter. About this time I saw the famous YouTube video of the Smart hitting the concrete barrier at over 75-miles per hour and thought about doing some investigative research. The idea for the car was originally conceived by the Swatch Watch Company. The then-CEO Nicolas Hayek started shopping his idea around for an automaker to build it. General Motors and Volkswagen turned down the idea, but Daimler-Benz eventually saw value in the small car. 

Smart is short for Swatch Mercedes ART. The original design was for the car to be eco-friendly and city-friendly. The ForTwo is 85% recyclable, offers great visibility, and is also gas pump friendly only requiring less than eight gallons of fuel. The more I found out really got me excited by the vehicle and after months of deliberation, I finally put down my $99 reservation down at the beginning of August 2007. I was told it would probably be in the States within the next year. 

Smart does a very good job of keeping potential owners in the loop via e-mail and their website updates. Several months elapsed and I started thinking maybe this was not going to happen. At the end of July 2008, the local dealer called and said my car was in. What? This could not be true so I asked the salesperson to read my order back to me just to make sure. She said my order for the black with silver tridon and red interior with blah-blah options had come in and she would like to arrange a date for pick-up. I said I would call back in bit having to confer with my wife first.

I called my wife and said the Smart car was in and asked what were we going to do about it? She said we will probably make an appointment to get it and have lunch afterwards. What is it with Ladies and Lunch? Anyway, I called the salesperson back and we setup an appointment for that Saturday. The finance person then called and we started doing the paperwork over the phone (Mercedes efficiency?) to save some time. I could not get over the fact how easy this was going. 

When we got to the dealership, the car was inside and next to a table for the final signing and such. My wife and I had a snack with “Angus” as paperwork flew and the salesperson went over all the aspects of the Smart. I could not get over the friendliness of purchasing a car and the staging that went into it. While the finance guy was tying up the last few items, my wife and I requested the floor mats, cargo net kit, rear cargo cover, hats, t-shirt, keychain…..yeah, yeah….just put it all on the tab.

We left the dealership not believing the car was actually here and headed to lunch (…ladies and lunch…). It was a beautiful July weekend and the car had its top down almost the entire time. The little guy gets LOTS of attention and it can almost become too much and we actually didn’t drive it for a couple of weeks that September. I have been stopped at red lights, mall parking lots, gas stations, airports, my driveway, and the list keeps growing. This was especially true when gasoline prices were over four dollars per gallon. It is just something that Smart car owners will have to grin and bear.

It is winter time in northeastern Ohio and I was only scared to take it out the first time. Angus does very well in the snow and negative temperatures and he comes from Europe, so this should not have been a concern. I still cannot get over the fact of how quiet the car is, not only inside, but outside as well. The interior is massive and I am still considering a small putting green for those slow times.

Now to Smartimes….

The Smartimes website was found when researching all-things Smart. I went through the website and started downloading past issues of the magazine. These were gone through in short order and I really enjoyed them. My wife and I have a few small cars including a 1968 MGB, 1970 MG Midget, 1992 GEO Metro, and the 2008 ForTwo. I wonder if the people at Smartimes would like a simple piece comparing the four and how a small car has been defined. Put something together and see what happens. 

The first response back was from Jennifer saying she liked what she read and she would be speaking with the editorial staff soon. I thanked her for the input and a few days later received an e-mail from Trevor saying he liked what he read as well. We exchanged a few more e-mails and now you are reading the results. They are really great, down-to-earth people and I look forward to a long relationship with them.

It was decided to see what happens with this section. So, let’s talk about the Smart life-style and go from there. I recently planned the first annual “Honey Smart Wine” tour for my wife which we did this past weekend. This was a big success since it was “for her” and not because a holiday was coming up. The ForTwo is a car and should be on the road regardless of the weather, even if it is negative twelve degrees. I recently purchased a BMW first aid kit box to install under the Smart seat to maximize storage. There are a few things every Smart owner should have for normal maintenance that cost very little. Let’s take the little guy to his first Christmas party that the dealership was putting on. Later on this year, he will have a chance to do a parade lap at the MidOhio race course. A parade lab means no more than 40 miles per hour, but its still MidOhio and I’m quite sure it has not been done before.

Now, let’s start blazing that new trail…

 

Tony Godfrey

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