2008 smart fortwo - city coupe Reviews

Nothing has gone wrong at all.

I bought this car to tow behind my RV, because it is fairly light. It has come as quite a surprise to discover how well it drives. This is a great piece of engineering, and feels much bigger than it is. My wife keeps taking it, and says she loves it too.

This car is fun, surprisingly roomy inside and quite economical. I wish they sold the diesel version in the US. Mine gets about 42 miles per gallon, which isn't too bad.

By the way, it tows easily behind the RV too, I often forget it is back there!

The gearbox takes a little getting used to, but once you learn to feather the accelerator to shift, it is actually very smooth.

The car kept dying when I drove it off the lot. They discovered the radio was draining the battery. It's fixed, and there are no problems now.

This is a much under-appreciated automobile. I have read that it is slow, clunky to shift and dangerous on the highway. None of this is true. If you know how to work the tiptronic, this car drives incredibly smooth.

I drive this car 30kms to work every day on the highway, and I do it in the passing lane. It's very comfortable doing 120km/h, and can be pushed to 130 if needed. It's a very stable car, especially for the size.

I have the full package with leather heated seats, so comfort is pretty high. Not sure I would do a 6 hour road trip in this vehicle, but day-to-day commuting is perfect, and cheap.

I went from a 3-series Bimmer to this Smart. You have to swallow your ego a bit, but not too many people laugh when you pay $30 to fill up at the pump.

I am a car dealer, I purchased the Smart at a dealer auction.

Pros: The vehicle really is terrific on the highway. You would think you were in a much larger vehicle!

Cons: It has an electronic clutch. It calls itself an automatic, but actually is a manual transmission without the clutch pedal. It is fun to drive at first, but after a few hundred miles, it is very bothersome. The car rocks back and forth when it shifts, regardless if you allow it to shift automatically, or if you use the paddle shifters.

If it were not for the transmission, I would have kept the car, but it was just too much of pain to drive on a regular basis. -Jim.

Clutch replaced at 15,000 km (Upgraded to 2009 clutch system).

Valve replaced.

Driver door latch replaced.

Although the car has costly maintenance ($200-$300 per service), it is a blast to drive. When I was looking for a new car, the rest bored me.

Acceleration is moderate, but these cars were not built for drag racing. Top speed is limited to 140 kmph, and I've managed to get mine to 145 kmph.

It's a love hate relationship with this car, but overall I am pleased with my decision.

Seat belts would not retract, Mercedes ordered parts, drove 2 hours to take the car in for this service, which was going to be covered under warranty. Waited at the dealer for 3 hours to get no results and was told there was a part missing.

Made second trip two hours for the same issue, to be told that if I take the seat belt out of the seat belt holder on the side of the seat, that they retract fine...

Plastic rocker moldings not holding to the car, defective clips were replaced. Again another 2 hour drive each way to Mercedes.

Shifter not shifting... Replaced shift box under warranty.

Seat material is fraying in unusual places, which you would think would never wear.. Dealer escalated this to a field service manager manager, who said no to replacing seat covers.

Positive battery cable melted the outer plastic harness. Mercedes is cheap and just decided to splice the cable and re-fasten it back to the battery.

Also they had the car in twice to recall some stupid stickers that I will never see on the exhaust.

Shift knob non functional stuck in either park or drive or vice versa.

Premature brake wear at 25,000KM... time for another visit..

All in all fantastic idea, 26.00 of gas for 600 KM.. Excellent choice, you just need a lot of days off to go see the Mercedes service department.

They have been great at giving us a smart loan car since I am a distance from their dealer.

Would I buy another one, YES I would; the value of this car on blackbook is excellent.

Would I recommend this car to anyone interested in buying one... For sure..

Price wise I think it could be a bit of a better value, or else keep the price the same and improve the quality of the interior and plastic's as well as seat material.

The Cabriolet Passion costs 21,500 Canadian, and where is the leather interior that only would cost them 200.00 to install?? I don't know; instead I have crappy cloth seats that show so much as even a small spill of simple water!!!??

Nothing whatsoever.

Great little car, although this site still sees it as a city-coupe, it's called a ForTwo Coupe.

The gear box is fine if you ease off the go pedal just as it changes, and you have zero gearbox jerk.

Only downside is when you close either the doors or glass hatch, you need to close them with some force because of the pressure inside the car.

It handles motorways fine at 75mph.

A minor door rattle. Dealer tightened the door hinge in less than an hour.

Suggestion: Diesel for the U.S. market.

The 1.0 liter 3 cylinder mid engine powertrain is quite peppy. Ergonomics are more for city driving, however the little Smart held the road quite well at 95 mph.