Going Small: A Smart Experience
With $4-a-gallon gas and waiting lines nine months long, the Smart Fortwo is becoming the car for informed Americans wanting to make a statement.
By KEN THOMAS, Associated Press
Sometimes, timing is everything.
When Daimler-Chrysler announced in 2006 that it planned to bring the Smart Fortwo micro car to the United States after nearly a decade in Europe, gas prices had reached about $2.80 a gallon. Now, Americans are paying more than $4 a gallon at the pump, SUV sales are plummeting and consumers are hungry for smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles.
The little Smart has been riding a wave of consumer interest, attracting thousands of shoppers willing to put down $99 and wait about nine months for the two-seater. So when I sat in the driver's seat of a blue Smart Fortwo last week, turned, and touched the back window with my finger tips, I had to wonder: Do Americans really want to go this small?
Without question, the pint-sized, whimsical Smart makes a statement.
At a traffic light near the Washington Monument, a group of school kids clad in blue T-shirts cheered when they walked past the car. One boy whipped out his digital camera. When I drove up 14th Street, a young girl screamed, "Nice car. Woo hoo!" Near a construction site, a group of workers in green hard hats and reflective vests huddled around the car to take a closer look.
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