Not only is the new Smart Fortwo a fuel-sipping and affordable statement car, it has just received high marks in safety tests. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tested the Smart Car for front-end and side impact and determined that the micro car is as safe as any other vehicles in its class, despite being the smallest car on the road.
“Safety is key,” says Ron Sturgeon, owner of a Dallas exotic car rental company. “Producing a microcar that gets good marks from the IIHS is an achievement,” continued the luxury car rental company owner.
Sturgeon’s exotic car rental company has a microcar from another era when consumers were feeling the squeeze. In Europe of the 1950s, the 1959 BMW Isetta provided inexpensive transportation to Europeans rebuilding from WW II. Some auto historians credit brisk sales of the Isetta with saving BMW from bankruptcy.
A Dallas-area resident who owns one of the new Smart Fortwo vehicles shared some of her observations in an article on KLTV. Lynne Souerby bought her micro car from a Dallas auto dealership.
“I just saw the car,” says Souerby, “and I thought, ‘I want one of those.’ They just look fun. I’ve been getting about 38 miles per gallon.”
Fuel economy is the major selling point of the Smart Car, but drivers also love the statement they make by driving a unique car.
“I can be at a stop light and drivers will honk their horn and I’ll look up,” says Souerby. The Smart car owner reports, “They’ll say, ‘Hey great car!’ or ‘What’s the gas mileage?’”
“Exotic cars make an impression,” says Sturgeon. “Nothing turns heads like driving a Ferrari or Lamborghini, and it’s fun to drive a car that gets you a little extra notice. I’m sure that’s part of the appeal of the new Smart Car,” said the Tarrant Country luxury car rental company owner.
The crash test results for the Smart Fortwo are going to be a major selling point to consumers who were concerned about getting behind the wheel of such a small vehicle.
“I feel very safe in my Smartwo,” says Souerby. “It has airbags on the side and airbags in the front. I’m very careful where I drive and how I drive. I always have my lights on and I always make sure that a semi- truck on I-20 knows that I’m there,” reports Souerby.
The Smart Car retails for just under $14,000 and has an eight-gallon tank. Learn more about it at http://www.smartusa.com.
Kate Miller-Wilson is a freelance writer in the Twin Cities. Visit her website or email her for information about her freelance writing services
