Is a 17-foot long Smart Car Still Smart?
by Andrew Posner, Providence, Rhode Island on 04.13.08
We've already seen smart cars made to look like monster trucks, but now a British company called Carbonyte UK has taken the diminutive Smart ForTwo, cut it in half, and stretched it to 17 feet. They are calling the end-product a Smaaart car, and they plan on using it as a "promotional vehicle" that includes "a 20:1 scale fibre-glass replica soft drinks can, complete with ring-pull," not to mention all the room made available for all your green accoutrements (think how many solar panels could fit in there!).
If the above photo of the Smaaart left you wondering where you can buy one for yourself, have no fear: the company has plans to sell the car as "an individual yet environmentally-friendly hearse"--whatever that means--for approximately $50,000. It's still a small price to pay for an ungainly, impractical vehicle (I mean, think about how much money people plunk down for a Hummer!). In fact, given all the advertising space opened up by that giant soda can in the middle of the car, any Smaaart owner is bound to reap tremendous financial rewards from ownership. See a video of the car after the fold.
See Also: ::Smart Crosstown Hybrid and Other Smart Concept Cars, ::Smart Cars: Still Coming to America, ::Halifax to Vancouver in a Smart Car, ::Toronto Police Testing Smart Cars, ::Smarter Smarts: 2008 and Beyond, and ::Toyota iQ: Less is More for Small Urban Car
Considering "The Britts", maybe this vehicle should be renamed "The SmartArseCar"!
As if we needed more proof that humans can screw up absolutely anything, there it is.
Smart cars are not that great on mileage to begin with based on their size, so this stretch version really isn't an issue as far as I'm concerned.
These cars barely eek out 40 MPG and they are half the size of a Honda Civic and I would hate to get hit riding in one.
There is a lot of hype with these car, but then there was hype with the PT Cruiser too and that went no where fast.
The fact that they are cute just adds to the hype. I think they're nifty little cars, and make for good downtown NYC driving, but not sure how successful they will be outside of this venue.
I don't know about Toronto, but here in congested New York City, these vehicles are a particularly egregious insult—whether they get 40mpg. or 10mpg, they add to pollution and congestion and do no good. They just aimlessly drive around the city all day in the hope of reinforcing brand image.
I have boycotted any advertiser who uses this media, and written letters to the offending advertiser letting them know why—anyone concerned about the environment should do likewise.
I agree about not supporting companies who advertise on these polluting mobile billboards!
Paint it reddish brown and you've got the makings of a Generation III Oscar Meyer Weinermobile. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wienermobile
That's pretty cute... for a hearse.
The answer is no. In fact any newly designed car that is not all electric is just plain dumb or arrogant. Our local Hartford Ct.TV aired a spot of a local man who has designed and installed a gas to electric device to his Honda which he claims gets him 150MPG. He is offering the kit for $750. Sorry I didn't get his web site. Has Treehugger heard of this? If not, why not?
"In fact any newly designed car that is not all electric is just plain dumb or arrogant."
Not as dumb or arrogant as your comment. Manufacturers are able to sell millions of ICE powered cars each year and thus make profit, but the cost and/or range of current electric car tech limits the market to a the thousands at best. Making only electrics now would be financial suicide for manufacturers.
"Our local Hartford Ct.TV aired a spot of a local man who has designed and installed a gas to electric device to his Honda which he claims gets him 150MPG."
He "CLAIMS" he's getting that mileage, but he isn't testing under EPA test cycle conditions. He's chosing the conditions and acknowledges that it requires driver skill, so he's basically hypermiling. You can significantly improve any vehicles efficiency with efficient driving techniques, and he started out with a Honda Insight, which is already very efficient without his kit.
"He is offering the kit for $750."
The $750 kit is only responsible for some of the mileage increase and only works on the Insight. The rest of the increase came from an additional battery pack and an e-wheel motor at additional cost, and the whole thing is manually operated, so the results vary by driver.
"Sorry I didn't get his web site."
The website is http://www.99mpg.com. I found it with Google. It wasn't difficult.
"Has Treehugger heard of this? If not, why not?"
How would anyone know why they've never heard of something? By definition, they wouldn't know.
that is not a real smart car they are really only for a couple and it is really only a one person car.