A small boot capable of ingesting a couple medium-sized bags of dog food but not a full-size golf bag is about the only realistic storage space available when the roof was retracted.
One touch roof
The folding soft-top provides the smart cabriolet with a weather-tight lid that retracts in two stages. To really feel uninhibited, a pair of track mechanisms serving as the guideway for the accordioned roof must be manually removed and stored behind the inner panel of the boot door.
When the roof is in its retracted position, the sun and stars come into full view, which can’t be said for traffic behind the smart. The lowered roof tends to block rearward visibility quite significantly.
I must say though, a roofless smart beholds a certain quirky old-world Euro charm that’s undeniable. Perhaps its assembly in France or its meagre 3-cylinder powerplant has something to do with that.
Power is basic
They say that power corrupts. If that’s true – and I suspect that in many cases it is – the smart has loads of integrity as it certainly doesn’t have loads of power.
With a maximum output of 71 horsepower, a 1.0-litre inline 3-banger engine does the smart pushing. The engine, which sits between the rear wheels, is difficult to access and not well refined. It serves its purpose though with reasonable competence but that’s about it.
Acceleration off the line is “wanting” however once the revs climb out of the basement the ‘little engine that could’ find its legs and scoots the smart sufficient to meet expectations.
The most disturbing aspect of the smart’s performance characteristics is the lag that occurs when the automated manual 5-speed transmission decides to swap cogs, which it does all too often. The accompanying loss of momentum can be disconcerting at times.
However like other quirky aspects of this micro-car, the oddball gearbox tends to grow on you, forcing its embrace as just another unique and charming characteristic of the smart. To think otherwise would only generate frustration.
Behind the smart wheel
I’ve never sought out diminutive parking spaces before as an exercise of glee but that’s what happens when one drives a smart. I love the way this half-car fits into half-spaces. There’s smugness in that.
I also like the go-cart nimbleness of the smart and the rapidity of its turning ability but not its choppy, bumpy ride; it tends to induce weariness during stints on deteriorating roads. So a touring car, the smart is not.
A smart wrap
The smart limited-three edition cabriolet is everything a conventional smart cabriolet is except dreary. The colours and textures in use are cheery, refreshing and fanciful. And that suits this car and influences the mood of its occupants – and that’s a smart thing.
photo:Rob Rothwell
 |
| The lowered roof tends to block rearward visibility quite significantly. |
One touch roof
The folding soft-top provides the smart cabriolet with a weather-tight lid that retracts in two stages. To really feel uninhibited, a pair of track mechanisms serving as the guideway for the accordioned roof must be manually removed and stored behind the inner panel of the boot door.
When the roof is in its retracted position, the sun and stars come into full view, which can’t be said for traffic behind the smart. The lowered roof tends to block rearward visibility quite significantly.
I must say though, a roofless smart beholds a certain quirky old-world Euro charm that’s undeniable. Perhaps its assembly in France or its meagre 3-cylinder powerplant has something to do with that.
Power is basic
They say that power corrupts. If that’s true – and I suspect that in many cases it is – the smart has loads of integrity as it certainly doesn’t have loads of power.
With a maximum output of 71 horsepower, a 1.0-litre inline 3-banger engine does the smart pushing. The engine, which sits between the rear wheels, is difficult to access and not well refined. It serves its purpose though with reasonable competence but that’s about it.
Acceleration off the line is “wanting” however once the revs climb out of the basement the ‘little engine that could’ find its legs and scoots the smart sufficient to meet expectations.
The most disturbing aspect of the smart’s performance characteristics is the lag that occurs when the automated manual 5-speed transmission decides to swap cogs, which it does all too often. The accompanying loss of momentum can be disconcerting at times.
However like other quirky aspects of this micro-car, the oddball gearbox tends to grow on you, forcing its embrace as just another unique and charming characteristic of the smart. To think otherwise would only generate frustration.
Behind the smart wheel
I’ve never sought out diminutive parking spaces before as an exercise of glee but that’s what happens when one drives a smart. I love the way this half-car fits into half-spaces. There’s smugness in that.
I also like the go-cart nimbleness of the smart and the rapidity of its turning ability but not its choppy, bumpy ride; it tends to induce weariness during stints on deteriorating roads. So a touring car, the smart is not.
A smart wrap
The smart limited-three edition cabriolet is everything a conventional smart cabriolet is except dreary. The colours and textures in use are cheery, refreshing and fanciful. And that suits this car and influences the mood of its occupants – and that’s a smart thing.
 |
| If “cute and quirky” is the yardstick by which one measures an automobile, the smart limited-three edition cabriolet is a definite hit. |
photo:Rob Rothwell
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