I've seen two in the last two days. Both have genuine Virginia tags.

I didn't think they were out here, yet.

Anyone?

I've seen a couple cruising around Austin, but didn't take a look at the tags. They look pretty sweet.

I'm sure there might be some grey market vehicles around.

They are coming to the US next year.

Those things are death on wheels. I'd never get into one. Certainly not to drive around NY City or the metro area.

I'd drive around in one on a golf course.

I saw them in Germany last year and they discussed bring the smartfortwo here. It was averaged that the car would cost approximately 6k more than it's retail in Germany, for conversion. The 4 seater looks better anyways. You could park the two seater straight in on a parallel parking spot.

smart linky

Forbes Magazine doesn't think too much of them.

They say these cars will be a failure in the US market. I would agree with that and their reasoning.

Forbes article...

The company supposedly has done nothing but lose money.

Good lord, that has got to beone of the most annoying web pages ever, every time i muted one ad, another one would start full blast. sorry couldnt finish the article. But what i read i do agree with.

I saw one in Boston and a couple in San Francisco. The car is crap.

If I want to have something small, reliable, cheap on gas and easy to park, I'll buy a motorcycle. Had it not been for the X, I would have kept my Suzuki. 45MPG, 0-60 in about 4 seconds. What else do you need?

They've been up here in Canada for about two years or so. Sold through Mercedes dealerships.

Only really see them in the city (Vancouver). You should see them park, they can back into the curb and not stick out any further than parallel-parked cars.

saw one today at arby's while on my lunch break in West Virginia. ugly ass green color. took up a qtr of the parking spot. i saw them everywhere when i was in London, but this was the first one ive seen here.

I like em and have seen them in person here in the states and in Japan If I was looking for a commuter car I would take a strong look at them. The crash testing I've seen always shows them doing very well dispite there small size. Americans really need to get over this small is crap bullshit.

The 4 seat version is actualy bigger than my MGB and the 2 seat is only 2 feet shorter than a real mini but wider than it.

The official release is the 3rd quarter of 2007.
How do I know?
I just reserved, for purchase, a black ForTwo with a silver stripe and red interior.

They sell them around here for about $25K. It sounds steep but I hear they get like 70 mpg. I think it could be worth it for long commutes. I also heard that insurance on them is super cheap. So in states like NJ, tha person could more than cover the payment with savings....

I just filled up my wife's car the other day and it was $50. We both have fuel efficient cars with short commutes and still probably spend $300/mo on gas. Ridiculous.

I've been seeing one here on a parking lot for the last 3-4 months. They are around.

I saw one on the freeway here a few weeks ago - I was laughing so hard at how tiny it was. Crash safety = Rolls away upon impact.

There are a few of them here in my town too. It hasn't been "officially" released to the US yet. The ones that are here (they are on Ebay too) have been imported privately and set to US emissions. I wouldn't mind getting one myself as a "around town" car....

From what I've read, you'll be able to change the color of your car pretty much whenever you want a change. The body panels are removeable and changeable I guess..

Mine is reserved too. They start at $12K.

I think they will sell like hotcakes - the price will do it.

If they keep the MPG at 50, I'll get one hands down. Perfect for commuting. I'm not getting rid of my X, by any stretch but I don't want to run the miles up on it.

And at this price, they make a great second car. The best thing that could happen is for gas prices to go up and stay up - finally force people to start looking at alternatives...

They have clubs in Europe and you can exchange panels with other smart car owners - I would expect similar things to crop up over here - esp. in the bigger cities.

How much does it cost?

They go for plenty on ebay:

auction

There is a lot of neat information on that page.

Maybe we can convince Calmini to make a swing-away golf bag bumper!!!!

If the vehicle stayed within the busy areas of large cities it would be OK but I hate to think what would happen if one of those meet my ARB or my trailer hitch?????

Tim