Filed under: Marketing/Advertising, SMART
SmartUSA offering $99 reservations to gauge interest in the ForTwo
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If you've been hankering to get one of those cute little Smart cars that you can almost park in your tool shed, now's your chance to get on the official waiting list. Smart USA will start selling the second generation ForTwo about a year from now, but for $99 you can reserve one now. Dealers for the Smart haven't been named publicly, but Smart USA will be passing along the reservation information to dealers later this year, who will then contact the prospective customers and actually handle the sales. According to Smart USA senior VP Anthony Pordon, the reservations don't actually give you a place in line, because the sequence depends on availability in your geographic location. The whole scheme is more of a way for Smart to gauge interest, assign dealers and allocate cars based on where serious buyers appear to be. So far there is no information on where to send your check, but we'll keep you updated as soon as we know.
[Source: Automotive News - subscription required]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
James Cheung 10:20AM (2/05/2007)
Look carefully through the window, there's a grey head face staring back at you!
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david 10:41AM (2/05/2007)
james, that's the ghost of xmas future here to tell of the fender bender yet to come with a yugo that only the yugo driver survives.
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srivendel 10:50AM (2/05/2007)
So what, exactly, does my $99 buy me if they don't give me "a place in line"?
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Calguy 11:00AM (2/05/2007)
I'm sincerely interested in the Smart.. but I think it's a little insulting to have to PAY to help them gauge interest. Crass, actually.
I've tried to e-mail them from the Smartusa.com site, but there is definitely no contact info there. If Smart wants to know if I'm interested, in say, a DIESEL Smart with heated seats, and I live in the Bay Area, I'd be happy to tell them -for free.
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jg3 11:04AM (2/05/2007)
One of these would be great. It'd actually fit in the garage between the minivan and the suv. And I really would consider one for all those short trips to the store for milk, the post office, etc. when it's just me.
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Bob L. 11:15AM (2/05/2007)
I would definitely purchase the diesel with heated seats and mirrors. Forget the gas version, not good enough fuel mileage.
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Gardiner Westbound 11:16AM (2/05/2007)
Life's too short to drive one of these things in traffic. My wheelbarrow has bigger tires.
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Richard Warren 11:33AM (2/05/2007)
Just waiting till they arrive.
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ssgtakeo 11:35AM (2/05/2007)
I agree Calguy, it's like the "personal seat licenses" that some teams sell to have the RIGHT to buy tickets.
But then again, who expects less from Merc-Benz?
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tikirob 11:41AM (2/05/2007)
I actually saw one here in Portland, OR...it looked like a new one and it had odd dealer plates...then I saw a guy in a monkey suit riding a chopper (I kid you not). It was a strange day.
Rob
http://www.autoshortlist.com
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Bryan William Jones 12:03PM (2/05/2007)
This is another example of where MB, nee Daimler Chrysler, nee Smart is not being very *smart* about their marketing. I've written about this before and now they are years late bringing the car to the US market, losing any advantage to BMW, Toyota and others with their offerings which will appear in the same time frame, and now they are offering us the opportunity to give them $99 US for what now? It is not entirely clear to me what this money gets me. Anyone?
BWJones
http://prometheus.med.utah.edu/~bwjones/
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Fabulo 2:41PM (2/05/2007)
I too see one regularely in Portland, OR. From too far away to read the license plate though.
Not sure why anyone would pay $99 for getting nothing. Especially when it's about buying a car, which you don't know the final price, and you've never driven, and comes _in about a year_.
If it's gonna be so great of a success, bet some other manufacturers will come and compete. VW Fox, Ford Ka, Opel Agila, and all the Japanese and their Kei cars, and many others...
I'll save my $99 and see what happens...
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Vega 2:58AM (2/06/2007)
Guys, the Smart is a very safe car. Get over it. I'm just tired of hearing all that "death trap" crap. You can diss Mercedes all day, but they have never sold a car that doesn't have good crash ratings. When an SUV hits you, I bet you'll be better off sittig in a Smart (partly due to the high seating position) than in, say, a Miata.
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Paul Aka Shibby 5:58PM (2/07/2007)
Yep. Smart was mostly Merc but now it seems to be getting more independent. Mercedes have treated smart like rubbish.
This new smart is a major improvement over the first gen (which i own)
Some say it's unsafe, bollocks i say. I have not heard of any deaths because of such a car, i've heard of people getting hit by lorrys and going off the motorway and still stay alive with hardly any injuries. If something was so rubbish do you think the germans would even make it if it was unsafe. See it's a german car and the reason why german cars are the best is because they create the best by making sure it's safe.
If you do not understand this car then you do not understand cars period. This new smart will easly win over most small city cars, the only downfull is 2 seats. But wait how many people in city cars have more then 1 person? not many. There that arguement is void.
The gearbox has changed it's no longer 6 speed but 5 speed and it's been produced by Getrag, who are fantastic at automatics.
Instead of a 599 or 698cc enginer you got a 1 litre engine! and the top of the range 1l engine comes with a TURBO. so think of the weight to power! I would not be surprised if the ECU gets changed and it will be even quicker.
Therefore the smart is looking better then ever
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Shay 7:13AM (2/10/2007)
Why buy that when my bike cost even more and has more features on it. Doesn`t look very safe.
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Shay 7:30AM (2/10/2007)
Why buy that when my bike cost even more and has more features on it. Doesn`t look very safe.
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Bill Williams 9:20AM (2/10/2007)
Sorry Paul aka Shibby, to think that a vehicle that small and presumed to be that inexpensive could withstand the onslaught of one of our 6000 lb "lorries" is to believe that physics is just so much "poppycock". Is there a need for a two place commuter, absolutely! Do I want to pay someone $99. to show my interest, I believe the term you used was "bollocks".
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Raymond T. Dickover 9:29AM (2/10/2007)
When in Amsterdam in '05, i saw and took pistures of the original Smart car. It was made by Mercedes. what's up?
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annie 9:48AM (2/10/2007)
I've seen Smart cars all over Canada on high speed freeways keeping up side to side with Corvettes AND SUV's. Funny thing too, the guy or woman, or BOTH, look REALLY happy driving them too!
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george abchal 10:54AM (2/10/2007)
You can buy one NOW on ebay
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