Autoblog

The market for luxury cars is slipping, and stalwarts like Mercedes-Benz are not immune. The German automaker's current projections indicate that overall sales will drop by about 10% for 2008, and '09 isn't shaping up to be any better. On the other hand, one of the few bright spots in the U.S. auto market has been the sales of small cars, which have at least sustained level sales and in some cases increased tremendously. While Daimler has no basis for comparison since 2008 was the first year that the fortwo was sold here, sales of the smart brand have greatly outpaced the automaker's projections.

The success of small but premium cars has prompted MB USA to take another look at its A-Class and B-Class cars. This compact duo are sold in other countries, but have been deemed too diminutive to be widely accepted here in the States. That all may change in 2012. By then, Daimler will have had a chance to rework the two cars for the American market, bringing them more in line with the brand's U.S. aspirations, and that's a good thing since the big concern would be whether the two models would devalue the three-pointed star in the fickle eyes of us Americans.



[Source: Auto Motor und Sport - translated]

The BRABUS edition of smart's diminutive little fortwo is, as we like to say, officially official as of yesterday when the brand pulled the wraps off the new-for-USA model. Unlike the Europeans who have had access to BRABUS smarts for the last few years, we won't be getting the force-fed 112-horsepower three-cylinder engine here in the States, but that means we get to keep the 41 miles per gallon efficiency of the standard smart fortwo. You win some, you lose some, right? It's a nice package that definitely stands apart from other fortwo models thanks to its unique alloy wheels, monochromatic paint in either black or silver and numerous BRABUS emblems inside and out. Want one? It'll cost you $17,990 for the coupe or $20,990 for the cabriolet, which initially strikes us as a fairly steep sum considering it comes with the same 70 horsepower engine of the standard smart. As of right now, only those with fortwo reservations are eligible for the new BRABUS, but that seems likely to change in the near future if the model continues to prove as popular as smart claims it has.


Photos Copyright ©2008 Sebastian Blanco and Jeremy Korzeniewski / Weblogs, Inc.

Hermes has decided to continue its recent trend of modifying iconic cars and celebrating their birthdays. First it was the Bugatti Veyron Fbg by Hermes, followed by a special commemorative edition of the Citroen 2CV for its 60th anniversary. Now, Hermes has taken on the smart fortwo, issuing a special edition of the diminutive city car, which has now been on the market for a decade. As you'd expect, the Hermes fortwo sees its interior swathed in leather along with a special canvas called Toile H. These two unique textures cover everything from the seats to the car's tridion safety cell. On the inside, the Hermes signature orange is a nice color option, as are nine others including indigo, gold, lime and, uh, pink. High fashion never comes cheap, and the Hermes Smart is no exception coming in at $48,500 in U.S. dollars or 38,000 euros and on sale now in both hardtop and convertible versions. Hey, at least you get a standard umbrella. Thanks for the tip, JW!


[Source: Sybarites]

Click above for high-res gallery of the Black Deere smart from SEMA

Tom Mutchler at Consumer Reports says his first drive in a SMART reminded him of his John Deere x300 lawn tractor. Slow and noisy, but they both fit in his garage. Apparently, Black Deere LLC had the same impression of the little car and showed up at SEMA with one in John Deere's green and yellow livery. Other than being painted to match farm machinery, the SMART ForTwo Passion Cabriolet sports four air horns and an air-compressor powered truck horn. You might not see this thing coming at you, but by God you'll hear it. Unfortunately, we can't find out much about the car's customizer, Black Deere. SEMA's information lists an inactive URL and Google turns up only the story from SEMA.


Photos copyright ©2008 Frank Filipponio/Weblogs, Inc.

[Source: Consumer Reports]

Those looking for a little bit more punch from their microcars are in luck as smart will begin offering the BRABUS-tuned version of its fortwo in the U.S. beginning in February 2009. News of its impending arrival was apparently emailed to potential smart owners who have already placed reservation deposits but have not yet configured their new fortwo. These people in line for a regular smart fortwo will have the option of changing their reservation to the limited edition BRABUS model beginning 8PM EST tonight. The American-ized version should feature the same 98-horsepower turbocharged three-cylinder engine as the BRABUS fortwo in Europe, as well as the same styling tweaks and handling package. Even with the increase in power, the European BRABUS fortwo is still able to achieve 45 miles per U.S. gallon. While it's 10-second run to 60 won't break any records, that's a precious few ticks quicker that the standard model and would surely make the microcar a lot more fun to drive. Still, we'll take what we can get.

UPDATE: Sources on the forum indicate the U.S.-spec fortwo BRABUS will not get the turbocharged version of the microcar's three-cylinder engine (probably because it's not certified in the U.S.), though a BRABUS Sport model may arrive later with the turbo. The BRABUS package will reportedly include a sport exhaust with dual center tips, sport suspension, 15- front and 17-inch rear wheels, power steering and all the BRABUS visual cues.


[Source: All Cars All The Time, smart of america]

Chalk this one firmly in the rumormill category, but Johnathan Bodily over at Street Import Online is reporting that he's seen what appears to be an electric smart fortwo at Tesla's facility in San Carlos plugged into a Tesla-branded charging station. What's more, this particular smart differed from other fortwos in that it lacked a tail pipe. We know that Daimler has been running second-generation smart ed's (with lithium ion batteries from an unknown source) around various locations for a little while, and that Tesla has stated that it has signed a few deals to supply batteries to other companies for their electric vehicle projects. Putting this final piece of the puzzle together, it appears we have enough circumstantial evidence to conclude that the Silicon Valley company is provided the batteries to Daimler for its new electric smart cars.

Hopefully, this collaboration will bear fruit in the form of both electric smart cars in America and provide Tesla Motors with some of the working capital it needs to continue forward with its Model S electric sedan project. We contacted Tesla for an official response, and as expected got a definitive "no comment." Next question, is Tesla providing the battery packs for the MINI E? Any camera wielding readers who happen to be in the in the San Carlos, CA area might want to cruise past Tesla's office and see if they can snap a picture of any cars plugged in outside the front door. If you do, drop us a tip and we'll tell you how to send us your photos.

[Source: Street Import Online]

If this doesn't strike you as a sign of the times, you may need to get your eyes checked. The only HUMMER dealership in Las Vegas, the city that invented excess and bling, is shutting its doors. Towbin HUMMER is actually one of the largest HUMMER dealerships in America. So what will they be selling instead? Well, you already know because you saw the headline at the top of this post: SMART cars. Talk about one extreme to the other.

Dan Towbin owns several dealerships in Sin City, where he sells Bentleys, Rolls-Royces, Infinitis and Dodges. He says he'll bring in another GM dealership alongside the SMART store to replace the HUMMERs, which have been selling slow on account of high gas prices and increasing environmental conscience among consumers. Towbin's will be the eighth HUMMER dealership to close this year so far, a trend which may make it even harder for the General to sell off the brand.

[Source: Wall Street Journal via Kicking Tires]

In Europe, it's common to see several smart cars sharing a single parallel parking space, with their diminutive front bumpers against the curb and the rear facing traffic. Try that in New York city, and you'll likely get towed. Instead, smart fortwo owners can take advantage of Meyers Parking's half price offer: 50% off daily and monthly parking rates in the city.

In a press release (available after the jump), Mike Carolan of Meyers parking said, "We are excited to offer smart owners a discount, as it seems only appropriate that smart owners pay half price since they only take up half the space."

We agree you shouldn't be charged for a full space when you only have half a car. With the cost of parking in the Big Apple, this deal alone could move a few more of the colorful little two-seaters.

[Sources: Gadgetell via Fashion Funky]

Thanks for the tip, Yash!

Click above for a high-res gallery of the smart fortwo Limited 2.

A very limited car is now available in a new limited edition. The smart fortwo Limited 2 is the sequel to the 2006 original. The only significant mechanical change from a regular passion Coupe or Cabrio is the addition of six-spoke alloys with 15-inch rubber. The rest of what makes this city car "limited" is cosmetic. The pale blue metallic paint changes color depending on the angle of the light and the interior is swathed in a cognac brown leather meant to impart luxury on this tiny machine. If all that isn't enough, buyers can add electric power steering, an upgraded audio system and locking glove box. The 71-hp three-cylinder engine retains a 59 mpg highway mileage rating. The Limited 2 coupe has a starting price of $18,363 while the open top model pushes that to $22,100. Those prices both seem a tad steep for a car of such limited capability. UK buyers can pick one up while they last after Labor day.

All the details are available in the press release below the fold.

Click image to enlarge

The Cannonball Run that takes place every year in Europe dpesn't have much in common with the Hollywood comedy it takes its name from. In fact, the goal of the modern-day race is not to finish in the least amount of time possible, but to finish with a specific average speed; 61 miles per hour, in the case of the 2008 event. So, while it may be initially shocking to hear that this year's race was won by a BRABUS smart fortwo, it actually makes sense considering that the smart was able to run the entire race averaging 35 miles per gallon. Therefore, while the other high-powered competitors were constantly stopping to refill their gas tanks, first-time competitors David Ward and Adrian Hull of the U.K. were able to motor along and wave as they gingerly passed them by. Score one for efficiency!

[Source: smart via AutoblogGreen]