If some one said to you that they were going to drive a Smart car from L.A. to San Francisco and back again in 4 days, you would probably think that person was crazy. No on drives a Smart car on road trips right? It turns out that this is more prevalent than one might have thought and when presented with the opportunity I just had to see how far a drive was pushing the Smart comfort limit. Oddly, I wasn’t as worried about my trip as most of the California passers-by. I would be rich today if I had a nickel for ever person who asked me if it felt safe on the highway or if I was worried about driving it. The result? The Great Smart Car Road Trip: L.A. to San Francisco and Back Series.
Since this is a series be sure you keep checking back for the in-depth review of not only the 2009 Smart ForTwo Passion Cabriolet, but for the adventure that is driving one for 850+ miles. Before we get to the fun bits which starts with the tale of how I ended up with the 2009 Smart Cabriolet (Great Smart Car Road Trip: Small, But Not By Hollywood Magic), we should recap on the Smart and what it has going for it. So here we go!
The Smart ForTwo comes in three trims: Pure, Passion and Brabus. The latter of those is the performance edition. The Cabriolet (the car I drove) comes only in the Passion and Brabus. Smart cars are classified by the U.S. EPA as a minicompact car and are rated at 33/41-mpg city/highway. The Smart is powered by an inline three-cylinder 1-liter engine that puts out 70 horsepower and 68 foot-pounds of torque. All of this is wrapped in a neat little car package that comes in at a total length of 106.1 inches or just less than nine feet. Rounding out these Smart specifications is the price; base MSRP for the regular Smart Passion comes in at $13,990 and for the Passion Cabriolet you will have to spend another $3K.
Ready for the adventure? Stay tuned to find out if driving a Smart car on L.A. streets and Freeways is terrifying or a Sunday drive in the country.
