So, yeah. I bought a 2019 (last year they were sold in the US) Smart Fortwo EQ.
Why? Well, I daily drive a driver's ed car. I sold my Miata because I wasn't driving it. And the Mirage was doing "errand duty". I'd drive it 2-3x per week, never more than 10 miles.
I always liked the idea of the Smart car. I love small cars! But, when I drove a Smart... I couldn't get past the awful transmission. The car is very fun to drive, very nimble, and more go-kart like than even a Miata... but, the transmission. Ugh! The other thing I never liked about them was that they aren't as economical as it seems like they should be. 35-40 mpg from a car that size? Should be at least 50!
When I learned of the electric Smart... close to 100 ft/lbs of torque and a torque curve that's flat from 0 rpm... and NO transmission to worry about, I was intrigued. And every owner review I read indicated that people LOVE them for all the same reasons that I would. The only downside to this car (assuming you like the size of it, and appreciate "minimalist" creature comforts) is that it has an EPA range of 58 miles. Reality, it's more like 60-80. But, that's not a lot!
However... note what I said about how I've been using the Mirage. 2-3 trips per week, no more than 10 miles. That means that measly 60-mile charge should last me two weeks! I'm cool with that. If I need to take a longer trip, my wife still has her 2015 Miata, and I can always take the comfy Elantra driver's ed car!
So, I found the lowest mileage example I could find, and got a reasonable deal on it. It had just 2400 miles on it, so almost new. And it's under warranty for about another 6 months. Little did I know that the warranty probably won't matter much, because most Mercedes dealers have quit servicing them! I sure hope it's as reliable as it's supposed to be!
Anyway, it's proving to be a fun little car to zip around town in. No gas. No oil changes. With regenerative braking, even brake pads should be a very rare occurrence! Tires every few years, and replacing the desiccant in the battery pack every two years is about the only maintenance this car should need.
It does have one foible that I want to rectify: Because the regen braking works so well, you can very easily drive this car in most circumstances with hardly any use of the brakes. Being the smallest car on the road, I kind of want people to know when I'm slowing down, even if I'm not using the brakes! So, I'm working on a way to activate the brake lights on deceleration. Stay tuned for a project on that. (Arduino, anyone?)
Oh, one more foible... this car is pretty much the base model, so doesn't have height adjustable seats. That, coupled with a rear-view mirror that's not double-jointed to be able to move down, makes it hard to see way back in the rear view mirror! If I could lower the seat, it would be fine. I may look into retrofitting a height adjustable seat.
Oh, one more foible... the FEEL of the brake pedal is odd. Initial light brake application just enables more regen. A little more brake pedal gets into the actual brakes, and that transition can feel funky. Part of that may be soft front suspension... it nose-dives, exacerbating the problem. So, I may look into the available Bilstein shocks, and maybe even some mild lowering springs. (why can't I leave anything alone???)
But, it's SOOOO quiet and smooth! And, as Philip noted, the steering is fantastic! It's reasonably quick 0-50. And, it gets 120-140 "mpg equivalent". Not too shabby.
Here's the first pic after I drove it home from Bradenton. (first trip was about 72 miles with more miles remaining... debunking the 58 mile range already)