OK so there is a continuing debate throughout this country about small cars and most notably about hybrids vs smaller engine combustion engine vehicles. I've read all the articles and being as attached to the car business as I am, have just bought a new Smart car to commute back and forth to work in. Why? I hoped you'd ask that:
1. Recyclable. Do I need to say anything else? 98% of this car will never see a landfill or junkyard. Unlike the millions of spent caustic batteries that Toyota will leave INSIDE the landscape in the name of "green" technology, my Smart will melt down into water bottles.
2. Economy. No it doesn't get the best mileage on the planet but it's darn good and much better than almost every other vehicle on the road.
3. Fun. Drive one and you will see what I mean. It's unrefined like a very old motorcycle and just as much fun. The pop comes down with ease, it fits everywhere and although slow, it feels like you have been transported to a simpler World, if only until you get to Starbucks. Anybody remember the Suzuki Samari from the 80's or the early Miata?
4. Carbon Emissions. Gonna shock you here but in America we get our electricity mostly from coal. Now as any of you who have worked in a coal mine recently can attest to: coal is some dirty stuff. It is burned to make your power which just reduces that dirty crap into minute particles and injects it into the atmosphere for the ozone layer to drink like cool aid at a Jim Jones party. I could go on for hours about this and I welcome the comments of any of the coal industry to refute the cancer rates of coal miners but I personally don't want any more of that in the air than need be. I tell you this because the new GM Volt or any of the other pure electric cars just remove one problem and replace it with another. I know, let's build "safe" nuclear power plants like Three Mile Island or Chernobyl to power our cars: that's a great legacy for the kids I'd be proud of.
5. Cost. OK so the Prius gets better mileage but besides being an environmental disaster (ever seen a battery leak acid?) it's more expensive to operate because of the cost of the car itself. The Smart is under $20k and the Toyota can run almost $30,000. We don't know how long the Toyota batteries will last but I'll bet they're around $5K to replace (with the old batteries polluting the ground water). It's not enough to make up the extra 5 miles to the gallon you get, don't be fooled.
Buying a Smart was the obvious choice for today and until the new Honda Fuel Cell vehicles come out, I believe this is correct for tomorrow too. It's the best balance of environmental concerns, cost benefit and fun in the marketplace. No doubt the little two-seater is not for everyone but as a commuter it's hard to beat.
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