T I N Y R I D E S
become its spokesperson, and, quite frank-
ly, I didn’tmind. It’s nice to tool around in
a vehicle that makes people smile. While
I would normally be put off by strangers
knockingonmy car, asking to takepictures
ofme andmy car (or, in this case, ofmy car
andme) or asking questions about my car
(number one question asked by guys:How
much horsepower does it have?), it was
hard tobe annoyed in theFortwo. (Imean,
really, from the front, the headlights and
grille look likea smiling face.)
I even got to experience a moment of
true tiny-car euphoria. One morning,
when I went to move the Fortwo before
the street cleaning, a Mini Cooper owner
in my neighborhood was standing Smart-
side, looking completely jealous. “I thought
Ihad the smallest car in theneighborhood,”
hemuttered.
Of course, euphoria crashed when I got
cocky and parked in a nobody-else-can-fit
space that my friendly local meter maid
deemed too close to the end of the block.
Small car, big ticket. Feh.
TheVerdicT:
SmartFortwo isablast, but
unless youhave a second car, pack light for
road trips, or reallywant it just forpopping
around town, it’snot themostuseful vehicle
on the planet. I’d still consider buying it,
though— it’s so cute, and I’m a sucker for
goodpackaging.
TheVehicle:
ToyoTayaris
ThelengTh:
LessThan13feeT
ThePersonaliTy:
noTfLashybuT
definiTeLyahardworker
MsrP:
$11,300
most of the places I go feature wide-open
spaces and lots of lots. That is far from the
story in my Queens neighborhood, where
peoplewill jama car intoa spot fromwhich
even the guys in that annoying Mentos
commercial couldn’t dislodge a vehicle.My
goal was to find a spot within four blocks
ofmy apartment— in anydirection— that
didn’t require an early-morning move for
street cleaning. Don’t worry, the story has
a happy ending. It tookme just 15minutes
tofind a place, and Imade fastwork of the
actual parking. Iwas backup on the horse,
and itwas agoodhorse.
TheVerdicT:
TheFitmakessense fordai-
ly lifeand iscomfyenough foraseriousroad
trip. I’dbuyone, thoughnot in thedreadful
Blaze OrangeMetallic of the test car. Eek.
MakemineNighthawkBlackPearl, please.
TheVehicle:
smarTForTwo
ThelengTh:
8.8feeT
ThePersonaliTy:
cLasscLown—wiTha
hearT
MsrP:
$11,590
If you haven’t been to Europe or Canada
lately, there’s a chance you haven’t seen a
Smart Fortwo yet. Be prepared for the on-
slaught.The “cuter thanaVolkswagenBug”
two-seaters will go on sale in the United
States in 2008 and are sure to inspire
enough media and chatter to make Suri
Cruise jealous of all theattention.
Within minutes of driving the Smart
Fortwo, I felt like I had adopted a dog and
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