Brabus Smart Roadster
Discussion
In this world of recession would it be considered a cheap way into a fun car??
seems to have all right seems to have all the right ingredients...small...light....turbocharged....right wheel drive....roof off.....fairly cheap to buy and economical.
OK, so its never gonna set the road on fire for power but it must have a decent power/weight.
Have any of you driven one??
seems to have all right seems to have all the right ingredients...small...light....turbocharged....right wheel drive....roof off.....fairly cheap to buy and economical.
OK, so its never gonna set the road on fire for power but it must have a decent power/weight.
Have any of you driven one??
Its more than a pain in the arse, it positively ruins what could have been a good little car. Its so slow to change gear its incredible and when it does eventually decide to engage it, it does so with such ferosity that every gear change will give you nodding dog snydrome. Truly awful.
Mr Darcy said:
Its more than a pain in the arse, it positively ruins what could have been a good little car. Its so slow to change gear its incredible and when it does eventually decide to engage it, it does so with such ferosity that every gear change will give you nodding dog snydrome. Truly awful.
without trying to sound rude....cos i'm honestly not but are you basing your opinion on reviews or from driving one??i only ask cos so many folk on here give opinions based on what others have said in the past
cheers
Mr Darcy said:
I bought one when I lived in London as I thought it would be a niffty little town car. On the test drive I thought I could live with it. 4 weeks after picking it up I took it back to dealer and got rid of it.
lol....sounds conclusive enough....i would need to travel a fair distance to test drive one so not sure i'll bother nowthanks
Mr Darcy said:
Its more than a pain in the arse, it positively ruins what could have been a good little car. Its so slow to change gear its incredible and when it does eventually decide to engage it, it does so with such ferosity that every gear change will give you nodding dog snydrome. Truly awful.
Yes and no. The cunning thing is to leave it in manual and plan ahead. You can't drive it like a manual car, or leave it in automatic because there's nothing quite like that "OMG get in gear you bugger!!!" feeling you get when you're turning right across oncoming traffic and the thing takes its time about selecting a gear to go.What you have to do is get used to changing gear in advance of what you want to do - so, say, you want to move off smartly (hoho) after negotiating a roundabout. You just change down 2 gears slightly before you would have changed gear in a manual, then apply pedal to metal (metaphorically speaking, of course) and away you go.
The gearbox does let down an otherwise great little car. But it's not the end of the world, and its little gearchange foibles can be managed once you get used to it.
I've got an ordinary one tuned to a tad over Brabus output, and I wouldn't part with it!Edited by SGirl on Friday 8th January 15:45
^^^^^
True. Come up to a corner, think I want 3rd for this, change gear and hopefully by the time you reach said corner the car has had enough time to change gear.
Acutally it make the paddle shift on the Masseratti feel quick. Though I hear this has improved somewhat in the past year or two.
True. Come up to a corner, think I want 3rd for this, change gear and hopefully by the time you reach said corner the car has had enough time to change gear.
Acutally it make the paddle shift on the Masseratti feel quick. Though I hear this has improved somewhat in the past year or two.
SGirl said:
Mr Darcy said:
Its more than a pain in the arse, it positively ruins what could have been a good little car. Its so slow to change gear its incredible and when it does eventually decide to engage it, it does so with such ferosity that every gear change will give you nodding dog snydrome. Truly awful.
Yes and no. The cunning thing is to leave it in manual and plan ahead. You can't drive it like a manual car, or leave it in automatic because there's nothing quite like that "OMG get in gear you bugger!!!" feeling you get when you're turning right across oncoming traffic and the thing takes its time about selecting a gear to go.What you have to do is get used to changing gear in advance of what you want to do - so, say, you want to move off smartly (hoho) after negotiating a roundabout. You just change down 2 gears slightly before you would have changed gear in a manual, then apply pedal to metal (metaphorically speaking, of course) and away you go.
The gearbox does let down an otherwise great little car. But it's not the end of the world, and its little gearchange foibles can be managed once you get used to it.
I've got an ordinary one tuned to a tad over Brabus output, and I wouldn't part with it!Edited by SGirl on Friday 8th January 15:45
I suggest the op pops over to www.thesmartclub.com for smart related info.
I had a standard coupe for 5 yrs and loved it. Gearbox is crap, but once you have adjusted your driving style you just work around it. If you can get a test drive driven by someone who is used to the car you will see what I mean - far better than a novice.
Not overly cheap as servicing and parts can add up, but find a good one and you'll be ok.
Check out theroadster.net for lots of info and buying guides.
Not overly cheap as servicing and parts can add up, but find a good one and you'll be ok.
Check out theroadster.net for lots of info and buying guides.
J500ANT said:
I suggest the op pops over to www.thesmartclub.com for smart related info.
Plenty of smart owners with info to provide here too 
The gearbox is an oddity for sure. But I don't find it that bad. The problem is auto mode which is verging on horrendous. In manual mode they are not too shabby, but do take a little getting used to. Once you have adjusted to it, it's kinda fun!
I've not driven one yet but my dad has recently bought one and he loves it. As already said, if you plan ahead (as you should as a driving enthusiast) the gearbox is fine - shift can be speeded up with software upgrades as well apparently.
Get the coupe version too as the booted one always looks like a toilet with the lid down to me!
Get the coupe version too as the booted one always looks like a toilet with the lid down to me!
I have a standard Rodie, tweaked up to around 115bhp now, and love it for the fun factor. It isn't fast, the gearchange is compromised (auto mode is c**p, although performance tweaks improve the feel of the gearchange, as does correct adjustment - it shouldn't jerk), but the sense of exciting your senses makes up for it whilst being more accessible than an Elise. Go over to www.theroadster.net and join the community! There are enough downsizers that sing its praises.
I think the gearboxes can be improved with new software. I've spent a few days with a (slightly tweaked) Fortwo and, while it wasn't the last word in finesse, it wasn't as bad as people made out. Haven't driven a standard car to compare though.
I do distinctly remember thinking 'gutsy, characterful little engine, decent chunky steering, funky cabin - with a lower CofG this'd be quite fun...' so I'd be intrigued to try a Roadster of some description. As an outright sports car I doubt it'd come close to the usual suspects though, but could be a nice, economical(?), left-field runaround.
PS Is it wrong to like this?
I do distinctly remember thinking 'gutsy, characterful little engine, decent chunky steering, funky cabin - with a lower CofG this'd be quite fun...' so I'd be intrigued to try a Roadster of some description. As an outright sports car I doubt it'd come close to the usual suspects though, but could be a nice, economical(?), left-field runaround.
PS Is it wrong to like this?
Edited by Chris71 on Friday 8th January 16:24
Chris71 said:
PS Is it wrong to like this?
I did consider it from the practical point that you do need a fair amount of room to open the doors enough to get in and out of the car. I decided it was more cost effective to choose your parking space carefully and avoid the wannabe Lambo look.Edited by Chris71 on Friday 8th January 16:24
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