In New Hampshire this weekend, I saw not one, but two, Smart cars. This one had Quebec license plates. The other one we saw while driving and didn't get to see where it was from. Even next to not-that-big me, these cars look like an oversized sneaker. Before this, the only Smart car I saw in the USA was in that wii commercial.
Smart cars are all over the place in Europe (or at least in Italy the 2 times I went). Gas is more expensive there and they don't have big parking lots like we do here. Guess what, though? Smart cars are coming to the USA in 2008!
I always figured that American safety regulations prohibited this kind of car. The safety page on the smartusa.com website does little to convince me they're safe. Look at this pic of the supposedly rugged frame. It's reminiscent of the motion simulators at Disney world or Universal on a ride like "Back to the Future." Actually, those simulators fit more than 2 people and seem much safer--and not just because you aren't on the open road.
I have a funny story about those simulators. 10 years ago or so, my Nana and Papa went on the Back to the Future ride at Universal. After their vacation, Nana was telling us all how stupid the ride was and how it made her feel sick. She was in a chair in her kitchen, demonstrating how the ride just threw you "THIS way, and THAT way" while flailing around and tilting sideways, forward and back. She said it was like she had whiplash while sitting in the DeLorean. We were all laughing, and I can still hear Mel's laugh now.
The punch line of the story is that after Nana finished her demonstration, we figured out that she didn't realize that there's a screen in front of you during the ride. Looking at what's happening on the screen, combined with the motion of the simulator, is what makes the experience. If you don't look at the screen, you're just bouncing "THIS way, and THAT way" without any apparent purpose.
Nana didn't miss much anyway. Those rides are only fun after one or 2 times. There are so many with the simulator that after a while they're all the same. As for the Smart car, I won't be buying one. Even though they'd be cute to own, I won't be crushed.
Smart cars are all over the place in Europe (or at least in Italy the 2 times I went). Gas is more expensive there and they don't have big parking lots like we do here. Guess what, though? Smart cars are coming to the USA in 2008!
I always figured that American safety regulations prohibited this kind of car. The safety page on the smartusa.com website does little to convince me they're safe. Look at this pic of the supposedly rugged frame. It's reminiscent of the motion simulators at Disney world or Universal on a ride like "Back to the Future." Actually, those simulators fit more than 2 people and seem much safer--and not just because you aren't on the open road.
I have a funny story about those simulators. 10 years ago or so, my Nana and Papa went on the Back to the Future ride at Universal. After their vacation, Nana was telling us all how stupid the ride was and how it made her feel sick. She was in a chair in her kitchen, demonstrating how the ride just threw you "THIS way, and THAT way" while flailing around and tilting sideways, forward and back. She said it was like she had whiplash while sitting in the DeLorean. We were all laughing, and I can still hear Mel's laugh now.
The punch line of the story is that after Nana finished her demonstration, we figured out that she didn't realize that there's a screen in front of you during the ride. Looking at what's happening on the screen, combined with the motion of the simulator, is what makes the experience. If you don't look at the screen, you're just bouncing "THIS way, and THAT way" without any apparent purpose.
Nana didn't miss much anyway. Those rides are only fun after one or 2 times. There are so many with the simulator that after a while they're all the same. As for the Smart car, I won't be buying one. Even though they'd be cute to own, I won't be crushed.
