2012 Smart fortwo Overview Change Vehicle

This 2012 Smart fortwo review explains changes for the model year, provides a summary of the 2012 fortwo, and includes Smart fortwo safety, reliability, and fuel economy ratings.

The 2012 Smart fortwo* is a two-passenger, rear-wheel-drive mini-compact car available in two-door coupe and convertible (cabriolet) body styles. The model being discussed here is powered by a three-cylinder gasoline engine, though an electric fortwo is also available.

*In case you’re wondering, that’s not a typo. There are no uppercase letters in the Smart language, which is kinda dumb.

Small as it may be, Smart has found ways to add more content to its fortwo mini-compact car. New items for 2012 include a center console with storage, seat pockets, a cruise control package, and interior ambient lighting. The list of safety equipment has been bolstered as well, and the exterior can now be spiffed up with unique wheel designs and LED running lights.

Car shoppers interested in the 2012 Smart fortwo can choose between three trims and two body styles. The lineup starts with the pure coupe, which lives up to its entry-level status with manual windows and mirrors, 15-inch steel wheels, and provisions for an optional radio. Oddly enough, this bare-bones variant also includes upscale touches such as a leather-wrapped steering wheel, keyless entry, and an exterior temperature gauge. Still, those are some rather slim pickings, meaning most folks will want to load up on options like automatic climate control, heated seats, cruise control, and a two-speaker stereo with a USB port and single-disc CD player. Maybe you might even want to spring for power steering or a driver’s side armrest.

Amenities are more abundant (or should we say less scarce) in the Smart fortwo passion coupe. This little runabout is equipped with a panoramic polycarbonate roof, power windows, heated side mirrors, alloy wheels, and steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters. Smart facilitates personalization by offering a variety of color combinations, a style package with distinct alloy wheels and LED daytime running lights, a surround sound system, and a touch-screen navigation system featuring iPod compatibility, Bluetooth hands-free calling capability, and a DVD player.

Positioned as the pinnacle of the 2012 fortwo lineup is the passion cabriolet. Standard and optional features mirror those of the passion coupe, though an electric soft-top with a rear glass window is featured in lieu of a fixed roof.

With a curb weight of only 2,247 pounds, the 2012 Smart fortwo can get by without a bunch of power. That’s why engineers have bolted in a 1.0-liter, three-cylinder engine generating 70 horsepower and 68 pound-feet of torque. The engine is tucked under the rear of the car, accessed through a panel in the tiny little trunk’s floor. Handy. And convenient.

The meager output, even for a lightweight like the Smart, spins the rear wheels through a five-speed automated manual transmission, which lacks a clutch pedal and mimics the shifting prowess of a driving school dropout. Based on EPA estimates, expect to average 34 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway.

Some say size doesn’t matter. When it comes to Smart fortwo safety, they’d be right…as far as laboratory-generated crash-test ratings are concerned. While it may appear to be nothing more than an oversized Coke can to some, Smart’s urban mini-compact scores top marks in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s crash tests. That’s due in part to the car’s egg-shaped understructure, which deflects crash energy around the passenger compartment.

However, weight certainly does matter when it comes to crash protection, so the Smart’s impressive IIHS test scores are applicable only when striking a motionless object, or if impacting another vehicle of equal weight. Since almost every other car, truck and SUV on the road weighs more than the Smart fortwo, it doesn’t take a physics degree to predict potential outcomes.

To prepare the fortwo for collisions, whether in the laboratory or on the streets, Smart equipped the car with eight airbags (six on the cabriolet), antilock brakes with electronic brake-force distribution and brake assist, and electronic stability control.

Contrary to Smart’s focus on safety, the company’s approach to buyer protection has been weak in the past, with basic and powertrain warranties lasting only two years or 24,000 miles. However, the term has now been extended to a more respectable four years or 50,000 miles, which should come as good news to shoppers considering the purchase of a fortwo. Along that same vein, Consumer Reports has raised its predicted reliability rating from below average to average.

Vehicles like the fortwo immediately remind us of those clown cars we used to see at the circus, out of which would climb an unbelievable number of big-nosed adults. Unfortunately, we can’t tell you how many Bozos will fit inside Smart’s itty bitty two-door, though we can tell you that it provides up to 12 cubic-feet of cargo space.

The Smart fortwo was designed for use in Europe, where roads are narrow, parking is difficult to find, and gas costs twice as much as it does in the U.S. In fact, in cities like Paris and Rome, the Smart is often seen parked nose-first to the curb, which is evidently legal for stubby microcars like this. These practical traits, baked into a product often owned by people who walk to their destinations more often than they drive, make it easier to live with the Smart fortwo’s shortcomings.

But in America, the land of the big-box store, 10-lane freeways, vast stretches of desolate real estate, 1,000-calorie meals, and municipalities that frown upon creative parking solutions, the Smart isn’t very, um, smart.

Sales of the Smart fortwo have been consistently disappointing, and for good reason. In theory, a small, lightweight city car should be ideal for commuters facing gas prices nearing record highs. Yet, in reality, the fortwo can’t match the fuel economy of larger vehicles, its jerky transmission is a chore to live with, and the ride and handling characteristics make for an uncomfortable and fatiguing driving experience. If you really want a microcar, expect the new 2012 Scion iQ to be a much better option.

By Thom Blackett