Smart Dealerships closing

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Permalink Reply by Tony on February 27, 2010 at 7:38pm

Randy AND Julie, I've seen both of you go back and forth on topic and ideas. My curiosity is piqued. Have either of you by chance taken pen to paper and written an actual letter to the executives at Smart or their parent company, Mercedes? Maybe splurge send copies of the same to both... Addressed to their Boards of Directors, by certified mail. Julie, print the string of postings from here and included them. Ask your questions directly to those who might best be able to answer you. The last I checked which as just after I first read this blog, writing specifically to the company issuing my extended warranty, who would fix my car if the dealer closed... basically the reply was that we'd cross that bridge when we get there. Maybe I am limping along on arrogant confidence that Mercedes has a significant investment in smart and wont let it die just that easy. They've invested in this car being available globally. I too would like to see the car continue and hope that the manufacturer and their parent company share my wishes. Seeing how nearly every auto manufacturer, including our own BIG THREE are on some sort of life support, it may be a real challenge to keep any dealership open unless banks start lending money again. I still think you should write the companies directly. Then you can post the responses you get from them for everyone to read.

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Permalink Reply by Julie O. on February 6, 2010 at 5:50pm

I'm hoping that Penske and Smart USA will help out the faltering dealerships that are left. After all, it's not THEIR fault that Smart sales are down. Can they get some kind of assistance from the home office until the advertising campaign (which we all really want to see... SOON) starts generating sales?

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Permalink Reply by Rachel Nabors on February 16, 2010 at 3:09am

Things I wish smart would do to drive the point home:

1. Offer hybrid diesel-electric. It gets incredible mileage in Europe already and will satisfy ever-moving Americans. Remember, when we're shopping, we always think, "But what if I want to go on a cross-country spirit quest/road trip?" even if we never will. An electric car that can't leave town isn't going to win that customer.

2. Target minorities and other overlooked demographics instead of the "environmentally concerned middle class white person". 7 out of 10 people who approach me with questions about my car aren't the well-to-do white middle class that I feel these cars are being marketed to. (Those people already bought Priuses!) I get questions mostly from black and hispanic men from mid-twenties to retirement age. They don't have kids to worry about or they need a commuter vehicle so they can stop sharing with their spouses/kids, and they my car seems cool and affordable. So why isn't smart courting that demographic more? I got a very good new smart car for less than what a low-end Honda Fit would have cost. That's appealing to anyone who cannot afford something like a mini or BMW but still wants quality of mobility.

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Permalink Reply by Tony on February 27, 2010 at 7:50pm

Rachel, adding to your point #1 - They should bring the fully electric to key markets where they would be amazingly purposeful, such as NY City, Washington DC, Seattle, Houston, Miami, where there is a very strong chance that municipal leaders can put them to use and where private owners who haven't left "the city" in months would know with confidence that the car would serve them. The all diesel should ALREADY be here. I for one have learned how to drive a car that does zero - 60 in the amount of time it takes to toast two slices of bread... to get 70 MPG I can surely deal with the lack of Corvette like acceleration. LET ME choose. And lastly, like every car maker, smart has the ability to make a car that will terrorize the roads. Its the Roadster. With so many empty manufacturing plants in the US, why not bring production to life and build this car here ... let it compete with the Mazda RX's and the Miatas and the Toyota Spyder and anything else that the can put in the lane next to it. Just do it.

As to your point 2.... all I can say there is good point. Let the smart be the world leader in how to put a safe, reliable economical car in the hands of as many as can come forward... no matter who they are.

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Permalink Reply by Ernest C Perna on February 17, 2010 at 9:37am

HI Julie, we in Eastern Pa. have lost our dealer in Devon Pa. We found a local garage that has been rerairing cars from Europe for years. We have a 50 member car club and plan on using Park Manor Automotive in Allentown for service.As far as SmartUSA is concerned I am starting to think I bought an 08 and a 09 Edsel instead of a 08 and 09 Smart for two.

Ernie from "A"Town

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Permalink Reply by Seumas Warren on February 26, 2010 at 2:27pm

It's Official, I just got off the phone with the Smart center in Coral Gables, FL. Tomorrow Feb 27, 2010 is their official closing date.

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Permalink Reply by Robert Riley on May 27, 2010 at 1:40am

Yep... and the sales for the smart dealer in Weston is NOT doubling in sales to pick up the slack. The problem is the lack of advertising. Nobody ever hears about these cars or knows where the dealerships are. It's pathetic. I was at the Weston smart dealer. They won't spend any money on advertising.

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Permalink Reply by TnPD on May 27, 2010 at 10:40am

Thanks for the information ECP. I will give Park Manor a call, but I do have a concern about SMART honoring their extended agreement.
I guess the Trevose dealership can be taken as confirmation that SMART is willing to offer absolutely NO help to Lehigh Valley / Berks / mid PA "Edsel" owners. I spoke with a rep from Penske, and he implied that Penske was willing to consider using Faulkner's network of dealers for SMART service, but then I spoke to a Faulkner rep, and they seem to have NO plans to extend SMART service outside of Trevose.

Who knows, maybe in 50 to 60 years the SMART will become a collector item, just like the Edsel!
I can't wait!

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Permalink Reply by Julie O. on May 27, 2010 at 12:58pm

As of May 21, 2010, MY Smart dealership (Smart Universal City in Los Angeles) closed the doors.

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Permalink Reply by Robert Riley on May 27, 2010 at 1:49pm

That is AWFUL and L.A. is a HUGE city with BAD TRAFFIC!! People should be buying those cars in DROVES living in that city. Did they not do a lot of advertising?

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Permalink Reply by TnPD on May 27, 2010 at 2:44pm

I think a one word answer will do for all of the US, and that word is . . . . . . . . . .

ZERO

On NPR our "local" dealer has a SMART commercial, but I have heard or seen nothing else!

Except for Nissan who is advertising their micro/micra.

http://www.dealers-nissan.co.uk/models.php?model_id=1

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Permalink Reply by Robert Riley on May 27, 2010 at 3:08pm

Why is it that I see TONS of commercials for Honda, Toyota, Hyundai and Nissan but ZERO for smart cars? Why did they even bother to bring these cars to this country in the first place for? If Rick Case spent $2,000,000 on his 5,000 sq. ft. facility, do you have any idea how many smart cars he will have to sell in order to get that money back? It's like the customers have to go out now and promote advertising for these cars otherwise they will all go out of business and we'll be screwed with no ability to get parts or anything in the future. I wish gas prices would hurry and go to $5-6/gallon. If that happened, they wouldn't be able to keep a single smart car on the lot.

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