smart sales skyrocket in Canada
The 3,152 smart fortwos that Daimler has sold this year in Canada through the end of September represent a gain of 46% over the same period last year. That is the single largest year-on-year gain ever recorded in Canada. There are a number of reasons for the sales increase, with high fuel prices and the smart's low cost of entry being definite highlights. Additionally, the smart fortwo is the only non-hybrid car that qualifies for a rebate from the Canadian government's ecoAuto program (which expires after this year), something that certainly doesn't hurt.
"If somebody else would try to develop technical solutions which are as good, practical solutions which are as good, and to develop a brand which is as credible, then I say good luck," says Marcus Breitschwerdt, president and chief executive of Mercedes-Benz Canada. Perhaps luck won't be necessary. The time will come soon when the smart gets its first real microcar competitor in North America in the form of the Toyota iQ. The new Japanese entry (technically) seats twice as many occupants as its rival, though the smart does have a bit of a head-start in the market. It will be interesting to watch the two little cars fight it out on the sales floor. Thanks for the tip, Lee!
[Source: Fiancial Post]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
ryan 8:52AM (10/23/2008)
Good luck to Toyota if they decide to market the iQ as a Scion in the states.
I think that part of the success of Smart is that it is original, has a loose enough tie to Mercedes, and seen as being cool without being childish.
Scion unfortunately (thanks to Toyota's advertising department) conjures up images of racer wannabe techno-bumping teenagers.
That being said, the iQ should do great in Japan. The 1.0 liter engine will be plenty powerful enough for scooting around on its home turf.
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tankd0g 9:49AM (10/23/2008)
Low cost of entry??? Are you kidding? $14,999, that's more than a Honda Fit.
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Bill 2:52PM (10/23/2008)
Balony... I hate it when this little nugget gets trotted out whenever the Smart is discussed. Let's look at the finances together, shall we:
Basic models:
Fit DX = $13,980 (CDN) ($14,980 (according to honda.ca) - $1,000 gov't rebate)
fortwo Pure = $12,990 (CDN) ($14,990 (according to thesmart.ca) - $2,000 rebate)
Advantage: fortwo... and even once that rebate is gone then the fortwo is still only $10 more
More advanced models (more difficult because a sunroof & heated seats aren't even an option on the Fit):
Fit LX (the closest model feature for feature) = $16,380 ($17,380 - $1,000 rebate) - I had to add a cargo cover & floor mats (what!!?!!) to make them equal
fortwo Passion = $16,250 ($18,250 - $2,000 rebate)
Advantage: fortwo (admittedly, though, it is $1,100 more expensive once the rebate is gone)
Not to mention that you will also save more gas with the fortwo (5.9/4.8 vs 7.2/5.7 L/100km, according to Transport Canada) and have lower CO2 emissions (2,594 vs 3,106 kg/year avg).
It's a small car designed for specific lifestyles (2 people with no babies who aren't hauling around massive amounts of cargo)... if that's not you that's fine, but please don't keep repeating that lie that it's more expensive.
tankd0g 2:06PM (10/23/2008)
Bzzzt. Wrong. There's no rebate for 2009 vehicles.
The fuel savings translate to about $5 a week for me. You think I'm going to balk at paying $5 a week extra to have 4 seats, lots of cargo room and a vastly better ride? FAT CHANCE. I'm not so concerned with having the latest fashion accessory.
Bill 4:50PM (10/23/2008)
Regardless, your original comment that the Smart is more expensive than the Fit is incorrect (rebate or not).
tankd0g 4:57PM (10/23/2008)
Smart $14,990
Fit $14,980
Trouble with math?
Bill 5:02PM (10/23/2008)
According to your math, that whole $10 gets paid off in 2 weeks through gas savings.
Trouble with being civil?
tankd0g 5:14PM (10/23/2008)
Just can't deal with being wrong Bill? You also completely miss the point that this car should not be $10 more than a Fit but $5000 LESS.
Adam Denny 9:48AM (10/23/2008)
I live in Canada. Many small gasoline powered vehicles get the EcoAuto rebate, including for instance, the Honda Fit and the Toyota Yaris. But the Smart Fortwo is the only non-hybrid to get the full rebate of $2,000, the others get only a reduced rebate of $1,000 or $500.
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DP 11:18AM (10/23/2008)
As an owner of a smart fortwo... I look forward to the Toyota (Scion) iQ and think it will be very popular. A small/compact car that uses less materials in construction and operation, with room for the occasional passenger or two beyond the front seat. Smarter than the smart, I think.
The smart has paved the way for cool, small cars, that perhaps might cost more than (or as much as) a more "practical" car. Not everyone buys cars simply on practicality. (SUVs... are they "needed" by all who purchase them?) Some like the look, the size, the statement, the fun, the 'otherness' of these new small cars. There is nothing wrong with that.
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Bill 5:31PM (10/23/2008)
I have no problem with being wrong - just trying to point out the flaw in your original comment... and, no, I didn't consider $10 (~0.07% of the purchase price) to be significant and I wouldn't if it went the other way either.
So, if I'm reading your last comment right, what you meant to originally say is that it's not worth the same amount (+$10) as a Fit... TO YOU. To many people (specifically, many people in Canada, as the original article indicates) it IS worth it.
People like Fits. People like Smarts There are reasons for both and neither are wrong. I just don't like the often trotted out line (from mags/blogs/comments) that the Smart is more expensive than the alternatives... which it isn't. What you're talking about is it's value to you... and that's a much more subjective number.
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fnc 6:27PM (10/23/2008)
Ah yes, the old trap of assuming that everyone uses the exact same formula to determine the "value" of an automobile.
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john riley 7:01AM (10/24/2008)
If people used math when buying cars, the whole SUV thing would never have happened. I think there are three smarts on my block in Toronto, including one new one. In every case these are second cars, and were purchased by people who were not pinched financially. A smart is a statement car like a hybrid.
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Rolle 8:35AM (10/24/2008)
People, people, people,
Smart doesn't compete with Honda Fit/Jazz or anything alse really before the Toyota iQ arrives. It is not about cost either. It is practical, economical but most of all it makes you smile! I chose to buy a smart - but considered other options like used Jaguar XJ6 and Porsche Boxster not Honda Jazz or Toyota Yaris. If you think you need 4 seats - don't buy it! But if you mostly drive alone in a congested city, nothing on 4 wheels beats it. Now I am choosing between a Cadillac BLS diesel and a Smart because they are actually quite similar ecologically speaking considering how much less energy is required to refine diesel than gasoline. Caddy for motorway cruising ability and smart for the smile in the morning the first time you see it.
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JPHedin aka DrSmart 5:11PM (10/24/2008)
smart is all about marketing and nothing about solid engineering. Weekly press releases cannot erase the reams of bad road tests or correct the engineering compromises made in this transportation device. Ever since the Mercedes "A Class" flunked the "Elk Test" and a journalist was injured, they have tried and failed to make the vehicle ride and handle like a real car. Even Mercedes is going to front wheel drive on its A and B class. The Toyota/Scion IQ is the answer to the short sighted engineering embodied in the forTwo. 3,000 + cars sold YTD in Canada is pathetic as compared either to the Jazz or Yaris. Why does the "Dark Star sell toe CDI smart (?) in Mexico but not in Canada. Smart for people with more money than sense.
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Robert 2:50PM (8/10/2009)
www.infowars.com
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Robert 2:52PM (8/10/2009)
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the DOLLAR WILL TOTALLY COLLAPSE
making all of your money worthless
it happened during the confederate money time
in history
they want it to happen again
PLEASE WAKE UP end the fed
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