Smart roundup

The smart electric car is on its way according to the National Post. While the FT reports on a hookup with Renault and there are optimistic sales forecasts from the Wall Street Journal.

Business smarts 37 & 38: Target Park & Reprodux

Target Park operates over 30 Parking lots in the GTA and offers "Park and Wash" and monthly parking rate options.



Reprodux is a full service printing and document management company (scanning, archiving, large format printing, laminating) with eight locations across the GTA.

Photos by RLT

Business smarts 35 & 36: fortwo in Spain

Business smarts 33: Sevilla Gym , Seville, Spain

Business smarts 34: Miroplata, Cordoba, Spain.
The url miroplata.com is no longer active. Miroplata was or is a jewelery and watch retailer.

An early smart, Seville, Spain: the mottled green body panels were offered on the 1998 model.

Trixis

Known as Trixis (tricycle + taxis), these 21 speed trikes are assisted by a 250W electric engine which is integrated into the front axle. Fit, friendly and multiligual "Trixistas" take one or two passengers around the sites of Malaga, Spain.
These ladies were fueling up between tours.
See them on Spanish TV at youtube .

Goupil G3

Goupil manufactures a range of light utility vehicles at its plant in Aigillon in southwest France. This "tipper with lambo doors" was photographed while on clean up duty in the centre of Cordoba, Spain. Only 1.1 m (3.6 ft) wide with a 3 m (9.8 ft) turning radius it's ideal for narrow streets in historic European cities and towns.
For details go here.

Casalini Sulky

With its unusual all-steel body work and tubular steel frame, the Casalini Sulky 3-wheeler microcar made its debut in 1975. In 1980 it gained a fourth wheel and was rebadged as a Bretta or David.

The company, founded in 1939 by C. M. Casalini, still operates in Piacenza, a city of approximately 100,000, in northern Italy. The current Sulky has a two cylinder Mitsubishi engine. Find out more here.

Spotted in Lagos, Portugal this Sulky is missing its front bumper and faux grille.
No known relationship to the Casal company.

Aixam and Microcar

Aixam - Mega, founded in 1983, is based in Aix-les-Bains, on the shore of Lac du Bourget in France's Rhône-Alpes region. The Crossline [above] and Super Luxe [below] were spotted in the hill town of Mijas, Spain.



Microcar, founded in 1984, is brand of the Bénéteau Group, a yacht and boat-building company with a hundred year of history, based in Croix-de-Vie, a seaside resort on the Atlantic 70 km west of Nantes. Both of these MC1 cars were photographed at Tavira, Portugal.




Although these companies are at opposite ends of France, they have the commitment to making fuel efficient city runabouts in common. Some Aixam and Microcar models can be driven without a license in some European countries.

For more information see: Aixam, Microcar

Pics by RLT.

Forza Italia

This Ape 50, seen at a market in Bari, Italy, was photographed by SCOOT follower Ron while on holiday last month.

Three wheels on my wagon

The Piaggio Ape is not the only three-wheeler on Portuguese roads it seems. We spotted these other vehicles - but would we ever find out what they were? I owned a half-share in a Reliant way back when so I was determined to find out.

The first one was on display in a park in Sagres, on the coast, languishing in the salty air on a hot day. It reminded me of the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, Texas. I noted that it had a German Zündapp motor. After considerable research on the internet we found out that it is a Famel Tricarro which came fitted with a 50cc Zündapp motor. Famel, based in Águeda, Portugal, was one of the most successful makers of motorized 3-wheelers from the 1960s to the 1980s. After Portugal joined the EEC the company filed for bankruptcy in 2002.




The second one photographed in Tavira, similar but not the same, is a Motalli - thought to be a TR2 model. The Motalli lives on it seems.



Thirdly the one without a cabin is a Casal from Aveiro, named for João Casal, picture also taken in Tavira. The company is defunct, going bankrupt in February 2000.



Words and pics by RLT.

Go Ape!

Fools and Horses delivery van,

Lagos, Portugal

While it may be difficult for Canadians to believe, there are many vehicles in Europe that make the smart car look bulky in comparison. Piaggio, makers of the Vespa (Italian for wasp) scooter, have been producing three-wheeled Ape (pronounced Ah-pey, Italian for bee) vehicles since 1948. We spotted quite an assortment of Ape models in Spain, Gibraltar and Portugal. Like the name suggests, they are the workers of the Piaggio line.

Monchique, Portugal

Municipal works vehicle,
Los Boliches, Spain

Gibraltar Confectionary delivery van,

Gibraltar

At the town market,
Tavira, Portugal

Smart’s top of the Three

Parent firm Mercedes plans three-seater brother to ForTwo

When it comes to sporty Smarts, could three be the magic number? Auto Express has uncovered these amazing drawings, recently filed with the European patent office by the Mercedes-owned company. And they show a three-seater car!
Although there’s no official word on the fresh model, it’s expected to be Mercedes’ answer to small but space-efficient newcomers such as the Toyota iQ and imminent rivals from BMW and Audi. Replacing the slow-selling Smart Roadster and Coupé – axed back in 2005 – the model would sit above the ForTwo and offer a more practical and flexible sporty vehicle potentially badged ForThree.

Read full story here.

smart spotting in Europe

On a three week tour in Europe we spotted countless smart fortwos, 6 roadsters, 1 crossblade and 20 smart forfours. Produced at the NedCar factory at Born, Netherlands between April 2004 and June 2006, the forfour shares some 50% of its components with the Mitsubishi Colt still in production there. We took photos of these examples at Gibraltar[above]; Seville, Spain [below]; and the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, near Portimão, Portugal [bottom].

Bellier Divane

Spotted at Le Mans, France by RLT. Photo by Colin Marsh.
Bellier Official Website

Micro-car comparo

Tiny motors in the Great White North
By Mark Atkinson

There are some things that you should never do in the middle of winter, especially in Canada. Sun-tanning, water skiing, and expecting a race track outside of Hamilton, Ont. to be clear and usable to drive non-snow-tire-equipped city cars around in anger are three that come to mind easily.
But that was one of the driving forces behind assembling four of the smallest, weirdest vehicles to hit Canadian roads in a bizarre sort of group test designed to discover which one of these microscopic mobiles was best suited to our wild climate.
Of the four contenders, two are immediately recognizable: the fashionable Mini Cooper and miniature Smart fortwo. The others look like they've come straight out of the future ... and the '60s: the egg-like Mitsubishi iCar and the retro-styled Nissan Pao.

See how they stacked up - read full article here.

GM to sell Saturn to Penske

Penske Automotive Group, owned by racecar legend Roger Penske, will buy GM's castoff brand.
By David Goldman and Peter Valdes-Dapena,
CNNMoney.com staff writers - Last Updated: June 5, 2009: 3:54 PM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Bankrupt automaker General Motors Corp. announced Friday that it will sell its Saturn unit to car dealership operator Penske Automotive Group.
Penske (PAG, Fortune 500) is owned by former race car driver Roger Penske, who owns NASCAR and IndyCar racing teams.
The deal gives Penske the rights to the 19-year old brand including its five different models. GM would continue production of only the three highest-selling models: the Aura sedan, and the Vue and Outlook cross-over SUVs, for the next two years. The Saturn Sky and Astra models will be discontinued.
Penske, which has no Saturn dealerships in its network, will act only as a distributor for Saturn cars and parts to the brand's dealer network. Like almost all car dealerships in the U.S., Saturn dealerships are independently owned businesses.
Penske has no plans to open any Saturn dealerships, said Anthony Pordon, senior vice president at Penske Automotive.
The arrangement is similar to the deal under which Penske distributes Daimler AG's tiny Smart car in the United States. Penske does operate a small number of its own Smart dealerships, however, in addition to handling wholesale deliveries of the car to other dealerships.
The deal, which GM expects to be completed in October, would save more than 13,000 jobs at Saturn and its roughly 350 dealers nationwide. All of Saturn's dealerships sell only Saturn vehicles, so they are reliant on the brand's continuation for their survival.
View source.

This smart car delivers big smiles

Hartville, Ohio - Guy Hufstetler of Hartville’s State Farm Insurance is handing out smiles.
He is driving a Mercedes Benz smart cart and people honk as he drives by. “Everybody who looks at it smiles,” said Hufstetler. “It’s like passing out smiles.”
Hufstetler said he first saw a smart car in a Pink Panther movie. The European car has been around for more than 15 years and sold in more than 36 countries. [smart fortwo has been in production since 1998]
“I thought it was funny,” said Hufstetler. “Then I saw an article that the smart car was coming to America. It’s a subsidiary of Mercedes Benz, so I thought I could never afford it.”
However, Hufstetler was surprised to learn just how inexpensive the smart car really was. A passion coupe “for two” is well-equipped for less than $15,000. “It was far and away the cheapest car I could drive, and add on the wrap and it was a no-brainer,” said Hufstetler whose vehicle includes heated leather seats and a six-CD changer.
Read full story here.

Business smarts 34: Henry's

To celebrate their 100th anniversary, Henry's camera and photo are giving away a 2009 smart car.

(Their website erroneously refers to it as a fourtwo instead of a fortwo)

Business smarts 33: Air Combat Zone

Air Combat Zone : WHERE HIGH PERFORMANCE ADVENTURE, IS NO GAME!

Air Combat Zone puts YOU behind the controls of a high performance
F/A-18 flight simulator . If you’ve ever wondered what it might be like to be a real F/A-18 pilot, now’s your chance to find out. The Air Combat Zone experience redefines entertainment to bring you the thrill of a lifetime. It’s JUST like the real thing.

Don't be mistaken: this ain’t no video game.
When you climb aboard an Air Combat Zone simulator, and settle into the ejection seat, you’ll be amazed . The live instrumentation, working Heads Up Display and replica HOTAS throttle and stick combine to convince you you’re flying a Hornet for real!

How Smart is This? Pittsburghers On Their Smart Cars

Glance up through the second-floor windows of the Mercedes-Benz dealership on Baum Boulevard and you may think you’re gazing into a playroom of oversized toys. But those cars are real. You’re looking into the showroom of Smart Center Pittsburgh, local home of Daimler’s Smart Fortwo, the littlest hot new thing on wheels.

According to general manager Gregg Szabatura, Pittsburgh’s allotment of just 200 fuel-efficient Smarts sold fast last year, in sync with rising gas prices. Despite the sagging economy, demand remains high for the 300 distinctive two-seaters earmarked for Pittsburgh this year, even though a growing number are finding their way onto the dealership’s orphan list. That’s a roster of folks eager to buy Smarts preordered by someone else who’s already made a $99 online deposit then had a change of heart.

“We don’t really do anything to drive demand for the vehicles,” says Gregg. “A lot of people who are buying these are commuting inner-city and in areas where you have condensed parking, like Oakland and Shadyside. We have a lot of baby boomers who are parking their big vehicles and using this out in the suburbs to run back and forth to the grocery store.”

Read full article here.

Credit crunch mum lives in Smart car

A desperate mum and her daughter have set up home in a Smart car after their house was repossessed in the credit crunch. Loredana Minopoli, 47, and daughter Valentina share the tiny two-seater motor in Milan, Italy, and get by for food on the 20-year-old's wages as a beautician."The seats break our backs, and the cold nights stop us sleeping. We're afraid to spend the night alone in this box so we always park near a police station," said Loredana.
Source: Croatian Times