Smart Roadtrip

With the odometer finally topping 1,000 miles, I was due to head three hours to my parents' house for a weekend wedding. I had to load the car with clothes for a four-day trip, plus several things my parents left behind the last time they visited, and one 50-pound dog to be taken to the kennel. So of course, I passed up using my roomy SUV and took the smart!

First of all, the dog clearly doesn't care too much for riding in the smart. In the back, he seemed to feel too constrained (despite being right at home in his crate), and he kept trying to jump into the front seats. But he survived the half hour drive to the kennel, and from there I headed out to the New York State thruway.

The smart did remarkably well on the highway. It was slower getting up to full speed when entering the highway, but it's certainly faster than the big rigs, and there wasn't so much traffic that I worried. It did fine at 70 mph in 65 mph speed limits. There's no cruise control, and this became evident quickly as I found myself constantly checking the speed. But on the reasonably flat thruway, I was able to lock my foot against the side and keep the gas at a pretty consistent speed.

I'm not a hypermiler, and although I consistently check my mileage, it's not my primary concern when driving the smart. Still, I thought it would be fun to try my hand at drafting. For those unaware, drafting is a racing technique in which you reduce drag (and thus increase mileage) by getting very close to a vehicle of similar size or larger and do a consistent speed. On the highway, this is usually done behind big rigs, which can, as Mythbusters proved improve mileage 39%. Of course, it's very dangerous, since these rigs won't see you and don't stop particularly quickly. I tried about 150 feet, which felt safe, and felt the car literally being shaken from side to side by the winds from the truck. It was absolutely not worth it.

There are a few big hills on the way home, and one of them proved a bit of a challenge for the little smart's (and smart's little) engine. It was interesting to note that, as the speed dropped below 60 and the engine downshifted, the hazard lights came on automatically. That smart really is smart!

Otherwise, the trip was fairly insignificant. On the way home, I noticed the reactions of the other drivers more significantly. A convoy of bikers would pass me, one at a time, and ride alongside me as they checked out the car, then wave and pass on. Another driver in his car drove alongside me for a few minutes, then passed ahead, adjusted his rear-view mirror, and gave me a big thumbs up. Kids, especially, seemed to enjoy watching the car as I drove by.

On Sunday, I spent two or three hours driving around town with a friend, mostly on small roads but some highway as well. I decided to fill up the tank, which resulted in every person at the station stopping over to ask me about the car. The result for that tank was 44 mpg. Everywhere we stopped, people came over to ask about the car. At one place, an older woman actually asked me to go up to her car and tell her husband, who didn't seem to care much, about the car. That was awkward.

The next day, I drove home. I didn't notice the reactions of other drivers too much this time, but the trip was easier, and mileage seemed to be even better on the trip back. I drove with the windows down the whole way, and the wind buffeted me throughout the drive so much that, when I stopped, the left side of my face was tingling. It was an odd sensation. I got to enjoy my iPod on shuffle for the entire time (not a feature of my SUV) and had more than enough space for my luggage.

The entire trip, including an extra three hours to the New York city area for the wedding itself in my family's minivan, I did not see one other smart. And I was looking! I got the sense that most of the people in my hometown had never seen one, while I suspect the folks in my town have seen a few here or there. The current tank of gas, made up of the drive home and Tuesday commuting to work, is on pace for my best tank yet, quite possibly nearing 400 miles.

The car does fine on the highway, really. The weather was fine, with no winds to speak of, and it cruised along at 65 to 75 consistently with no problem. I didn't feel any effect of even the biggest trucks passing by or me passing them, and I kept up with traffic just fine. The mileage of more than 40 mpg compared to less than 20 mpg with my SUV, and the reactions of other drivers was priceless. Some folks on the SCOA forums term the experience of smiles per gallon, and I can relate to that.

The only things I missed were cruise control to keep the speed consistent and save mileage and an armrest for long trips. The seat was comfortable enough, and I didn't notice any rough ride except for some side streets in around-time driving. It was a fun trip, made more fun by the experience of driving the smart!