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I have had my smart since early 2008. I have the convertible, and find it very fun to drive around with the top down. I am glad I bought it. It fits in tight spots, and it can turn around in a smaller space than any vehicle I know. But, it's not for everyone. Only 2 seats, so no place for kids. It's no hotrod; acceleration is good in first gear but then it shifts and is quite sluggish. The wheel base is short, so the ride is pretty rough on rough roads. If the wind blows hard, driving the smart is kind of like flying a kite. The transmission is an automatically shifted manual, and it feels like a manual when it shifts. There is a very definite deceleration when it clutches and then a re-acceleration when it engages the new gear. Sitting in the vehicle feels no different than any small car, but the clearance between the car and the road is quit low, so hitting a Raccoon did damage to the underside of my Smart. Lastly, I have noticed that people will pull out in front of you. I don't know if its because the Smart is small, so it looks farther away, or if they think it must not be going too fast, but they pull out in front of the Smart much more frequently than my Ford Escape.