Points of Interest | Green Energy News

January 18, 2004 – Vol.8 No.43

POINTS OF INTEREST.

(A weekly collection of websites worth visiting.)

Finally, DaimlerChrysler is laying out plans to introduce its fuel-efficient smart cars to the U.S. market. But, not until the 2006 model year.

Unfortunately, the U.S. (through smart anyway, read on) won’t get the 8-foot long two-seat coupe now known as the fortwo coupe, nor the fortwo cabriolet, the forfour, the roadster, the roadster-coupe, or the crossblade.

It will however get a new vehicle now officially known as the smart formore, a small SUV. (smart USA calls it a smart Utility Vehicle.)

The vehicle is still in the development stage - only sketches are available. Few details are known. smart USA says only that it will be a distinctive vehicle. A sure bet, however, is that it will get the replaceable/recyclable body panels like the rest of the smart line. But no announcement has been made about the car’s power plant. Will it get the rear mounted, under-floor gas or diesel engines available in other smart models? For official stuff from smart we’ll have to wait and see.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t get a smart car in the U.S. - albeit at a price. Detlef’s Rentals of Sarasota, Florida is able to sell smart vehicles to U.S. buyers. Though difficult to do smart vehicles can be purchased, registered and driven here legally.

The cars meet or exceed federal crash test requirements when compared with European testing, as well as exceed U.S. emission standards, thus will pass emission tests in many states. Visit smart at http://www.smart.com/ For a sketch of the formore visit smart media at http://media.smart.com/ for your smart now visit Detlef’s Rentals http://www.detlefs-rentals.com/