Unlike Manhattan, Brooklyn is very spread out and you can't always get every place via the subway or bus. It looks like Mercedes-Benz is thinking of bringing an ultra-small car (two seater) to the United States:
You can see tiny Smart cars, those egg-shaped two-seaters, doubled up in parking spaces or sitting on city sidewalks all over Europe, where they have been sold since 1998. But Smart has never come to the United States. The Mercedes-Benz unit has struggled to make money from the day it was conceived, and writeoffs to date run to the billions of dollars. With losses so steep, plans to sell the car here have been repeatedly delayed as Mercedes has struggled to find a profit-making formula.
Now, DaimlerChrysler chairman Dieter Zetsche is dropping hints that Smart will make its way to the United States. Speaking to reporters in Portland, Oregon last week at an event marking the 25th anniversary of Daimler's acquisition of Freightliner trucks, Zetsche said a final decision on Smart for the U.S. would be made this month, once a verdict was reached on how to distribute it.
He added in his German-tinged English, "The tendency is positive in this regard."
Translation: Consider it all but done.
It looks like they are thinking of selling them for $12k and they get 70 miles per gallon. I'd love to see these cars on the streets of Williamsburg!
Here are some related links:
http://www.smartcarofamerica.com/
http://www.threepointmotors.com/smart/index.asp
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/02_30/b3793092.htm