Smart Roadster. Have I lost it?

If you can get hold of it Classic and sports car did a good buyers guide for this a few years back.

As for the gearboxes (the wife has a 2011 four two), the trick I found is to not rush it and lift slightly as it changes so its a bit less jolty...

If it's the same gearbox that the Smart ForTwo has then it's not great. It never seems to know what gear it wants to go into. If you're at a junction and you floor it you can find yourself rolling out half way into the road before it's made a decision! You'll get used to it, but it is annoying.

My mum has had two, and I've driven them plenty. The engines are nice but let down by the gearbox. That said, when you're flooring it they're happy to rev all the way up before they change, and the engine does sound good from inside the car.

If you're not keen on the yellow you can swap the panels on them over I think, you certainly can with the ForTwo, not 100% on the roadster. They just pop off. The Smart car community do swap meets.

RetroWarwicK is the man to ask here. I will advise but my information is only secondary info...

I like them and a couple of guys I know still have them.

The common complaint seems to be the gearbox. It's not an auto, but an automated manual (it still has a clutch but it is controlled by the computer). I also understand it is meant to be 2 gearboxes joined into one, but not like a modern dual clutch item. Even compared a few automated manuals of the day the 'box is meant to be clumsy.

If you could get an update to sort that you would be laughing I suspect. I know you can get software updates for other cars which transforms them.

That makes the gearbox sound like a proper mare. Thanks everyone for the advice, its helped me get a better picture of what I'm looking at without actualy putting me off completly. After chatting to workmates about it ive decided that if it hasnt been to the moon and back, doesnt leak, and i can get in and out of it without looking like a muppet, then I'm going to take my chances. When i had a nose around it yesterday it seems to be very clean and straight inside and out with the only faults being the stonechips on the front panel between the headlights I intend on using it but keeping the micra just in case something bad happens, and if it does happen, use the micra and fix it and do it up a bit over winter. Thats all pie in the sky stuff at the moment, I'm going to call them. Now.

no probs, its all good input! Well ive phoned the owner. Its his daughters car but he loves the thing, i know hes trying to sell it but he couldnt praise it enough, fun to drive etc etc. its done 105,000, the roof is stuck shut and was expensive to fix so didnt bother, doesnt bother me too much. Doesnt leak at all, no other problems at all, and new wheels and tyres. I thought it looked smart when i looked at it. going to have a proper look at it tomorrow. And try and shoehorn myself into it.

Yeah ive read they can give problems from around 60k onwards, but well cared for ones have been known to pass 200k, this one has service history too so ill be having a good look through it. It looks like its been looked after, I just hope that reflects elsewhere too.

I think you've just about talked yourself into it. I also had two cars when I was 19 and it was great to have a spare for days when I felt like driving something else. (Now at 51 I've got nine cars, four are complete and driveable but still only two get driven regularly and one of those is dodgy.)

The sunroof stopped working when it was open, they took it to a garage who managed to shut it, and sealed it at the same time, the good thing is it doesnt leak, but it did when they first got it. Id be tempted to get it open and see if there was any way of making it a manualy opening sunroof by removing any part of its mechanism or frame, but then ive got the risk of it leaking again. Or make a hard top? Being able to remove the roof and the roof bars would make it so much easier to get in and out at times.
My heart and 90% of my head says buy it, but 10% of my head and about 40% of my pocket doesnt want it turning into a money pit, (clutch, headgasket, etc most engine jobs suggest engine out) he said don't ever expect it to be as reliable as a micra. it cant be an option as an only car so that means the extra cost of 2 cars, like i said ive don't it before and its great when one goes wrong, a car is the only option for me getting to work 20 miles away so its kind of important. But then 2 cars doesnt get much cheaper than a micra (bomb proof and enough space to make it practical) and a smart car (plenty of fun factor) Whilst I'm not built for small cars, i like small cars, plenty of people scoff at me driving a micra but I'm in it for the cheeps and reliability, not their opinion. Authough getting out of the smart
is a different matter all together. Laugh all you like, id have been laughing at the turbo chatter up until that point.
So basicly, all ive got to do is convince myself to take the chance. Looking at the market the initial cost with 11 months MOT is very very good, there are normal smarts out there at the same price, but no roadsters, one with a blown engine is a highter asking price than this one!
Still thinking, its like I'm trying to stop myself from wanting to buy it.

There is an awful lot of rubbish written about the smart Roadster and, from my own experience, I can only assert that most of this comes from those who have never truly experienced one long term. I bought one (90hp, paddle shift) 9 years ago to keep at my holiday home in Spain. It was in Birmingham, LHD, and the sellers didn't know its true worth - always nice to pull one on a dealer! It had low mileage, 29k. But to back-peddle, we'd already had a Brabus 4/2 cabrio which suited my partner in her travelling social worker duties in Aberdeenshire. It was kind of chic, weird, awkward, but suited her fine and was certainly a talking point. I drove the roadster back to Scotland, had the turbo re-mapped and Green Dot pads fitted along with a better hifi by the local enthusiastic smart independent I'd discovered near Glasgow after awful service at Merc Aberdeen. I had it shipped to Alicante by truck, thence to Ibiza where it remains. During the time I've had it I've also had 2 x Elises (one Supercharged), a recent Boxster S, a 911 Carrera 4 and parallel to a couple of these I had a Brabus Roadster Coupe. Smarts are a bit like Yoga, you have to be doing it a while to get it completely. The Brabus I had completely tricked up, but to be honest, it never had the sweetness of the one I've had in Spain all along: the harsher ride not a good feature (Gordon Murray - McLaren designer, agrees - a number of McLaren staff had these cars).

I would agree with some here that water ingress is a problem, although plenty say their cars do not suffer. I could not get it fixed on the Brabus roadster and, while I never truly loved that car, it was another reason I was happy to see it go, I had the Boxster by then anyway. My Ibiza car was left out the first winter here and no one takes the blame for the cover having been removed and not replaced. By the time I got to it there were 2cm green and brown stalagmites and tites growing out of the wheel and an inch of water in the footwells. I assumed it was a right-off, but the local garage fixed for E500 - hours in the paint oven and a new SAM unit. I knew all about Elise's and their water issues, so I bought an Elise rain hat from Elise-Parts, could have been made for it and it's on and off in seconds. The wee car has never let me down of its own volition, NEVER! Starts first time after being left for up to 4 months with the battery disconnected.

Now I am here in Ibiza permanently, all the other toys are sold and the Roaster remains, I have had it 9 years. It and one Avant remain the best cars I have ever had, and the Roadster is the one I love the most. I saw someone say on a P-Heads post(?) that the gearbox is actually a strong suit and I couldn't agree more, it's how good you are not how tricky the mechanism is, I now left foot brake with abandon and the car is unburstable. I have run it solid for a year lately and the admiration just grows. I don't particularly take care of the aesthetics of a car..not a cleaner & polisher and I don't give them names, so its a bit down at heel looking at the moment, so It's back to the UK for a complete makeover, it's a keeper. If you like driving go-karts its a toss between this and an Elise, if you don't need to be on it 100% of them and need a wee bit comfort, there's only one choice. Its a classic. And I'll be driving it to the UK, no need for a truck.