Sometimes it takes me ages to choose cars for this feature. Often, I’ll find one car I really want to write about, and then struggle to find a worthy competitor to it. But when it was time to choose cars for today, I stumbled on two cheerful little cars with similar origin stories, for sale in the same place. Easy choice.
Yesterday’s cars were similar too, but had led very different lives. The vote was split pretty evenly, but the super-original AMC Rebel came out on top. The Chevy Chevelle had plenty of fans, especially with its manual transmission, but its piecemeal nature, and some questions about some of the upgrades, turned enough of you off to give the Rebel the win.
The Chevelle would absolutely have been my choice 25 or 30 years ago, but I’m not a kid anymore. I’m embracing my inner (and increasingly, outer) old man today and taking the nice clean Rebel to the early-bird special. Or maybe to Culver’s, to give them back their sign.
Taking a car on a long road trip is a great way to bond with it, for better or worse. Cross enough state lines, and you’re bound to gain an appreciation for a machine, even one ill-suited to long-distance travel. Both of today’s cars claim to have been “all over the US,” but neither one seems like the sort of car you’d choose for such travels. Let’s take a look at them, and see which one makes more sense for long trips.
2003 Mini Cooper – $3,000
Engine/drivetrain: 1.6-liter OHC inline 4, CVT automatic, FWD
Location: Seattle, WA
Odometer reading: 146,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
The new Mini made a huge splash when it arrived in the US in 2002. Enthusiastic buyers snapped them up like hotcakes. But it didn’t take long for the honeymoon to end; it turned out that BMW’s stewardship of the brand didn’t produce a car any more consistently reliable than British Leyland’s. Things have gotten better now, but these early Minis are at best hit-or-miss. One that has made it this far, and has traversed the entire continent, is either one of the good ones, or has been very well cared-for.
The Mini was available in two flavors in the US: the Cooper, and the Cooper S. A lower-trim Mini One was offered elsewhere, but we never got that one. This Mini Cooper is powered by a 1.6-liter four-cylinder that drives the front wheels through a continuously variable transmission made by ZF. This transmission doesn’t have a great reputation, but then, neither does the five-speed manual in early Minis. The fact that this one is still going strong is more evidence that it’s been well maintained.
The interior looks a little worn, and the headliner is falling down, but I’ve certainly seen worse. It wouldn’t be a British car without some electrical gremlins: the sunroof and power locks are both dead, and apparently using the turn signal sometimes turns on the high beam headlights. Hey, it could be worse.
It’s positively festooned with stickers, which you may or may not like. It has a few dings and scrapes, and a cracked taillight, but it’s basically straight. The tow hitch, I feel, is a bit optimistic; I can’t imagine towing anything with this thing, especially with the transmission’s reputation.
2009 Smart Fortwo Passion Cabrio – $3,000
Engine/drivetrain: 1.0_liter DOHC inline 3, five-speed automated manual, RWD
Location: Olympia, WA
Odometer reading: 188,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
At the risk of incurring Mercedes’s ire, I have to confess that I don’t “get” the Smart. It seems like such a weird way of going about making a city car. I can appreciate the engineering, but honestly, I can’t think of anything it could do that a Geo Metro couldn’t do just as well, with a lot less trouble. Admittedly I’ve never driven a Smart; maybe it makes more sense if you drive one. I have driven a Metro longish distances, and it was unpleasant, to put it mildly. I can’t imagine a Smart is any better. Nevertheless, the seller of this one claims to have driven it “all over America.”
The Smart’s engine is a 999 cc three-cylinder, mounted under the rear floor and driving the rear wheels through an automated manual gearbox. The gearbox has an occasional problem where it won’t shift into reverse unless you put it in drive first. I’ve had full manual transmissions that were like that before; I wonder if it’s the same sort of problem? It otherwise runs and drives fine. The seller says it has an aftermarket exhaust that’s a bit loud, which can be fun if you like it, and wearying if you don’t.
We don’t get any interior photos, and the seller says it’s “pretty ripped up.” Okay, fine, but show us. They do say that the convertible top has been replaced. Apparently it goes down fine, but needs help going back up. It’s got an aftermarket Pioneer stereo with Bluetooth, to provide a better soundtrack than the loud exhaust.
These things are cute, I have to give them that, and the convertible version looks especially good. This one has been lowered slightly, which probably makes the ride even worse, but gives it a good stance. I don’t think the gas flap is supposed to be flat black; it has likely been replaced at some point. The rest of it looks clean and well-kept.
[Mercedes Note: Truth be told, this Smart is actually pretty rough. The transmission not always reaching reverse could be anything from a worn shifter module to an old clutch actuator. This problem could persist for many years without ever getting worse, or one day the car could just choose to forget about reverse entirely.
The roof not being able to close without help is a real issue. Either this new roof was not installed correctly or a part of it, like the slider mechanism, is broken. The dice roll here is that one day, the roof can get jammed and stuck in the open position. The Smart Cabrio roof wizard, Richard, can fix it.
The aftermarket exhaust is from Boeschbuilt/Genius Parts. It’s a product by the same man who built the coolest Smart Hayabusa in America. His exhaust had quite a nice soundtrack!
The red panels are known for peeling with a near 100 percent failure rate. This car was likely repainted, wrapped, or spent most of its life in a garage.
While there are no photos of the interior, I can already tell you that “rough” doesn’t go far enough to explain it. This car came with the optional tachometer and clock pods, but one of the pods is snapped off and missing.
The fuel door actually is supposed to be black on a 2009. However, the roof rails on this example are supposed to be silver, not black. – MS]
I’ve taken a lot of long road trips in my time, in a lot of different cars, and one thing I can say is that for Interstate work, bigger is better. Tiny cars like these get shoved around by crosswinds and passing trucks, and the choppy ride and road noise are tiresome after a while. But kudos to the sellers of these two for braving the open road in them. You don’t have to retrace their steps, of course. You can enjoy one or the other of them in any way you see fit. But you must choose between them, for that is our purpose here.
Fuck the stupid smart car and just get a B-Class from Canada 😛
For a second there, I thought I’d be voting Smart, but Mercedes’ input saved me from making a mistake. That poor, little car seems to have led a rough life.
The Mini may not be the paragon of reliability, but it seems to have led a semi-charmed kinda life and it’s a lot more practical to boot. I’d have to de-sticker the windows to pass my state inspection, but I’d want to do that anyway – outward visibility is more important to me than archiving the car’s travels.
I don’t have anything against the Smart necessarily and thought about renting one off Turo for a trip across Texas years ago, but in the end my wife suggested that $5 more per day for a Corolla was probably wiser.
I have almost owned a mini on a few occasions, I love the styling, and they make a fun little hatchback, but I have never considered a NA model with the cvt. Despite that I give the win to the Mini today mostly because Mercedes didn’t respond to the article to say her flight was already booked, tells me I probably don’t want this Smart either.
AND The Mini has an Ax Man sticker!
I have yet to meet anyone with a good Mini experience. I live in the boondocks and do very little city driving so there’s little practical need for either of these. I’d much rather take a road trip with a motorcycle.
Guess I’ll pick the Smart for the oddity, drop top, and 5 speed. It’s probably light enough you could push it in neutral when reverse quits on you…
A little bottle of lighter fluid, a zippo, and $2950 in bills is a faster and easier way of burning three thousand dollars, and I wouldn’t have to deal with Craigslist sellers to do it.
Didn’t know these Minis had a CVT. That’s pathetic, but I’ll chance it over the Smart because the rest of the car is more useful and more fun.
And while the Mini isn’t much safer in a crash, I still cannot get the IIHS crash test out of my head where a Mercedes C Class punted a Smart clear out of the camera frame like a football.
Sticking with the road-tripping theme, I’d have to go with the Mini. It probably has better noise dampening than the smart and definitely has more power. It could definitely use an Autopian shifter hoodie though.
Mini, despite the killjoy CVT, as the Smart is too small to be of any use to me.
If the Mini were a manual it’d be a no brainer, but I wouldn’t touch anything with a CVT, especially earlier versions. Automated manuals are often clunky and jerky, but usually reasonably durable. Both of these cars seem miserable to put 100k+ on in longer trips so I guess I’ll take the more ridiculous and probably more reliable Smart.
Edit: read Mercedes’ note…I don’t really feel strongly enough to change my vote, but I think this need to get down to $1500 car.
Neither of these cars are for me.
I voted for the Mini. I don’t want this particular Mini, but I might be interested if it had the right number of pedals. In fact, if I were to buy a Mini it would be an expendable, cheap, crappy one like this.
I have no interest in any Smart. These cars are great if you need to street park in a dense urban area. For any other use they don’t make much sense. They are cramped, slow, and not nearly as efficient as they look. I have always found the “Smart” name ironic. Making a tiny car with minimal sacrifices is smart. Making a tiny car with massive sacrifices isn’t.
Chose the Mini for slightly more room. Stickers can be removed.
I chose the MINI. Always thought they were kinda cool, really thought about a JCW years ago. If it’s still going it’s probably good enough.
I love small cars but the Smart may be too small. And convertible (that has issues?)? No thanks.
I’m so weary of first gen mini ownership I voted Smart, mostly because I can
harass, ask Mercedees for help with everything that fails.Once I got it home and everything sorted, I’d probably opt to just stay home and skip the road trip entirely.
I was all ready to vote against the Mini – based solely on the fact that I irrationally despised that particular throwback color combination.
But then Mercedes came on and dropped a wisdom bomb all over the Smart.
Mini by a nose.
Having owned a relatively trouble-free 3rd gen Mini for several years now, I’m deluded into thinking the Mini’s (lack of) reliability reputation is over blown, and the fact this example has ~150K miles just reinforces that delusion. So I’ll take my Mini’s older sis.
R53s are great; they’ve gotten bigger and worse since then.
As for not “getting” the Smart; here in the States, it’s a bit out of place, even in the urban environments that are its sweet spot. I loved that it was designed so two Smarts could fit in the same curb space as a single average sedan (2 Smarts nose-in to the curb (perpendicular) vs something like an E-Class parked in the normal way (parallel). That determined the basic dimensions, and to fit people into it comfortably drove the packaging. It’s a fascinating little car. And it can do pretty much any driving task we need. It got scoffed at here because it’s small on our large highways, and that’s not where it’s at its best, but it will do it, capably, without complaint.
That said, this one is a hunk of junk.
The Mini doesn’t have the most fun powertrain, but it’s still a little go-kart. And it’s a bit more “normal.”
Ya know, you live reasonably close to a particular Smart aficionado now. Maybe buy Mercedes lunch in exchange for a quick romp in her passion cabriolet? (Wow, that sounds way naughtier than it should!)
I voted for the Smart, anyway, because I could probably negotiate the guy down and then just run it as a beater. 🙂
I think we all figured you would, but your detailed exposé very much reads “stay the hell away” to the rest of us uninformed plebs!
This is Mercedes being honest, and then voting with her heart over her head.
I’m making the Smart choice today.
I always liked the new Mini… then I owned a used 2007 Cooper S. British reliability with German complexity. It was an unreliable, oil-burning, hard-to-maintain vehicle. The ergonomics inside were terrible. It was a loud, rough-riding car for long trips. Absolutely one of the worst cars I’ve owned – and I only kept it for four months. I had two good days with it it: one hooning it at a Road America performance driving school, and the other selling it. Never again.
https://itisgood.org/auto-biography/#07Mini
Man, you’ve owned a lot of cars. That’s an impressive list. I’ve only owned 3 cars in my nearly 30 years of driving, but I still love cars.
Some are cars owned by family members, but which I’ve spent significant drive or repair time with. I like to sample and try things.
I commend you on your automotive monogamy!
I’ll take the Mini and immediately move to a smaller country.
“Sticker Bombed”, battle damage, a sunroof, a trailer hitch?!…… All roads point to the Smart here. Sure, the Cooper has a Chrysler based engine, but if I’m dealing with quirky, I’m dealing with a clumsy, and likely failed automatic rather than an early CVT, maintained be damned.
I live in the PNW and I swear every fourth car I see is festooned in unnecessary stickers. I have no idea why everyone does it, but it happens with so much regularity, especially with anything even remotely sporty, that I’d almost be more surprised if that Mini didn’t have stickers all over it.
I saw a few in college in PA, but only time I’ve seen them where I live they’re ratted out, and junk. It doesn’t help its case with me, even if records are provided. It’s not something I view positively lol
That Mini is the most “nope” spec available, color notwithstanding. My wife always likes Smarts so I’m going with that one for her today. I want neither, personally.
YELLOW!!
Damn. I really wanted to embrace the minimalist road trip and top down motoring offered by the Smart, but it looks like a hot mess. Not that I think the Mini will make it across the country without a stop to fix something that breaks.
Even without Mercedes’ detailed technical review of the Smart, I was already leaning towards the Mini, but she confirmed my doubts.
Here I was expecting the mini to be a stick and easy win, but those cvts are notoriously bad so I’m probably taking the slightly lesser of two evils with the smart???