Seriously though, I know that I’m poking fun at them a little there, but in all honesty, it’s something which you acclimatize to quite quickly and simply adjust your driving style towards. I tend to see it this way...To get the most comfortable gear changes, you need to be rather easy going and let the auto–box do its thing in its own good time (Think: Your grandmother is riding next to you). On the other hand, if you’re seeking a slightly more sporty feel, then simply push the pedal to the metal and manually change gear without lifting your foot off the accelerator at all (Think: Michael Schumacher is hot on your tail). In fact, if you do the latter, you’ll be surprised at just how lively the Smart car can be. It’s no Ferrari for sure, but it fairly zips though downtown traffic, and with a top speed of 145kph, it’s no slouch on the highway either.

Now I’ve heard several people say, “I wouldn’t want to be in one of those on the highway”, and I must admit that even I was a little concerned by the idea at first. After all, it does appear a tad small when sitting next to a tractor-trailer unit. However, one needs to remember that the Smart car has done extremely well in safety crash testing. Much of this is due to its unique safety-cell construction (Somewhat similar to that used in Formula 1 racing). Obviously, I wasn’t about to test this out myself, so I attempted to keep to a steady pace on the 401. However, although I’m not going to announce exactly what that steady rate of speed was, I will say that the little car more than kept up with the flow of traffic, and not once did I feel intimidated by the other vehicles around me. Maybe, that was because I was enjoying myself so much, or possibly, because being rather small, you tend to feel further away from the other vehicles anyway.

It’s also worth mentioning here again, the great all-round visibility of the Smart car, because unlike a few Ontario drivers I’ve noticed, I like to pay attention to what’s going on around me. The vision provided by the large glass areas makes this a breeze, and as you’re seated just as high in the Smart car as most other vehicles on the road, it’s not difficult to see what going on ahead. Of course, that doesn’t stop the cars in front from doing the usual 401 brake test every few kilometers, but superb visibility, coupled with the Smart cars excellent braking capabilities (Think Go-kart like), at least means that you’ll not become a bumper sticker for the vehicle in front.

Handling with the Smart car has never really been an issue. In fact, at last year’s AJAC Test Fest, I took the Smart car for a spin on the track portion of the event and was rather pleasantly surprised. There’s a small amount of body roll in the corners and the nose tends to dip slightly on harsh braking, but for what the vehicle is, I’d call it exceptional handling.

Moving on, we come to the interior and the 09 model sports a more “Grown up” look to it. Kudos to the design team here because they made a grand job of it. It now appears closer to that of a regular vehicle, which I’m guessing, will please many out there. Although, if I’m perfectly honest, as much as I like the new layout, I’ll miss the slightly quirky look of the former version.

The top-of-the-line Brabus edition certainly adds a little more panache to the Smart car line-up. Niceties such as “Monoblock VII” alloy wheels (15” up front, and 17” on the rear) really do give the vehicle an up-market customized appearance. The Brabus Edition also sits slightly lower to the ground than the regular version, and a stylish skirt kit adds to that low-slung look. Mind you, as my test vehicle carried a sticker price of $25,255 (Brabus base $24,900), I’m going to say that one would need to be a true Smart car enthusiast to stump up the extra coin for the Brabus. Personally, I think that at around $15k for the entry level model, that’s probably the best way to first venture into a Smart product. Then of course, once you’ve fallen in love with the vehicle (Which I would imagine to be quite a common occurrence), possibly trade on up.

I have to say that I really enjoyed my week in the Brabus Smart car, and I do view it as a viable suburban computer vehicle. The fact that most drivers travel to work alone often makes me wonder why so many drive such large and thirsty vehicles. Now here’s the perfect solution. Park the trailer towing SUV at home for use on the weekend and zip to work in a Smart car. Or perhaps downsize one of your regular family-sized vehicles and with the money saved on weekly fuel bills driving the economical Smart car, treat yourself to something special like an appreciating classic or that long-awaited Harley. Whichever way you look at it, I’m thinking it would be a smart idea.