Purely for curiosity, I was wondering if anyone uses a smart car to haul a canoe or sea-kayak.
I thought maybe since the engine had good torque (relative to the weight), and there’s an interesting rack assembly offered that it could haul at reasonable speeds.
Hmm?
I found a picture of a Smart Car with a rack on top. The bar spread looked to be about 1 foot. Given the weight, wheelbase and profile of that car, I’d hazard to guess that even if you could find a way to safely secure a canoe to the top of that thing, driving in that configuration on a windy day could be dangerous.
However, I could be completely wrong. I intend to haul canoes on my Pontiac Vibe, which is a small car in it’s own rite.
Phreon
Bolt aftermarket rack
Use a Yakima or Thule bolt on track or feet and spread those crossbars as far apart as possible. 30" is what is recommend for canoes. I would do it.
I do it all the time
Cars don’t get much smaller than my Chevy Aveo. I use a Thule rack with cost about as much as the car if I recall correctly.
hopefully
We will be looking into that shortly as we just picked up a hybrid Prius.
Some of the “smart” cars have related web sites for ideas…
I think the Smart Car is even smaller.
lightweight trailer
might be a really good idea.
Look at the stuff advertized here on p.net, something kayak/canoe specific. One of the companies even has a picture of motocycle towing some watercraft.
Prius roof rack
I met a couple from Germany at the Silver river put-in.
The had a Prius with a Yakima roof rack and were hauling two BEEFY roto-molded boats with no trouble.
The Smart Car is MUCH smaller than a current model Prius.
Bob
ummm …I don’t know…
perhaps I’m confused. is there one particular vehicle called the Smart Car ?
I know smart car technology exists so maybe I’m just confused…it’s pretty new to me.
Horrible little car !
Interesting
It’s an interesting vehicle; I had the opportunity to see one in person in the parking lot of our local ski area, just as the owner was leaving for the day. He loves it - purchased it in Europe and had it shipped over. I believe it actually had the Mercedes-Benz badge on it. Very practical and well-thought-out interior, 65 mpg. If I were SWOF, I’d consider one. Of, course, I’m not adverse to small cars; I used to drive a '63 Mini Cooper as my everyday car.
You can haul a canoe/kayak with
any 4 wheeled, or three wheeled (two wheels in front) hard top. At what speed is a different question.
Nothing wrong with small cars
Just that one, it looks like a childs toy.
I like 'em
Maybe not for the way you folks drive on interstates, but notwithstanding 75mph+, they seem great. They are built by Mercedes, with a Mercedes diesel engine over the rear wheels. They have a saftey cage like a race car, state of the art electronic stability programs, and get excellent mileage. Here in Canada, they are under $20k (Canadian).
If we can fit all we need for weeks into canoes, kayaks, and backpacks, why do we need 200 gallons of cargo room for a week’s groceries?
Oh Lord won’t you buy me a Mercede’s Benz?!
thanks
now I Recognize it. It’s that tiny little car in the Pink Panther movie…
I prefer a Mini
Or a Fiesta or KA to that regardless of the Mercedes label. They are actually built by Nedcar in Holland.
What’s so smart about them?
I understand that once you fiddle with them to meet U.S. emission standards, they don’t get all that great mileage. First EPA test was 37 mpg I think. For something that small, I’d want to see it push 90 mpg.
The ‘Smart Car’ you buy here
is more expensive, and gets lower gas mileage.
They have to Americanize it to sell here in the States. Even the ones in Canada, are not allowed to be sold to anyone in the States
The fella that had one shipped over from Europe did so before the plans to sell here in the states.
At one time some folks were lookung at the Smart Car for use on Golf courses - - Talk about one expensive Golf Cart.
I was interested in one - - that is until I learned about the massive price increase, and MPG decrease.
What Is Smart?
I get milage in the high fourties and sometimes top fifty. My compact wagon gets looks with an 18 foot boat on top, I think people would wonder if the boat was pulling the car or the other way around with a boat on top of that little car.
Mark