2008 Smart Fortwo owner complaints

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 smart fortwo. After the vehicle was started and shifted into reverse, it failed to respond. The vehicle was taken to Mercedes-benz of orlando (810 orlando ave, maitland, fl 32751, (407) 680-0784) to be diagnosed, but the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure occurred at least four times previously. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 30,000.

The failing part is in the automatic transmission shift lever. The shift lever release button begins to get resistive in it's operation and then fails to actuate all together. In my case this resulted in the dealer service department having to replace the entire shift lever assembly. The failure occurred at approximately 8400 miles. It has been about 500 miles since the repair and I can feel the lever becoming resistive again. *tr

My car's shifter is stuck in park. I cannot shift to n (neutral), d (drive), or r (reverse). This effectively renders the car inoperable. *tr

Know issue with transmission. Will not go into reverse half the time. Making it dangerous if needed quickly. Parallel parking on a busy street, the car would not go into reverse, holding up traffic for a very long time. Having to push it into the spot! Mercedes says it is a software problem. But that should be a recall because that is their problem. Many people have had the same issue. Driving down the highway at 70mph and the car instantly starts flashing neutral and beeping. Car slows and will not go into gear. We need this car to be recalled! *tr

The 2008 smart car, has been consistently, shifting into neutral, while driving, usually, when entering, or exiting a highway, or at an intersection (speed changes). The car shifts into neutral, and then usually shuts down, causing the vehicle to be rear ended, from unsuspecting drivers behind this vehicle..the problem started when the car, would not shift into reverse, while parked..smart offered a software fix, to address that issue. Had that done, then problem progressed, to shifting to neutral while driving, and stalling out...at times car, would restart, but it would not shift into gear, indicating only a flashing neutral position. At times, car would not start at all, because would not know what gear it was in...if waited 10-20 minutes, or several hours, it might restart, and shift,

The 2008 smart car, has been consistently, shifting into neutral, while driving, usually, when entering, or exiting a highway, or at an intersection (speed changes). The car shifts into neutral, and then usually shuts down, causing the vehicle to be rear ended, from unsuspecting drivers behind this vehicle..the problem started when the car, would not shift into reverse, while parked..smart offered a software fix, to address that issue. Had that done, then problem progressed, to shifting to neutral while driving, and stalling out...at times car, would restart, but it would not shift into gear, indicating only a flashing neutral position. At times, car would not start at all, because would not know what gear it was in...if waited 10-20 minutes, or several hours, it might restart, and shift,

The cars transmission will not switch to reverse intermittently its an electrical things

Failure to shift out of park into reverse. Gearshift moves but gear display goes blank and chime sounds. Sometimes it will go into drive. It may be a solenoid problem. Very frustrating and it seems to be getting worse over time. I now have 38,000 miles on the car. This issue needs to be looked into. I expect better out of damlier benz. *tr

While driving rear motor caught fire. *tr

Seatbelt latch mechanism broke. This, in combination with the fact that the seatbelt mechanism itself frequently fails to retract, suggests that the entire system is faulty. *tr

The seat belt will no longer latch on the drivers side. After reviewing the following forum I realized this is effecting several others: http://www.smartcarofamerica.com/forums/f25/seat-belt-buckle-jammed-32961/index2.html this should be recalled before someone gets into an accident with a malfunctioning seat belt. *tr

Both seat belts, but especially the passenger seat belt, lose tension and are rendered ineffective. They can still be fastened, but there is absolutely no restraint. I requested a repair of at least the passenger-side seat belt during a 11/19/12 car repair and the dealer's representative told me that many smart fortwo vehicles have problems with seat belts. He was reluctant to repair the problem and did not. From reading the complaints about seatbelts of smart vehicles, this last of proper restraint seems to be an on-going problem. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 smart fortwo. The contact stated the drivers side seat belt does not latch. The front hood latch came apart causing the hood to separate from the vehicle while driving 55 MPH. No one was injured and a crash did not occur. The manufacturer was notified and stated there was no recall and the contact would had to pay for the repair cost and offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 51,424. Updated 12/11/12*lj the seat belt buckle and hood latch were replaced. Updated 12/12/12

I recently had the airbag light come on my car. I took it in to an authorized smart car shop (Mercedes benz). Mb informed that the wires from the seat belt underneath passenger seat were frayed and needed to replace the entire seat system. After paying $400.00, for a new passenger seat belt, the light came off. Reading different forums online, many smart car owners have also had exactly the same issues with the wires underneath both the passenger and driver side. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 smart fortwo vehicle. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30-40 MPH around a curve, the vehicle flipped. The air bags did not deploy. The police were contacted and a report was filed. The driver received injuries to her back. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where they were pending an investigation from the manufacturer. The failure and the current mileages were approximately 7,000. ....updated 12/03/12 *bf updated 01/05/12

Tl*the contact owns a 2008 smart fortwo 451 coupe. When the vehicle stopped the air bag light came on and would not shut off. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who reset the computer for the driver's side seat belt connection because it was loose. Three months later that the failure recurred. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer because he paid $150 for the first repair. The failure mileage was 13,000 and the current mileage was 13,400.

My son was driving down the road when he noticed smoke in the floor board. He was about .5 miles from our house and went to turn around when he noticed fire in the back/engine area of the car. He was able to get out of the car and ran to a house to call 911. As the home owner was calling they heard the car explode. The entire car burned with only the metal frame of the car, seats, etc. Left standing. In september the car passed the state inspection. When my husband and I arrived (which was only minutes from it happening since we were only .5 miles away) the car was engulfed in flames. Thankfully my son was able to get out. I'm also thankful for the rain that had just started because it soaked the previously dry leaves and trees that could've been also engulfed in the flames and caused h

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 smart fortwo. The contact observed an abnormal odor coming from the vehicle without warning. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the shocks were leaking fluid onto the brakes and that the brakes and shocks needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 52,000...updated 02/09/17 *bf *cn

The plastic composite material that makes up the clear roof panel on smart fortwo passion models has been known to "craze" or haze over with fine marks, that catch and reflect the sun. This makes the roof's material appear to wear down due to the sun's uv light. Owners that park their cars in garages have fewer symptoms, and adversely, those who always keep their car outside and exposed to sun see exasperated issues. There have been reports of the material warping due to wear and experiencing leaks around the edges. As the panel is not a sun roof, but instead the vehicle's roof itself, the problem is not cheap to repair. The material has been known to "craze" since the smart fortwo was updated in 2008, and as of 2012 the problem still exists. *tr

2008 Smart Fortwo Pure, currently with 85,036 miles, factory equipped with optional POWER STEERING - ELECTRIC, power steering had worked fine until Fall 2020 when cold temperatures caused steering lock-up, until car interior warmed enough to unlock steering, behavior consistent throughout that winter. Once steering unlocked, steering was normal, until car sat & chilled sufficiently to re-lock steering, or fault disappeared with warmer Spring 2021 temperatures. NEW DEVELOPMENTS - December 2021, outside temperatures in the 20s F, it takes much longer, 30-60 minutes or longer with heat & blower on max heat, before steering unlocks. After steering unlocks, it can seem fully unlocked, BUT AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS AND FRIGID TEMPERATURES STEERING NOW GETS DANGEROUSLY STIFF AND STICKY AND STUCK-IN-POSIT