NHTSA complaint: 2008 SMART FORTWO — POWER TRAIN
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, FOR A SHORT PERIOD, BEFORE IT DID THE SAME THING AGAIN...APPARENTLY IT'S A COMMON PROBLEM, WITH THE SMART CAR FORUMS, FULL OF COMPLAINTS, ABOUT THE 2008 YEAR, WITH SMART CO., AT TIMES, AUTHORIZING REPAIRS, AND REPLACEMENT WITH 2009 MECHANISMS, THAT DO NOT HAVE THE SAME PROBLEMS AS THE 2008 MODEL YEAR. THERE SHOULD DEFINITELY BE A RECALL FOR THE 2008 SMART CAR, MODEL YEAR, BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED, ENTERING, EXITING A HIGHWAY, AT A RAILROAD CROSSING, OR AT AN INTERSECTION, WHERE THE CAR, SHIFTS INTO NEUTRAL, WON'T SHIFT OUT, AND SHUTS OFF... THANK YOU *TR
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration — Office of Defects Investigation