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Daimler's Smart Drive kit for iPhone gives you big buttons, a dent in your wallet
If you're one of the trendy hipsters driving a Smart Fortwo, here's another way of pimping up your ride: Daimler has announced a Q2 2010 launch for its Smart Drive kit for the iPhone. As pictured above, the kit consists of a cradle for handsfree communication plus charging, and an app that "combines all the features needed on the road" by the means of "extra-large buttons and extra-large letters." You'll get access to your usual music library (plus Internet radio), contacts, phone functions and map by Daimler (points-of-interest data from Microsoft Bing). There's also the handy "Assist" feature that can automatically mark your parking location when undocked, and can provide GPS coordinates to the Smart hotline for roadside assistance. What's more, Daimler's currently working on a camera for this kit that can identify speed limit signs, and can then warn you if you're speeding. Want it? You'll need to fork out a dear €240 ($326) for the cradle (which may or may not be necessary), then a one-off €9.99 ($14) for the app, and finally the optional annual €49.99 ($68) for on-board European and US maps plus live traffic data. We'll reconsider if the app can also start our car. [Thanks, Jason]
Tesla-powered Smart Fortwo gives rides, ignites imaginations
We already knew that Daimler was looking to Tesla for its battery know-how within the electric Smart, and evidently the two have already put together a working prototype. Our best buds over at AutoblogGreen have hosted up a video and photo gallery of a Tesla-powered Smart Fortwo which was recently spotted at a heretofore unnamed automotive show. Amazingly, the vehicle was actually outfitted with the motor and gear box (version 1.0) from an original Roadster, though the incommodious nature of the show floor made it impossible to peel out and really cause a scene. Check the read link for all the multimedia goodies.
Caption Contest: The Network covers ground in a Smart car
We've heard that The Network is pretty expansive, but we never could figure out just how Verizon Wireless managed to cover all those dead zones in record time without being heard. Now, it all makes sense.Sean: "With a requirement to cut costs and save cake, Verizon has hired Bob the Builder to do the work of thousands. New Verizon slogan: 'Yes we can!'"Darren: "Anticipating an ambush from Chad and all his traditionalist friends, Verizon employees were forced to wear hard hats not just on location, but in transit."Paul: "There's probably a smarmy guy with glasses in that car. Can you feel the anger rising within? You must learn to control that anger."Chris: "'Small, slow, and easily destroyed' was not the corporate image Verizon was hoping to project with its road fleet."Don: "Verizon was forced to quickly improvise after its first vehicle, the Storm-mobile, mistook park for reverse and met an unfortunate end."Joe: "It's a long, lonely road out there -- longer and lonelier when your car is wearing a funny hat."Nilay: "God, I hope no one can hear me now."Ben: "Ironically, this Verizon Wireless driver was seen using a GSM handset while traversing the International Speedway."Thomas: "My other car is a T-Mobile."[Thanks, Evan]
Daimler taps Tesla's battery know-how for electric Smart
Daimler has been talking about electric Smart cars for about 10 years now, but the closest you've ever been able to come to a production model has been to go all KIRF-style and buy a knock-off CMEC City Smart. At the North American International Auto Show this past week the company again confirmed that a little Smart that runs on little batteries is still in the works, announcing plans to release 1,000 electric fortwos on lease here in the States by the end of the year. Now that the show is over, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is letting everyone know that his company will be producing those little batteries, a partnership the likes of which he must surely be hoping to develop with other manufacturers as they jump on the EV bandwagon. 1,000 cars is disappointingly few, but it's better than the paltry 500 plug-in Prius models Toyota plans to pilot here.
Custom Toyota MR2 carputer presents the ultimate distraction for drivers
This insanely kitted out Toyota MR2 is being put up for sale by its owner somewhere in Germany -- he's a highly motivated seller, provided you have the prerequisite electronics and programming (especially Visual Basic) skills. The standard gauges and indicators in the car have been removed, replaced with touch screens and a console mounted iDrive knob, offering the pilot of this machine control over almost every aspect of its operation: climate control, GPS, fuel consumption, mirrors, radar/laser, wireless transfer of music from a home computer, lights, fog lights... and the all-important VCD playback. Also listed on the original posting is something called the "police button" which "virtually controls the police." This might have been something that Google mistranslated, but we prefer to think otherwise.[Via Autoblog]
Electric Mercedes-Benz coming in 2010
Unlike Audi and friends, Mercedes has actually had its eye on non-gasoline burning vehicles for some while. According to a recent interview, Daimler's chief executive was quoted as saying that an "electric Smart [was planned] for 2010," and he continued by asserting that an electric Mercedes model would be arriving "the same year." Sadly, he didn't budge when pushed for pricing details, but he did note that cost would depend greatly "on whether it sells the batteries or leases them." Heck, there was even a mention of a fuel cell car in 2010, but we'd prefer to keep our hopes and expectations well beneath the stratosphere.[Via BenzInsider]
Powered bumpers defend your smart car when all else fails
Smart cars are all well and good until you start to think of the horrible consequences if something should go wrong. Honestly, we're willing to take that risk just for the rewards of cruising along in a robotic car "platoon": saving gas, skipping traffic and perhaps getting in a bit of Gears of War while we're at it. Luckily, more judicious minds than ours are hard at work at the problem, and just might've discovered a way to keep smart car-filled roads from becoming riddled with the bodies of overly-optimistic bloggers. Alasdair Renfrew of Manchester University, UK, along with a couple of colleagues, has devised an extendable fender that can keep you safe and humming along the freeway, even when traditional wireless communications fail. The smart cars will traditionally be communicating with each other and roadside beacons wirelessly, and if one of those elements breaks down, the cars bust out powered bumpers to feel the car in front and navigate accordingly. That way, as long as the front car of a pack keeps to the speed limit and in its lane, the group should be fine -- and your Xbox session needn't be interrupted.
Keepin' it real fake, part XXXV: China's CMEC duplicates Smart Car design
Yeah, cellphones, media players and logo'd clothing items are all well and good, but if you really want to stand out in China's competitive market of highly commercial disregard for intellectual property, you've gotta think big. That's why we're so impressed by CMEC, who not only managed to rip off an entire car, but are also sneaking their electric version of the Smart Car into one of Smart's own favored markets -- Great Britain. While externally the "City Smart" from CMEC is virtually identical to the Fortwo model that inspired it, CMEC modded up the interior a bit to avoid legal woes: "When we designed the car we were aware that we might be opening ourselves up to legal action," sez Jerry Chen, sales manager for CMEC. "That's why we've imitated the outside but concentrated on making the interior look different." Um, right. Their electric motor is also quite a departure from the real Smart cars, and while its 34MPH top-speed won't have it venturing far from congested city streets, it's hard to complain about the 4,200 euro ($5,270 US) pricetag. Well, other than the incredibly shady legality of the whole affair. DaimlerChrysler, parent company of Smart, is currently doing its darnedest to keep the City Smart out of the rest of Europe, while they prep their own Fortwo successor that most certainly will cost more than $5k, but is also more likely to involve certain niceties like original design and at least a teensy bit of pep.[Via The Raw Feed]
