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The diminutive smart fortwo has a big heart

From a purely visual perspective, the smart is a bit like a bumble bee - it shouldn't work. It looks too top heavy, unstable, cramped and uncomfortable.

So I was delighted to find it was none of these. Not only will it swallow two six-footers with legroom and headroom to spare, but the seats and driving ergonomics were surprisingly comfortable too.

Bear in mind, though, that the seats are not adjustable for height and the wheel isn't adjustable either.

The slightly elevated driving position and wide doors make stepping in and out a virtually non-stooping operation and once in, the controls fall nicely to hand, although the ignition key socket is under the handbrake, which you may forget on the first few drives; well, I did.

The gearshift in the fortwo Passion, which is the higher-specced luxury-orientated model I drove, looks slightly odd at first glance. The gear stick has two slots, neutral and reverse to the right, and the sequential shift to the left.

It's a five-speed automated manual gearbox, which means you change gear with the stick sequentially, but don't use the clutch because there isn't one - that is, not one that you can use. You have a brake pedal and a throttle, but the car does the clutch work for you.

Some will find this takes a little getting used to. It's slower than a manual box and not as smooth, although, interestingly, because the sequential shift goes through neutral each time you change gear, you can lift off the throttle when changing up and double declutch when changing down, to smooth things out.

The three-cylinder, 999cc engine produces 71bhp, and has a top speed of 90mph, with 60mph arriving in a leisurely 13.3 seconds. A livelier, turbocharged 85bhp version is available and the nippy Brabus has 97bhp, and reaches 96mph and 60mph in 9.9 seconds. But you'll pay a lot more for it.

There's a surprisingly comfy interior

The Pulse model, which is a little sportier but less luxurious, has steering wheel paddle shifts and a rev counter, both of which I'd favour.

The boot capacity is 220 litres, which compares well with other city cars, and the passenger backrest can be folded right down for through-loading and, of course, with a small turning circle, parking is a dream.

The mid-positioned engine isn't the quietest installation and can produce a bit of a roar at higher revs, though some will like it.

The well-equipped Passion has air-conditioning as standard and the test model was the cabrio version which has a two-stage soft-top.

The first stage electrically opens most of the roof area and can be done smoothly at quite high speeds.

The rear section has to be manually dropped, to make the fortwo virtually a full cabriolet.

I found the air-conditioning effective, but the heater was slightly slow to reach a warm temperature on a frosty morning.

On the road, handling is better than I expected. The short wheelbase means the smart has necessarily stiff suspension to reduce leaning when cornering, which works well but does produce a stiff ride - meaning you get as much road-feel through the seats as you do through the well-weighted steering.

Although acceleration off the mark is, unsurprisingly, a little sluggish, dropping down a gear on the open road can enable a fair bit of overtaking, allowing reasonable progress over longer distances.

There are a host of safety features, including stability and braking programmes, an advanced safety cell and internal systems like active seatbelt tensioners and limiters.

For a small commuting machine the smart is a fun choice, which will usually induce good manners from fellow motorists.

The entry-level Pure coupe starts at a competitive £7,290 but prices then rise to around £15,000 for the exciting Brabus in cabrio format.

It's not the cheapest city car, but it's one of the safest and, like the bee, will undoubtedly give you quite a buzz.

Test drive one at smart of Poole in Holes Bay Road, tel 01202 666330.

12:59pm Friday 29th February 2008

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