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What 6 owners told NHTSA about the 2015 Smart Cabrio

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (6)Crash / fire / injury (2)Engine (2)Airbags (1)Electrical system (1)Fuel system (1)Seat belts (1)Suspension (1)Traction Control System (1)

Newest first · 6 complaints

Mar 26, 2025Electrical systemEngineFire

Sunday 3/23 I was driving west on 225 heading towards work, all of a sudden the check engine light comes on and all kinds of other lights on the dash came on. I got pulled over and looked in the rear view mirror I seen flames. Quickly grabbed my stuff and got out of the car. The investigation at the time stated most of the heat was coming from the engine

NHTSA ODI 11650674

Jul 14, 2023Seat belts

The contact owns a 2015 Smart ForTwo. The contact stated while buckling the seat belt, he became aware that a metal cable through the eyelet bolted to the frame by the door jamb on the driver's side had started to fray. The contact stated that the vehicle was not driven frequently and felt that there could not be a wear and tear issue. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a local dealer. The vehicle had not been diagnosed and had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.

NHTSA ODI 11532331

Apr 21, 2021SuspensionFuel system

CAR HAS MAJOR DELAYS MANY TIMES WHEN YOU HIT THE GAS PEDAL - YOU CAN BE TURNING INTO TRAFFIC AT TIMES AND THERE'S A MAJOR DELAY TO PROPEL THE VEHICLE FORWARD WHEN YOUR FOOT IS ON THE PEDAL - THIS DELAY IN GETTING THE CAR MOVING COULD CAUSE A MAJOR CRASH. MOTOR MOUNTS WEAR OUT UNDER 50,000 MILES SEEMS TOO SOON WHEN COMPARED TO MOST OTHER VEHICLES - SUSPENSION (SHOCKS) COME SUPER HARD FROM THE FACTORY.

NHTSA ODI 11413227

Oct 15, 2020AirbagsCrash1 injury

I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY A SAFE DISTANCE BEHIND A LINCOLN NAVIGATOR WHEN THEY FOR NO REASON SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES AND STOPPED. I ENDED UP REAR ENDING THE NAVIGATOR. THE REAR OF THE CAR WENT UP INTO THE AIR CAME DOWN AND SPUN AROUND THREE TIMES BEFORE COMING TO A STOP. MY WIFE WAS INJURED. SHE SUSTAINED A BROKEN RIB CUTS AND SCRAPES AND CHEST PAINS. NO AIRBAGS NEVER DEPLOYED IN THE CAR AT ALL.

NHTSA ODI 11364499

Jan 10, 2019Traction Control SystemEngine

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 SMART FORTWO. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL KNOCKING NOISE COMING FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT AND THE TRACTION CONTROL WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO MERCEDES-BENZ OF NORTH OLMSTED (28450 LORAIN RD, NORTH OLMSTED, OH 44070, (440) 716-2700) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE STEERING ANGLE SENSOR CAUSED THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKES TO SEIZE. ALSO, THE MOTOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE WARRANTY WOULD NOT COVER THE REPAIR. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 12,000.

NHTSA ODI 11166341

Jul 24, 2017

WAS DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD AND MY VEHICLE SUDDENLY DIED-WAS NOT OUT OF GAS- TOOK A WHILE AND STARTED BUT SHOOK VIOLANTLY AND DIDN'T STAY STARTED- WAITED A WHILE LONGER AND IT STARTED AND WAS ABLE TO DRIVE IT HOME.

NHTSA ODI 11010314

Working with the data? Download all 6 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 28, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2015 Smart Cabrio verdict →