What 21 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Smart Coupe

The roof detached on the highway. It was just replaced by Mercedes Benz in Manhattan and a couple of weeks later when it went on a highway, the roof flew up and I had to hold on to it for dear life while I was searching for a shoulder since they don’t have them everywhere on the East Coast. I didn’t want anyone behind me to be killed. I didn’t want myself to be killed either. It’s very hard to drive with wind and a roof coming against you. As soon as I found a shoulder I bumped a street sign in a bush because it was so narrow and then the tow truck driver had to come and bring a ratchet straps to secure my roof to the car. He had to block traffic with his tow truck so we didn’t get hit and die. Then I had to drive five hours with my roof detached from Washington DC to New York because it was Labor Day and they were no mechanics open. It was TERRIFYING. I have nightmares. I had lives on my hands and my own. If it had flown off completely, which it would have if I didn’t pull it down as I pulled over, someone would have been killed and I could have crashed driving and holding my roof down at the same time.

NHTSA ODI 11432522

MY 2016 SMART CAR AT ONLY 51000 MILES HAD TRANSMISSION FAILURE WHILE DRIVING DOWN FREEWAY ALMOST RESULTING IN CRASH. MY CAR WENT FROM 65 MILES A HOUR, THEN WARNING LIGHT SAID TRANSMISSION FAILURE AND CAR WAS UNABLE TO EXCEL RATE OR BREAK, THE EMERGENCY BREAK WAS THE ONLY THING THAT SAVED ME. MERCEDES DIAGNOSED A WIG WAS ABLE TO FLY UP UNDER CAR AND GET WRAPPED AROUND AXELS, TRANSMISSION, AND BREAK BELTS. THE CAR WAS TOTALED FROM A WIG. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE THAT THE UNDERNEATH IS LEFT VULNERABLE TO A OBJECT BEING ABLE TO CAUSE SO MUCH DAMAGE, THAT COULD HAVE EASILY RESULTED IN A FATAL CAR CRASH. THIS HAPPENED ON HWY 59 SOUTH HOUSTON, WHILE DRIVING.

NHTSA ODI 11256423