Okay. I can understand getting a Smart if you want a small, cheap(ish) car that gives decent fuel economy, but once you start speccing them up to $22k+, I think you start to lose the plot.
At that money, I'd have a Cooper any day. They're not particularly bad on fuel either for a petrol engine.
Hope you guys get more small car and diesel options in the future. We even get a Cooper D over here!
Parking over here can be an issue in cities...I'm a poor student and couldn't afford the insurance on (specced up) Golf and a Lupo was too small for my needs, hence the Polo. They rape you for insurance if your a young driver here, was paying £2.2k when I first got my car at 19. A Golf would have been £3k...
Even without the Parking issue, there must be a market for a small diesel in the US that car makers just haven't tapped into yet. It appears the average commute over there is significantly longer than that in the UK. I'd rather drive a Polo diesel to and from work than a V8 pickup, especially with the current price of fuel.
Ash