We are going to Italy in May and will be renting a car for a week in Tuscany. I would really like to get a Smart Car, particularly the four passenger one, but I can't see it mentioned on the AutoEurope website.

What is my best bet for renting one, picking it up at a convenient location in northern Tuscany and returning it to FCO airport when we leave?

The easiest way would be picking it up at the airport when you arrive and dropping it off when you leave. You will pay a surcharge for the convenience.

I rented a smart car from an Italian agency, can you ask autoeurope directly?

Hi N,

The 4 passenger Smart Car has 64 hp and a 268 liter luggage compartment (2.5 suitcases).

Which of you is going to push it up those Tuscan hills while carrying a suitcase?

Forget the Smart car--it is for city driving. Do consider the Mercedes A car which is compact but more car.

You don't want a Smart car for any highway driving. They'll tell you his at an rental agency. Not a safe thing to do.

Au contraire! I've driven Smart cars several times on highways and across the alps. The 2 seater is limited at 120kmh, the 4 seater can go 180kmh. The car itself is so lightweight, it (almost) accelerates like a bike. The perfect car not only for cities, but also for small montain roads. As always and anywhere you need to be aware and alert of the people around to be safe.

I drove a 4 person Smart from Milan-Florence-Siena-Venice-Milan with stops along the way and it was the worst car I have ever rented for highway driving. Absolutely no pick up whatsoever, so passing is impossible and dangerous. You get into the left lane to pass and just then a BMW or Audi or Mercedes comes bearing down and you have to switch back.

Yes, it accelerates like a bike, except you have no pedals to make it happen, so you are just frustrated.

Claire

Wow! I am so glad I asked! Guess I will reconsider . . .

Which other small car with good legroom would you recommend for the roads in Tuscany? We will only be driving in the city to return it to FCO.

>so passing is impossible and dangerous
Only, if you don't know how to drive a car. ;-). It has a kick-down btw...

the 2 seat smart car has novelty value if you are from somewhere where they are not available. it also is a fun city car.

however, the for-four has no novelty value nor is it any different from many cars in the same class. it is poorly rated as compared to others in its class. why you would seek one out to hire is beyond me.

if the for-four fits your requirements, then you are most likely in the category of "cheapest available car". in this category, you usually get no choice and must go with whatever they have in the class.

to putter around tuscany, you don't need much. hopefully you won't get an astra but that would do just fine (although highly unstylish). you may get a renault clio or punto in this class.

it really just depends what you want to spend as to which class you choose.

btw, the idea that a hire car is dangerous if it lacks power is foolish. you obviously adjust your driving style to the car and don't take chances passing when you have less power. in italy, you will see many cars with much less power than your average cheap (but new) hire car. even the worst astra hire car will give you power that is probably about average as compared to all cars on italian roads.

don't worry about it, you won't be in any rush.

Hi N,

We very much liked the (compact) Peugeot 307 diesel. It will take 4 adults, if they don't have much luggage.

Very peppy and over 40 mpg.

The Renault Megane or the VW Golf are also good.

If you are just going to be puttering around Tuscany on the back roads and other small two lane roads a smart car should be fine. I had alot of fun in it on small roads. It does handle like a bike which I thought gave it more maneuverability on the turns. I would rent one again.

I have rented the 4-seater smart car through thrifty.it (definitely) and have also used rent.it (but I can't remember if it was for a 4-door smart). The 4-door was fine on the autostrada & mountain roads. It drove like any other economy car, maybe even a little better.

Form what I understand, it's not the lack of power that makes it dangerous on the highway, it's the tires. Check into it, that's what I've been told.

We also rented the 4 seater through Thrifty. It was tiny, especially with luggage, but cheap and did fine on the highways. We weren't going long distances or trying to hurry anywhere, we were just touring around Parma/Bologna.