Looking at renting a car in Italy for 15 days this August and might have to choose between these 2. Any idea which has more space, or is generally better. There will be 2 adults and 2 young children. Luggage will only be an issue for the first day, we will have 2 big bags. Any advice would be appreciated.

The A Klasse is better in every respect.

thanks. anyone else?

I would definitely go with the A class.

No contest---take the A class---which I have used 4 times.

I'm the biggest Smartcar booster in the world, but if you have four live humans, no matter how big or small they are, get the A class. If your kids are bigger than tennis balls, GET THE A CLASS!

I was in Modena recently, and my business 'hostess' told me that the Smart Car's were dangerous, and that she was worried because her daughter had one.

Second-hand comments from a local.

I was also told of Smart Car safety issues by a local. All plastic they said.

We had the A class a few weeks ago in Spain and loved it. It was actually quite roomy and had a lot of pep. I wish they exported them to the U.S.

I don't know what a Forfour is, but I can definitly rave about the A class. Being a mother, I was checking out the car seat issues and I think you could easily get 2 car seats and luggage into it.

Definitely the Mercedes A Class.

Woody

The forfour (as the name suggest; a four persons car from Smart, made by Mercedes btw) is a fun car, but in a competion with the A-class......A-calss wins!

But if for some reason you might end with the forfour, no worry, this will suit you fine also.

>I was also told of Smart Car safety issues<
When the orginal Smart (the 'fortwo') came out a few years ago, there have been some issues with the possible collapse of the car to its side, when you try to avoid a collission with for instance a lare animal (the so-called 'moose-test'). But all these problems were solved and the Smart is a very safe car. The forfour did not have these problems, because this is a larger car and not as high as the fortwo.
BTW because the A-class also is a relatively small and high car, they were worried thath it could have the same problems as the Smart fortwo. That is why they have build in something in the car, to prevent the collapse to its side from happening.
The A-claas now has 5 stars (from max 5) in the EURO NCAP safety tests: www.euroncap.com

Hi B,

>Luggage will only be an issue for the first day, ...

And if it won't fit into the 44, you will....?

yeah ira, that's my main worry. what do i do if i get the car in naples, load up the wife and kids, then find out the luggage doesn't fit in the trunk for our 2 hour drive to apuglia.

I found a rate for a volvo s60 from maggiore for the same price as the mercedes and smart, but i don't know anything about maggiore. my concern is getting the car and finding out there are a bunch of extra fees not listed.

Here is a little tip I was given here when I just rented in Spain. Use the autoeurope site, but keep changing your home country. Try all the different English speaking countries. Each search will bring back different cars at different prices. When you book one, you have the opportunity to put in your American address, so there is no trouble during pick up. I booked the A class using the British site. Good luck!

I leased a Smart forfour Brabus (the high-performance version) last year and absolutely loved it; that being said, the forfour makes a fabulous city car but I would NOT recommend it for a long-distance traveling car.

The A-Class should suit you just fine but be sure you are getting a four-door.