2012 Smart Fortwo

Routine

Owners filed 8 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the electrical system. No safety recall has been issued.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Seat Belts2
000
Electrical System2
000
Air Bags2
203
Structure › Body1
000
Exterior Lighting › Turn Signal › Flasher Unit1
000

What owners reported

Newest filings
Seat Belts
Filed Jan 18, 2022NY

The driver side seat belt mount, which in this case is a steel cable, has mostly broken and frayed rendering it unsafe to drive. In the event of an accident, it would certainly break completely. I only noticed it yesterday while cleaning, the breakage would've happened while driving it. I've contacted mercedes USA, and they tell me that my warranty has run out, they can't do anything. Even though this is a mandatory safety feature that has completely failed from normal use.

Exterior Lighting › Turn Signal › Flasher Unit
Filed Jul 11, 201820,000 milesFL

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 SMART FORTWO. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE FRONT TURN SIGNAL INDICATORS FAILED TO ILLUMINATE. THE FAILURE OCCURRED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO LOKEY MERCEDES-BENZ (19820 US HWY 19 N, CLEARWATER, FL) WHERE THE FAILURE WAS CONFIRMED; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DIAGNOSED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE, BUT NO ASSISTANCE WAS OFFERED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 20,000. THE VIN WAS NOT PROVIDED. *TT

Electrical System
Filed Mar 17, 201732,000 milesFL

TRANSMISSION WILL GO INTO THREE BARS AND NOT SHIFT ON HIGHWAYS AND PARKWAYS, USUALLY ABLE TO SAFELY DRIVE UNDER POWER TO SIDE OF ROAD SOMETIMES GOES INTO NEUTRAL AND HAVE TO COAST TO SIDE. OCCURS WITH ELEVATED AMBIENT MOISTURE. STARTED AT 32,000 MILES. KNOWN ISSUE, TRANSMISSION HAS A LIMP MODE FOR THIS OCCURRENCE. VERY DIFFICULT TO DIAGNOSE, APPEARS ELECTRICAL IN NATURE. SMART DEALERSHIP WILL NOT ADDRESS.

Seat Belts
Filed Sep 16, 2016110,000 milesGA

DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELT FAILS TO BUCKLE. NOTHING LODGED IN BUCKLE, BUT MECHANISM APPEARS TO BE BROKEN.

Air BagsCrash2 injured
Filed Sep 16, 201660,000 milesGA

VEHICLE WAS HIT FROM BEHIND AND PUSHED INTO ANOTHER CAR ON INTERSTATE. AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY.

Structure › Body
Filed Jun 16, 201645,100 milesUT

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 SMART FORTWO. WHILE DRIVING 60 MPH, THE PASSENGER SIDE BODY PANEL DISENGAGED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 45,100.

Air BagsCrash1 injured
Filed Oct 28, 20145,200 milesNV

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 SMART FORTWO. WHILE AT A STOP SIGN, ANOTHER VEHICLE CRASHED INTO THE REAR OF THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT REAR ENDED THE PRECEDING VEHICLE. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED BACK INJURIES, WHICH REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 5,200.

Electrical System
Filed Jul 22, 20122,500 milesCA

I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY (5 LANE) IN MY 2012 SMART FORTWO PASSION COUPE IN THE MIDDLE LANE AT 65-70 MPH. ALL OF THE SUDDEN MY ACCELERATOR WAS NO LONGER FUNCTIONAL. I LOOKED DOWN AND SAW THAT MY SPEEDOMETER AND GEAR INDICATOR WERE ALSO NON-FUNCTIONAL. I WAS ABLE TO COAST (DESPITE HEAVY TRAFFIC) TO THE SHOULDER OF THE FAST LANE - IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO GET TO THE SLOW LANE SHOULDER DUE TO HEAVY TRAFFIC. I WAS ABLE TO USE THE BREAKS ONCE I HIT THE SHOULDER (UNSURE IF POWER BRAKES OR NOT) AND ONCE STOPPED WAS UNABLE TO USE AUTOMATIC WINDOWS. I COULD NOT MOVE THE CAR OUT OF DRIVE FOR APPROXIMATELY TWO MINUTES. AFTER 2 MINUTES I TRIED AGAIN TO MOVE THE CAR OUT OF DRIVE AND WAS ABLE TO PUT IT IN PARK. AT THAT POINT I WAS ABLE TO RE-START THE CAR AND ACCELERATE ENOUGH TO GET BACK ON THE FREEWAY. I CONSIDER MYSELF VERY LUCKY TO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO REACH THE SHOULDER (AS IT ENDED ABOUT 200 YARDS DOWN THE FREEWAY). THE EXPERIENCE WAS ABSOLUTELY TERRIFYING. *TR

8 of 8 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2008
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
20191100Routine
20181000Routine
20177100Routine
201621120Routine
20156010Routine
201413010Routine
201325030Routine
2012 — this page8000Routine
201116010Routine
20106010Routine
20091001110Routine
20081402271Fatalities reported
20052000Routine

Compare every Fortwo year →

Reading this record

No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Most recent recall on file: none. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.