Smart cars to make U.S. debut in 2008

DaimlerChrysler will begin selling its Smart mini-car in the United Statesin early 2008, the automaker announced Wednesday.

"The time has never been better for this," said DaimlerChrysler chair Dieter Zetsche in a release. "I am convinced that the Smart Fortwo as an innovative, ecological and agile city car will soon become just as familiar a sight on the streets of New York, Miami or Seattle, as it is today in Rome, Berlin or Paris."

UnitedAuto Group will distribute the car in the U.S. It has almost 300 dealerships in 19 states.

Since 1998, more than 750,000 Smart Fortwo cars have been sold in 36 countries. The car has been availableat some Mercedes-Benz dealerships in Canadasince September 2004.

But the biggest automotive market in the world the American market hasn't been tackledas American buyers haven't beenparticularly interested in sub-compacts.

But with gasoline approaching $3 US a gallon in many markets and unlikely to fall significantly any time soon, DaimlerChrysler officials are betting that the fuel squeeze will spur more interest in the attention-getting car.

The Smart Fortwo is so small that two of them can fit into one regular parking space.

DaimlerChrysler says its Smart division, which has yet to turn a profit, will be a money-maker by 2007. The division has been through severaldownsizings and now just produces two-seater models.

The two-seaterSmart car retails for $16,700 in Canada. A convertible version starts at $19,700.Prices for the U.S. launch will be announced later. U.S.models of the Smart Fortwo are being redesigned to satisfy U.S. standards.