We are here considering two somewhat similar cars, but we can't deny some of the obvious differences. For a start, they are not even classified under the same segment, with the Smart being a micro car and the Volkswagen representing city car vehicle class. Another thing to take into account here is the wheel drive. The first one makes use of a rear wheel drive system, aiming at people who are enthusiastic about driving, and don't hesitate to push their car to the limit, even if that requires some additional effort in snow or ice, whereas the second one transfers the power and torque to the front axel only, making it perfect for those who use their car mostly to get from A to B, remaining in control during the slipery conditions.

Both vehicles got tested by European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), with the Volkswagen being a slightly better choice apparently. Still, apart from the official crash test results there are other things we need to be aware of. The second vehicle is a city car and that gives it a marginal advantage over the micro car competitor, at least that's what statistics show. Furthermore, taking kerb weight as an important factor into account, Beetle offers a considerable difference of 25% more metal.

Reliability is not the best thing to consider on the make level, but it is worth mentioning that Smart does have a slight advantage, all the models observed together. That's the official data, while our visitors describe reliability of Smart with an average rating of 3.9, and models under the Volkswagen badge with 4.2 out of 5. Unfortunatelly, I don't have enough insight that would allow me to comment in more details on the specific models level. Above it all, drivers of cars with the same engine as ForTwo rank it on average as 3.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 4.5 out of 5.

Smart is undoubtly more agile, reaching 100km/h in 1.4 seconds less than its competitor. Still, it lacks the power to win the top speed competition, topping at 165 kilometers per hour, 15km/h less than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy the winner has to be ForTwo, averaging around 4.5 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (63 mpg), in combined cycle. We can't ignore that 20% difference compared to Beetle.

Volkswagen appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, Beetle beats the other contender by far, making it the best choice without even considering other things. From there things take a different direction, with Smart being considerably quicker, thus putting more smile on driver's face. To make things even better, it consumps less fuel! At the end, as much as I'd like to give you a winner here, it's simply a pure tie if you ask me. In any case that's my personal view, built upon all the data available to me. What should decide here though is the way you feel about the two vehicles, and I hope you'll find my guidelines useful in the process. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser™, among more than 12.000 different ones in our database.