Dallas resident Patrick Zipper on Thursday became the 20,000th buyer of a Smart car since the micro vehicle was introduced in the United States 10 months ago.
Dave Schembri, president of Smart USA, presented the keys to Mr. Zipper at Smart Center Dallas.
Smart reached the 20,000 mark sooner than it had anticipated, and Mr. Schembri said the company expects sales of the two-seat car to continue growing despite a substantial dip in gas prices. The tiny, distinctly styled Smart gets 33 miles per gallon in the city and costs about $12,000.
“We’ll see a bit of an increase next year,” Mr. Schembri said. “People are buying for more reasons than fuel consumption. We are selling a lifestyle, a journey.”
Smart Center Dallas, one of the Park Place dealerships on Lemmon Avenue, has consistently been among the top-selling Smart dealerships in the U.S., Mr. Schembri said.
But it was just coincidence that the 20,000th sale occurred here, he said.
“It could have happened in four or five other regions,” Mr. Schembri said. “It just turned out that everything came together, and it happened here.”