Are Parisian cars smarter than ours?

On the flight to Paris for my fiancé's sister's wedding, I was recounting stories from my past trip to the City of Love and was reminded of the passion, regardless of driver body type or size, for tiny, tiny, tiny cars. It seems not much has changed since then. In fact, I call Paris the "land of the smart car."

On the previous trip, I recalled sitting at an outdoor café enjoying a beverage by the Arc de Triomphe. It was tough to ignore the tiny cars circumnavigating the large circle surrounding the famous monument, like bees swarming a hive. There is no stop sign or traffic light where all of the vehicles converge, so the pint-sized autos whizzing by reminded me of a video game or the high-speed go-kart races at the family-owned Minnesota raceway that I loved as a kid.

The more than five-lane circle at the point at the end of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées is continuously packed with cars traveling at high speed, but you don't find the plethora of vehicle styles that you might see in North America. In Paris, all of them are tiny. Size doesn't seem to matter as even the biggest of men were squeezed in behind the wheel of the little Renaults and Peugeots, driving with serious intention.

Having shared this story with my fiancé, Ilya, prior to arriving in Paris for the latest visit, it was fresh in our minds and therefore we were very cognizant of the car trend in the city. Leaving the airport for the hotel in a taxi, we noticed the number of small vehicles on the highway, many of which were smart cars, made by Mercedes-Benz. This vehicle is sold in the U.S., although the European version uses a diesel engine instead of a gas engine.

For whatever reason, there wasn't the gigantic cluster of vehicles zooming at high speeds with people of all sizes squeezed into them and on a mission. But nevertheless we were having fun picking out the small rides, particularly the smart cars.

While walking just two blocks, we passed a side street where two of the cars parallel parked that were visible to us were smart cars. This was just the beginning. During dinner we checked out the cars traveling up and down this most famous Parisian boulevard. We actually grew very weary of a game of "Count the smart cars," since there were so many.

While we find it amusing that there is a sea of small cars in Paris, it does makes sense. But in one way it's a big contrast because within the French culture where everything from food, wine and fashion is an art form, Parisians are driving cars that have little to no style. And they're not known for performance of any kind.

Although in thinking about this, maybe the French actually have it figured out. While driving, per se, might not be the art form there, the by-product of owning a smart car or other similar tiny vehicle might actually feed that art form. The ease at finding a parking space in a crowded city saves time for more walks in the park and coffee sipping at cafes. Saving money on fuel and the cost of the car leaves more to spend on the finest cheeses, wines, flowers and trips to the ballet. And environmental protection becomes the art form and keeps their city far less polluted, the air healthier and their land more worthy of admiration.

We discovered that the city actually has parking spaces specifically designated for smart cars, and it is likely that those living in Paris are offered government incentives for purchasing and driving smaller, more eco-friendly automobiles. But even so, this is a culture that seems to be thinking sensibly and selflessly. While it is often remarked that Parisians are rude, they seem to have mastered the idea of making every facet of life an art, even if that doesn't include the vast majority of autos, which are seen as mere appliances.

As a hardcore automotive enthusiast, if I were living in Paris I might still own a beloved V-8 or two, but would rarely drive them and instead scoot around the city in a tricked out little smart car.

Among her numerous accomplishments, Courtney Hansen is the author of the "Garage Girl's Guide," the host of Spike TV's "PowerBlock," the former host of TLC's "Overhaulin'" and a writer with Wheelbase Communications. You can e-mail her by logging on to www.wheelbase.ws/mailbag.html.