Dan's Papers - July 25, 2008 - Twentysomething...

A lot of people stop me in the street to ask me about the Smart Car I'm driving these days, and one of the most common questions I get is, "Do you have enough room in that thing?" The answer is that I do have enough room in my car, and to prove that point even more, I accomplished what I believe few have done in America. I slept in my Smart Car.

Last weekend I was out late in Sag Harbor with some friends. We were all having a good time and I made the declaration to the group that I was going to sleep in my Smart Car, which was something everybody was saying was not possible because the seats do not recline far and it is too small. After spending the whole night trying to figure out a comfortable way to sleep in the car, I managed to get a solid six hours using the following methods.

This method is quite simple because all you really have to do is sit down and close your eyes. However, I found that the only way to find any comfort is to fold my arms like a vampire does when he is asleep in his coffin. The reason for this is because you can use your arms to rest on top of each other. Total sleep time: 50 minutes.

This sleeping position requires some very serious squiggling into comfort, mainly because the shift is in the way as you lay your body across the two seats. The key to this position is finding a comfortable place for the top of this shift, which can be used kind of like a massaging tool if you position yourself correctly. The main negative about this position is that you are terrified the whole time that you are going to put the car in gear accidentally. Also, pulling up the e-brake is not possible since having it in an "up" position is like having a dagger lodged in your spine. Total sleep time: Two hours, 10 minutes.

Lie down on your back and roll down the window. One half of your body is in the car, and your legs stick out the window and fold onto the side of the car at the base of the knee. This is pretty much the only possible sleeping position you can find in a Smart Car if you are trying to manage sleeping with two people. That is, of course, unless you are willing to share a vampire position with somebody. However, I have not tried this yet. Total sleep time: One hour, five minutes.

In the back of the Smart Car behind the seats is a "trunk" area that you can store stuff. Move all of your stuff that you keep there to the seats in the front of the car, then curl up into a ball onto that space. This is surprisingly comfortable, and although it is highly illegal, I did see during my travels in Europe young people traveling in Smart Cars this way. I do not recommend that, but you can sleep back there - you just really have to squeeze. Total sleep time: One hour, 54 minutes.

This didn't really work out for me very well, but I did manage it and felt that it was worth putting in. Roll down the windows completely and put your knees down on the seat then hang half of your body outside of the window. Take a piece of clothing to stuff between your stomach and the car door for added comfort. The main trouble with this position is that you are hanging upside down, so blood rushes to your head, which is uncomfortable. If you are one of those people who isn't bothered by this, however, then this position is for you. Total sleep time: One minute.