smart for the chopper

The Guardian has a story of trouble at smart, a division of DaimlerChrysler. How they have managed to lose so much money while charging premium prices for the product is beyond me.
The ForTwo city car has been slow to appear here in Canada and they have left the USA to the grey importers. The launching of what is a five-year-old vehicle here in Canada has been hampered by rumours of dealers being out-of-stock. It is odd that the car, which is made for these high-fuel-cost times, should be foundering financially.