????汽車(chē)大亨羅杰?彭斯克上周放棄了Smart牌微型車(chē)在美國(guó)的獨(dú)家經(jīng)銷(xiāo)權(quán),。過(guò)你不必太為彭斯克感到難過(guò),。事實(shí)上，彭斯克上周三的這個(gè)決定贏得了投資者的一致喝彩,。彭斯克汽車(chē)集團(tuán)（Penske Automotive Group）的財(cái)務(wù)業(yè)績(jī)也獲得好評(píng),，集團(tuán)股價(jià)幾乎達(dá)到了三年以來(lái)的最高值。

????Smart ForTwo是戴姆勒集團(tuán)（Daimler AG）生產(chǎn)的一款雙座微型轎車(chē),，這款車(chē)型一直沒(méi)能達(dá)到銷(xiāo)售預(yù)期,。在三年的時(shí)間里，該車(chē)型共售出了45000輛,，不過(guò)銷(xiāo)售量卻呈遞減趨勢(shì),。彭斯克汽車(chē)集團(tuán)的總部位于密歇根州布隆菲爾德山，該集團(tuán)高級(jí)副總裁托尼?波爾頓表示：“這款車(chē)型有個(gè)熱鬧的開(kāi)始,，但過(guò)去的兩年卻很困難,。”

????2008年,，該集團(tuán)的董事長(zhǎng)兼首席執(zhí)行官彭斯克代表公司買(mǎi)下了Smart汽車(chē)在美國(guó)的經(jīng)銷(xiāo)權(quán),，當(dāng)時(shí)他堅(jiān)信汽油價(jià)格將急劇上漲，而且經(jīng)濟(jì)將持續(xù)向好,，不過(guò)最終這兩個(gè)希望都沒(méi)有成真,。

????相反，汽油價(jià)格徘徊不前,，經(jīng)濟(jì)舉步維艱,。美國(guó)汽車(chē)市場(chǎng)上還出現(xiàn)了許多與Smart競(jìng)爭(zhēng)的小型車(chē)，如本田飛度（Honda Fit）,、日產(chǎn)騏達(dá)（Nissan Versa）,、福特嘉年華（Ford Fiesta）、豐田雅力士（Toyota Yaris）和雪佛蘭樂(lè)騁（Chevrolet Aveo）等,。這使問(wèn)題變得更加復(fù)雜了,。

????Smart轎車(chē)的起價(jià)還不到13000美元，而且它還提供了一款電池動(dòng)力的版本,，每次充電的續(xù)航里程為60至65英里,。

????根據(jù)多次試駕的情況，筆者認(rèn)為Smart是一款值得稱(chēng)道的車(chē)型,，它具有駕駛的樂(lè)趣性,，而且易于操控,。對(duì)于城市居民來(lái)說(shuō)，這款小車(chē)可以擠進(jìn)哪怕是最狹窄的停車(chē)位,。而且顯然它非常節(jié)能（綜合油耗為每加侖36英里）,。安全測(cè)試也表明Smart的安全性不低于其他任何小型車(chē)。不過(guò)也有人持保留意見(jiàn)——它看起來(lái)不夠大,，在美國(guó)的公路上將顯得格格不入,。

????我們可以改編一下羅納德?里根在一部低成本影片里的臺(tái)詞——“這臺(tái)車(chē)剩下的部分哪兒去了？”（里根年輕時(shí)曾拍攝許多低成本影片,，他在1942年的電影《King’s Row》里飾演了一名被截肢的年輕人,，影片中他有一句臺(tái)詞是：“我剩下的身體哪兒去了？”——譯注）Smart轎車(chē)看起來(lái)就像是被一把大斧砍掉了尾部,。盡管美國(guó)的駕駛者愿意犧牲尺寸來(lái)?yè)Q取經(jīng)濟(jì)性,，但是他們不愿意讓人看起來(lái)覺(jué)得可笑。

????彭斯克汽車(chē)集團(tuán)在美國(guó)和英國(guó)經(jīng)營(yíng)大多數(shù)品牌的零售經(jīng)銷(xiāo)業(yè)務(wù),。此前該公司已經(jīng)計(jì)劃引入第二款Smart轎車(chē),，這是一款尺寸更大一些的掀背車(chē)，由日產(chǎn)汽車(chē)公司（Nissan）生產(chǎn),。由于彭斯克汽車(chē)集團(tuán)決定將Smart拋回給戴姆勒,，因此這起交易也隨之取消了。戴姆勒集團(tuán)則表示將繼續(xù)在梅塞德斯-奔馳（Mercedes-Benz）的經(jīng)銷(xiāo)商那里銷(xiāo)售Smart,。

????2010年全年,，彭斯克汽車(chē)集團(tuán)的營(yíng)收為107億美元，其中利潤(rùn)為1.083億美元,，比2009年上升了41%,，它的美國(guó)Smart部門(mén)去年虧損了1600萬(wàn)美元左右。這個(gè)結(jié)果超過(guò)了分析人士的預(yù)期,，促使其他汽車(chē)零售商的股票也出現(xiàn)了回升,。彭斯克集團(tuán)自己的股票在2009年初一度跌破每股6美元，不過(guò)此后一直穩(wěn)步上漲,，至上周三收盤(pán)時(shí)已達(dá)到每股21美元,。

????羅杰?彭斯克在接受路透社采訪(fǎng)時(shí)表示，今年在買(mǎi)入新的經(jīng)銷(xiāo)權(quán)這個(gè)問(wèn)題上,，他將見(jiàn)機(jī)行事,，并表示他正在與底特律的兩家汽車(chē)制造商進(jìn)行接洽，商討購(gòu)買(mǎi)美國(guó)品牌的汽車(chē)經(jīng)銷(xiāo)權(quán)的事宜,，不過(guò)他拒絕透露這兩家公司的名字,。

????譯者：樸成奎

????Don't feel too sorry for automotive mogul Roger Penske, who this week threw in the towel on the exclusive U.S. distribution rights for the Smart line of small cars. Investors were cheering his decision Wednesday, along with the financial results of Penske Automotive Group (PAG, Fortune 500), bidding shares nearly to a three-year high.

????The Smart ForTwo, a diminutive two-seater built by Daimler AG, simply never met sales expectations, reaching about 45,000 cars sold over a three-year period, but at a declining rate. "It had a rip-roaring start," said Tony Pordon, senior vice president for the Bloomfield Hills, Michigan company. "The last two years have been difficult."

????Penske, chairman and chief executive officer, bought the U.S. rights to sell Smart cars on behalf of his company in 2008 on the belief that gasoline prices would rise sharply higher and the economy would remain buoyant. Neither of those things happened.

????Instead, gasoline prices stagnated, the economy tanked and, complicating matters, the U.S. vehicle market has seen the proliferation of small-car competitors, such as the Honda Fit, Nissan Versa, Ford Fiesta, Toyota Yaris and Chevrolet Aveo.

????Smart, which starts at just under $13,000 in price, offered a battery-powered version, which had a range of 60 to 65 miles on a charge.

????Smart -- in this writer's opinion and based on a few test drives -- is an estimable model, fun to drive and easy to handle. For city dwellers the car can squeeze into the tightest parking spaces; and obviously it is fuel efficient (combined 36 miles-per-gallon). Safety tests suggested it is no less safe than any other small car. But -- and this reservation is key -- it simply doesn't look big enough to belong on the American road.

????Or, to paraphrase Ronald Reagan the actor in one of his B-movie roles: What happened to the rest of the car? Smart looks as though its rear had been lopped off with a giant ax. American drivers are willing to sacrifice size for economy -- they're not willing to look ridiculous.

????Penske, which operates retail dealerships of most brands in the U.S. and in the United Kingdom, had planned to add a second Smart model, a larger hatchback, built by Nissan. That deal was canceled along with the automotive company's decision to hand Smart back to Daimler. Daimler said it will continue to sell Smart at Mercedes-Benz dealerships.

????For all of 2010, Penske earned $108.3 million, a 41 percent increase from 2009, on revenue of $10.7 billion. Its Smart USA unit lost about $16 million for the year. The results beat analysts' expectations and prompted a rally in the shares of other auto retailers. After dipping below $6 a share in early 2009, Penske's stock has been marching steadily upward, hitting $21 a share at the close of trading on Wednesday.

????Roger Penske, in an interview with Reuters, said he would be "opportunistic" about buying additional dealerships this year and was negotiating with two Detroit automakers, whom he declined to identify, on deals to buy U.S.-brand franchises.