thanks everyone. i learned a lot in this thread.
the car will get a rough body pull (1 hr labor) and 2 hrs to set up and measure on the rack.
i will ask the body shop to save the pre-repair frame measurements for my records and pay attention to the wheel tracking (wet bucket test), handling, gas mileage, and tire life - i expect all to be the same as before.
a few years ago, after they started selling Smart cars, I was curious and did some Internet searching.
Everyone assumes if you get hit by a kid with a tricycle, itās all over. Maybe exaggerating, but you get the idea.
I found some URLās with videos. They showed terrible wrecks, and the Smart car crushed even with the start of the passenger container, and it, the passenger container, was virtually intact.
They said there were terrible wrecks with large cars, and the Smart car driver opens the door and gets out, while the other car passenger has to wait to be extracted.
The only way it made sense is if they put extra steel into the passenger container.
I read this with interest, but have no knowledge beyond that. So, donāt holler at me if you disagree. 
A lot of people say the Smart car would be impossible on the highway. Maybe, but I drove an Old Beetle a lot of miles at 70 mph. I canāt imagine a Smart being worse than an old Beetle at speed.
But, frankly, I want my future cars to be Siennas as long as they are available. So, this comment is more curiosity than anything.
What does your post have to do with the original question ?
I donāt disagree that the cabin of a Smart Car is well reinforced, but I had a Morris Minor, and then a VW Bug. When the VW was parked next to the Morris, the Bug was huge. Those smart cars are tiny-essentially a front seat on wheels. I remember the first time I saw one was in Amsterdam, it was parked with the bicycles along the canal. A wind would have blown it into the canal. I think the wheel base on a Bug is quite a bit longer than the Smart Car too which would make it a little more stable on the road and in snow. Not to mention that those things are terribly expensive to fix, especially the electronics, just like the big brother BMW. One should not be buying one for over-all economy.
Back in 2008, I was a passenger in my friendās late-model Accord when it was T-boned while we were at a gas station. Yes, you read that correctly! We were preparing to exit, but were probably about 10 feet from US Route 1 when a crazy woman jumped the curb, careened onto the gas station property, and hit us broadside.
The Accord wound up getting pushed slightly into the right lane of Route 1, and even with a very badly bent left rear wheel, my friend managed to get his car back onto the gas station property before we were hit by any of the traffic on the highway.
If an Accord was pushed more than 10 feet by the side impact from a Lexus Rx, can you imagine what would happen to a so-called Smart car under the same circumstances? 
I believe that, under the same conditions, a āSmartā car would have become airborne and would have flown a very long distanceāprobably into the left lane of very busy Route 1, or maybe even right over the divider into the opposing lanes.
Yes, it does appear that this tiny car has a very rigid passenger cell, but I donāt think that this protection would mean very much under the conditions that I envision if one was T-boned the way that the Accord was.
And, the Accord was totaledā¦
To me, thatās a moot point. Those dxxned things wonāt even carry a set of golf clubs! Thereās no room. 
CSA
Well, actually they couldāas long as you set your golf bag vertically, with its base on the passenger side floor, and the bulk of the bag leaning back against the passenger seat. Of course, that means no passenger could be carried, but if golf is the major motivation in oneās life, then that tiny clown car could fill the bill.
We are off topic here so I will join in. There is a man who playās at our city owned course and he has a Smart car and brings his clubs and push cart . My problem with the Smart car is the price, premium fuel and lousy resale value. The second year sales were about 50 % of the first year sales and our local dealer only keeps 6 to 8 new ones on hand and almost gave up advertising.
You forgot mpgā¦andā¦
Road Test ā¦ āOur test vehicle got a disappointing 32 mpg overall, not the 50 or 60 mpg it looks like it should deliverā¦ā (typical comment like this one from Car and Driver).
CSA
ā¦but on a positive note, Consumer Reports noted that the latest iteration of the Smart car doesnāt produce whiplash quite as severe as the previous model when it shifts. Yes, it still products whiplash when it shifts, but it is aā¦kinder, gentler form of whiplash.
Heck, if youāre a golfer and you drive a Smart car, they ought to let you use it as a golf cart for a small fee! Whatever misgivings one had about the car would pale in comparison to the convenience of not having to unpack your golf bag!