There is a really simple answer to anyone wondering why that is...
We; the Admin Team; decided from the first day that the Forum was activated that
neither of these counters were to be activated, as in all honesty they don't mean a
great deal.  Besides, one can easily see when there are any Users or Members online
at any time by simply looking at the 'Users Online' area at the bottom of the Forum
'Home' page.

Usually Members or Guests/visitors might 'pop in' and only take a look for a few minutes
to read a topic/thread and then 'pop off' the Forum, so in reality the numbers will never
truly be that high...and besides, a forum is not the sort of place where one would expect
to see huge numbers on it at any one time, especially as this forum is for just one model
of vehicle from a manufacturer that was not sold in quantity on the marketplace as the
likes of VAG, BMW, Ford, etc etc.
To put that into perspective....when I owned a BMW M5 I was a member of the BMW Forum,
and the M5 Forum, and yes there were occasionally a good number online, but that was only
to be expected for a company brand that sold/sells a huge range of vehicles worldwide, yet
saying that, the very individual M5 Owners Forum had very few online at any one time.
One can compare it to the Smart ForFour (Generation 1), which was never sold worldwide,
but.. like the M5 it was a single model.
Hopefully now one can understand why such 'online' figures of of no real consequence and
count for nothing.

I drive my 1.1 one and a half years now and I love its engine. When you push the throttle hard, it somewhat tries to rip itself apart. Of course it's not quick, but it is fun! The 453 will not probably give you this fun factor but is more fancy, fuel efficient and I would say more versatile in city roads.
Here's a good video on the pros of this 1.1 litre [3A91] 454/Colt engine -> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgwPR76w1Kg

Many thanks all. Hmmm will give the 453 some more thought.

I do miss my 454, I have to say!

having driven the 453 when it was launched 8 years ago, back when i had my old 1.1, my opinions of the 453 were, the 1.0 is gutless compared to the 1.1. the demo that i drove at mercedes of leeds was a 1.0 and i genuinely wasnt impressed. it felt flat, lifeless, numb. i then took my 1.1 on the same test route and the 1.1 felt more lively, peppy, happy. they both have (from memory) 75 bhp, but my 1.1 felt nicer. its not that im bias towards the 454, when i had my 450 i drove the 451 CDi, again at mercedes of leeds, when it was launched and i really liked it, the only thing i didnt like was the lack of 6th gear.

personally, id try and get the 0.9 turbo, apparently they are better than the 1.0. im still to this day waiting for mercedes of leeds to contact me to come and drive the turbo (im not holding my breath as its been 8 years), BUT i would recommend getting a 454. its more versatile than the 453. the rear seats dont fold flat from what i have read, where as the seats in the 454 can be lifted up creating a bigger loading area, its cheaper than the 453 to buy, probably cheaper to maintain, and more reliable than the 453 given the issues that have been documented over the 454. the issued on the 454 are relatively simple fixes over the 453.

Can't thank you all enough.

Really useful information. Man, have I missed this forum!

Hi cheapshots, and welcome back.
The W453 (ForFour) was manufactured alongside the Renault Twingo 3 in
Novo Mesto, Slovenia.
[The C453 - ForTwo, was aassembled in Smartyville, Hambach, France.]

Most are probably aware of; or know of; the differences between the W454 and
the W453, but for those I'll go through them just the same, ok.

The engine/drive location is completely opposite between the W454/W453....
the W454 is front engine/drive, whereas the W453 is rear engine/drive....
all the body panels on the W454 are GRP and easily replaced, whereas only
the front and rear of the W453 are GRP, the doors are metal.
Turning circle of the W453 is similar if not better than a London taxi, so it's
great for getting out of tight spaces or turning round..unlike the W454.
There are in essence 3 engine options available for all the 453's, an electric,
and a choice of a 1.0 litre normally aspirated, or a 0.9 litre turbocharged.
Transmissions - electric is direct drive, whereas the I/C's get a choice of a
a 5-speed manual, or a 6-speed dual clutch automatic. (No semi-auto model).

As ocracoke has mentioned, a remap of the turbo version is not really
an option. Brabus had no end of problems when they got their hands on it
and were tasked to work their magic.  The turbo and inlet are one piece so
a completely new manifold and turbo set up was required, but then it was
found that the gearboxes were not capable of handling much more than
the standard power output ! The gearboxes were not 'over engineered' as
had been the German normal, instead these were for the French (Twingo)
so were built to a price.  Performance tuning is therefore almost impossible.

However, all I/C versions of the the 453 have now been discontinued with only
the electric version still in production.  This is in preparation for the 'arrival' of
the next 4/5 seater to bear the Smart name...the Smart #1 which will also
be the most expensive Smart made so far, costing in the UK around £35,000 !
No longer a car for the commuter, or the masses as it is late into an already
large EV market place that has some very well established names.

But..back to the W453....
The only issue I had heard of this year with this model is the availability of
replacement clutches...virtually zero stock from Renault or Smart, and 100% zero
from the usual non dealer suppliers such as Sachs, Luke etc.
And then there is the cost of those...£3k unfitted !  Or so I was told by S2smarts.
Best to confirm/verify that I would say, as that was some months ago.

As to whether a W453 is as good or tough as a W454....read up on long term reports
on the likes of WhatCar and other such magazines reviews/web pages.

Hey, welcome back!

Yeah, the suspension in a W453 is fairly stiff but nothing untowards. I've heard rumblings that the 0.9l Turbo variants, whilst fun to drive, can develop problems with idling (ref: https://www.evilution.co.uk/mod/453-rough-idle.htm) - not a big issue to sort out looking at this but something to be aware of. The stop/start system in the 453 series is not the same as the MHD in the 451 so doesn't have the same issues but the battery that comes default in these car are not fantastic (ref: https://www.evilution.co.uk/mod/453-stopstart-fault.htm).

The automatic DCT gearbox in it I've not heard of any significant issues, least not from my Mum's C453 (the fortwo coupe) anyway. However, that said, if there are plans to remap, the DCT I don't think can handle a lot more from the turbo engine though this is only a vague memory of someone telling me this so I could very well be wrong. The big problem I have with the W453 is that the doors are metal, not plastic like the A453 (fortwo cabrio) or the C453 so you can't change the panels as easily, allegedly to make it feel more "premium". The front and back sections are plastic.

The back seats I am sure folds flat. I was considering getting a 1.0 non-turbo W453 to port about the robots in but the above put me off.

The 1.0 car uses the H4D engine, which I read is designed by Nissan which good!
See some specs here: https://mymotorlist.com/engines/renault/h4d/
In my experience Renault engines are either too good or too bad, so this may be one of the good ones...

I didn't know that, thanks

Probably you know that, but as the 454 is based on Mitsu Colt, the 453 is based on Renault Twingo.
I have not driven the 453 but the respective Renault Twingo. I would say that it is quite stiff as the 454's suspension, but not as quick as my 454 1.1. Moreover, i would say it is more fuel efficient than my 454.