Smart Car's Nickel and Dime Scheme

Most of the time the products we purchase from vending machines aren't renowned for their health benefits. Over the years spare change and wrinkly dollar bills have been used to buy everything from 350-calorie Twinkies to carcinogen-filled cigarettes.

However, the Japanese division of Smart Car has created a giant vending machine that will sell you something that's at least healthy for the environment. Customers can't actually buy the car, which is about half the size of a standard sedan and gets 39 miles per gallon. For one thing, they would need $20,000 cash to put into the slot.—and who's got time to feed all those bills into a machine? For another, the machine is nothing more than a clever gimmick dreamed up to grab the attention of the vending machine-loving Japanese.

What customers will receive is a free information packet with prices, dealer information, and some snazzy Smart Car stickers. But dream with us for a second, and imagine a world where you could actually buy your new car from a vending machine. There would be no salesmen, no deceiving ads and no trip to the dealership. Would you fork over the cash, or would you try to tip the machine and see if anything came rolling out? [MSN.com]