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I quite agree - although, when the guy opened the car door, the two seats were clearly visible and appeared to be intact (they hadn't shot out of the top of the car, at least). That said, crash test dummies would've been a nice thought.
I observed a crash test at the GM Proving Grounds in 1994 when I worked for them--pretty fascinating. Part of my job with them was to do crash performance reports on current model year cars that customers had wrecked.
Seats behave a lot differently when there is a 190 pound person in them during a crash--they bend, twist, and sometimes break under the force. In a compartment of any size, but especially one that small where the chances of the body striking the interior are higher, any seat failure could range from traumatic to fatal.
Now that I've blathered on about what little I know or remember about car crashes, here is what I found about the Smart's official European crast test results--fairly good.
For the record, I drive the car that the US Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has rated highest in its class for front and side impact performance. Their standards are higher than the U.S. government's. IIHS doesn't rate the Smart since it isn't sold here yet.
