Smart (marque)

Smart Logo

Smart (formerly MCC Smart) is a brand of microcar based in Böblingen, Germany. The name of the company, part of DaimlerChrysler, was changed from Micro Compact Car GmbH to Smart GmbH in September 2002.

Company History

As free parking slots are hard to find in many European cities, official parking is expensive, and illegaly parked cars are fined, immobilized or towed, the original idea behind the very short "smart car" is that the vehicle may be parked back-in in parallel parking zones. Its length of 250cm equals the width of a truck or a regular parking slot, allowing to park two or three smarts rather than one normal car.

The project idea was originally supported by Swiss watch manufacturer Swatch, and was nicknamed the "Swatchmobile". The name SMART stands for Swatch Mercedes ART ^{[citation needed]}. The car was supposed to use innovative features (such as a hybrid engine) and to be an affordable car for young people. Similar to the objective for the Citroen 2CV in the 1940s, its purpose was to "transport two people and a case of beer" (later replaced by a case of water).

Being inexperienced in automobiles, Swatch CEO Nicolas Hayek sought an established car maker to produce his Swatch car, and found a partner in Volkswagen. Plans never reached a final stage so Swatch teamed up with Daimler-Benz. The purpose-built factory complex Smartville in Hambach, Lorraine, France, was established in 1994 as a joint-venture of Daimler-Benz and the Swiss watch manufacturer Swatch.

The final car design proved to be far from Hayek's expectations: its engine technology was conventional, it was more expensive than most small 4-seater cars sold in Europe. The joint venture experienced heavy losses and Swatch pulled out.

In 2005, DaimlerChrysler decided against purchasing a 50% share in the NedCar plant used to manufacture the Forfour. DC also halted development on the Formore and decided to discontinue production of the Roadster.

In 2006, DaimlerChrysler announced that it had also decided to discontinue production of the Forfour, and would in the future concentrate its activities on its remaining vehicle Fortwo.

Models

Apart from the original short Smart Fortwo, a sporty Smart Roadster and a regular Smart Forfour and extended the brand into a true marque.

Smart in North America

Canada

The Smart Fortwo was introduced in Canada in the 2004 calendar year and sold through Mercedes-Benz dealers. Only the turbo-diesel powerplant is offered as power for the coupe and convertible models because of emission regulations for the gasoline engines set forth by Transport Canada. Demand has been heavy with up to six month waiting lists in major urban areas in the spring of 2005. The vehicle has been especially popular for light errand running for small shops and businesses, with many carrying custom paint jobs or stick-on graphics boldly advertising the associated product or service. As of March 2006, Smart Canada says that the government is still testing the Forfours for import to Canada.

United States

Zap [1] announced on March 16, 2006 that the Smart Fortwo automobile is ready to be sold in the United States[2]. Previously, Smart cars have not been officially sold in the U.S. by its manufacturer owing to a fear of possible market positioning confusion, Mercedes-Benz wishing to maintain an aura of high priced luxury that enables it to keep profit margins high. That aura is also used to cancel its B-Class program for the American market in light of escalating fuel price. Autoweek has suggested the 2008 ForTwo model will be the first model sold directly in the U.S. [3]

It is theoretically possible for an individual to purchase a Smart as a used vehicle from Canada, although impractical for most people due to various state title and licensing issues. U.S. Federal regulations allow certain "grey market" importing in large quantities provided the vehicles are modified and tested to conform to U.S. safety regulations. Appropriate certifications for safety (DOT) and emissions (EPA) have been obtained by Zap Motors, who purchase the car from a direct importer, but are not an official distributor of Smart vehicles.

External links