This is a mythical model, a legendary city car that has been walking our roads for more than 20 years: Smart Fortwo! Initially, it was called “Smart City Coupé”. released in 1998, after several years of difficult development. Nicolas Hayek, CEO of Swatch at the time, struggled to find a manufacturer willing to industrialize his small city car project. Mercedes Benz started dancing in 1994, and the car finally saw the light of day. S for SampleM for mercedesAND ART to emphasize the unique and whimsical side of the car. This name was quickly abandoned in favor of Fortwo (“For two”) in 2002. Since then it has been a great success, being available in the second generation in 2007 and then in the third in 2014.

End of orders from April

Our relationship with her is stronger because France took over in Hambach in the Moselle (57) the place of world production of a mini-city car. We say in the past, because from 2022 its production was transferred to China. It works only in an electric version called EQ Fortwo, since the heat engines have been abandoned. Hambach did not lose, however, as the site has since been rebuilt by the Moselle production of Ineos Grenadier mastodon. Fortwo should will continue his career until mid-2024, the date of cessation of its production. The manufacturer also confirmed suspend all orders after April 2023. Why such a big difference? Because a small city car has a very long delivery time through shortage of components. Thus, copies ordered in April 2023 can reach their owners within a year.

Fewer city cars, more SUVs

The brand prefers primarily uses its new electric SUVs: Smart #1 and Smart #3. Since 2019, Smart no longer belongs to Mercedes-Benz, but equally belongs to the German manufacturer and Chinese automobile group Geely. This new partnership has provided new interaction and technology sharing from Geely. New SUVs Smart SUVs are based on platforms and use their own Chinese engines. This new joint venture also led Mercedes to bring Smart to China. The brand wants more than ever strengthen your premium offensive in the world. Faced with the Mini and the upcoming electric Countryman, these new SUVs should allow Smart (and Mercedes) further increase its market share in particular in China, Europe and the United States.