Having chased profitability by building ever-larger SUVs and even a sedan, city car specialist smart has returned to its roots with the Concept #2, unveiled in Beijing ahead of the Auto China show later this week. An obvious throwback to the seminal fortwo, the show car presages a production two-seater EV that will be revealed in full at the Paris Motor Show in October. The Concept #2 continues to be designed by Mercedes-Benz (by a seemingly more focused and cohesive team than Stuttgart’s own in-house one), with the engineering done by Geely as part of their 50:50 joint venture. It’s underpinned by an all-new Electric Compact Architecture (ECA), with a length of just 2,792 mm – you can fit the whole thing comfortably within the #5‘s wheelbase – and a turning circle of just 6.95 metres. Those of you looking forward to the return of smart’s distinctive tridion safety cell will be disappointed; the Concept #2 instead adopts the design language set by the #1, with triangular headlights, a floating roof and rounded taillights. It’s a surprisingly aggressive design that takes after the last fortwo, and what will surely be a gaping grille on the production model is instead covered by a monogram of the smart logo framed by twin straps – clearly inspired by one of Louis Vuitton’s iconic bags. A sporty bodykit and massive wheels (seemingly also held together by straps) pushed to the far corners of the car add to the car’s racy look. This is bedazzled by show car details such as the striking matte white (including, yes, the tyres) and gold colour scheme, the dot matrix displays front and rear and leather door pulls inspired by laundry care labels – replete with the “styled by Mercedes-Benz” script. Preliminary estimated specs include a range of nearly 300 km (we presume this is on the WLTP cycle) as well as DC fast charging from 10 to 80% in under 20 minutes. A vehicle-to-load (V2L) function will also be offered. In Malaysia, the smart brand is represented by Proton subsidiary Pro-Net, as both entities are part-owned by Geely. Given that Proton has long been exploring CKD local assembly of smart models (likely hinging on its new EV plant in Tanjong Malim), could we see the #2 being offered here as a more premium two-seat alternative to the eMas 5? Compare prices between different insurer providers to save the most on your car insurance renewal compared to other competing services. Many payment method supported and you can pay with instalment using Atome, Grab PayLater or Shopee SPayLater. Use the promo code 'PAULTAN' when you checkout for 10% discount!
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