Following its announcement Smart would switch to battery-electric powertrain technology, Daimler has revealed a minor facelift for the range.
Earlier this month, Mercedes-Benz and Zhejiang Geely Holding said they had formally established the global joint venture Smart Automobile for the brand after receiving the necessary regulatory approvals. The two companies had struck a deal – in principle – in March 2019 to turn the Smart brand into a China-based all-electric carmaker.
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By GlobalDataThe new generation of Smart vehicles would be designed by the global Mercedes-Benz Design network and developed by the Geely global engineering network.
“The new Smart is radically simple. We orchestrated the typical smart identity with the new faces,” Gorden Wagener, Daimler’s chief design officer said in a statement.
“In line with the smart DNA, we lower the grille and the headlamps above it and in this way create a sporty, progressive appearance.”
The Fortwo and Forfour electric models now have different front ends. The grilles of both are painted in vehicle colour and no longer in a contrasting shade.
With the switch to battery-electric comes the option of bright and long-lasting full-LED headlamps plus LED direction indicators.
LED tail lamps are now optional.
A new centre console has a large stowage compartment, with roller cover, in front of the selector lever in place of the hidden drawer at the side and this incorporates removable twin cup holders.
The Connect media system is updated designed to be intuitive and upgradeable. If an owner switches to a new smartphone or a software update makes new apps available, they are immediately added to the car system.
A new EQ control app allows drivers to check vehicle range and charge state remotely. Pre-entry climate control is also now available.
Smartphone widget and Apple Watch integration has also been added.
The My Smart app forms a hub for all digital services related to the brand and allows vehicle location tracking and remote access including keyless locking and unlocking.
Daimler claims t will be easier for drivers to connect to their own vehicle. The registration process has been redesigned and can now be carried out independently without a dealer visit. The process validates the car, the identity of the driver and connects the car with its own ‘ready to’ customer account.
A ‘theft recovery’ mode informs users by push notification as soon as their vehicle leaves an area they previously defined – the geofence. In the event of the vehicle leaving a pre-defined area, the user receives an automatic warning and step-by-step instructions on activating recovery mode.
Paint colour and wheel options have also been updated.
Radar-based city ‘recuperation’ allows the car to slow down automatically behind a vehicle ahead. Coasting and braking phases are coordinated to enable the maximum amount of kinetic energy to be returned to the battery.
An optional 22 kW on-board charger with rapid-charging function, charges the battery from 10% to 80% range in under 40 minutes and without having to rely on rare direct-current charging stations if three-phase charging is available. In cooperation with charging network partner Plugsurfing, German customers can now use virtually all public charging stations and these can be located with the EQ control app.
