On the early morning of April 8th, Beijing time, a Smart Elf #1 release conference was held in Berlin, Germany, marking the beginning of a new chapter for Smart. Now, Smart is no longer just a 2-seater microcar that can park sideways into a parking lot, but a pure electric small SUV that can seat five people, and it is also the first domestically-made Smart.
The price of Smart Elf #1 was not announced at the conference, but based on its size and potential price, we have brought four cars for comparison, including the veteran competitor MINI Countryman, the compact VW ID.3 with a similar size, and the Tesla Model 3 rear-wheel drive version, which has the highest popularity among young people at the same price.
We believe that consumers who are interested in Smart Elf #1 have certain requirements for the brand, configuration, and luxury level of the vehicle, and they want a small car that is not too big and has personality. Therefore, these four cars will be a difficult choice for consumers to avoid.
Mercedes Design
Exterior Comparison
As Smart Elf #1 has grown from a microcar to an SUV, it abandons its past big-eyed and sturdy microcar style. However, becoming an SUV does not mean that Smart has completely changed its style. Smart Elf #1 has added many flexible lines to the body, still inheriting Smart’s consistent minimalistic design. Moreover, the overall shape also restores the design of the concept car.
The LED daytime running lights that run through the front of the car extend into the headlight assembly, making Smart Elf #1 look particularly divine. Coupled with this refreshing green car paint, it actually gives a feeling of “Tinker Bell” in Disney.
In terms of appearance, Smart Elf #1 and VW ID.3 both belong to the more agile “new species”, and the design of the Tesla Model 3 also has a sense of design, but unfortunately, there are too many Model 3s on the road, which may cause visual fatigue after seeing too many. MINI Countryman can be recognized as a MINI at a glance and has a high degree of identification.Although the equity of the smart brand has undergone changes and it was developed jointly with Geely, smart EQ fortwo cabrio #1 has a very pure Mercedes-Benz pedigree. This is not only reflected in the “Styled by Mercedes-Benz” logo on the B-pillar, but also in the fact that the design of the EQ fortwo cabrio #1 was created by Gordon Wagner, the Chief Design Officer of Daimler. Even if you don’t know him, you will be interested to know that the designer of smart EQ fortwo cabrio #1 has also designed the SLS AMG.
Regarding the design of the rear end, friends who are paying attention to Mercedes-Benz electric vehicles can find some clues. The continuous taillights of the EQ fortwo cabrio #1 not only echo the continuous daytime running lights at the front, but are also somewhat similar to those of the Mercedes-Benz EQB.
The overall rear design presents a relatively solid posture. Compared to the MINI Countryman, the EQ fortwo cabrio #1 is less wild, but more elegant than the Volkswagen ID.3. Each car’s appearance has its own characteristics, and it depends on personal preference.
The EQ fortwo cabrio #1 also has many fine details on its appearance. The smart logo standing proudly on the D-pillar is a clear indication of its identity. There are two categories of cars with logos standing on their D-pillars available in the current market: one is the the distinguished Mercedes-Maybach S, and the other is cars like the BMW X2 and the Audi Q2, which are targeting young consumers. The EQ fortwo cabrio #1 obviously belongs to the latter category.
In addition, the EQ fortwo cabrio #1 perfectly combines a light luxurious style with elegant configurations loved by young users, such as frameless doors and hidden door handles.
Compared with the compact SUV MINI COUNTRYMAN in terms of body size, the smart ForTwo Coupe’s size is quite similar. However, the wheelbase is 80 mm longer than the ForTwo Coupe’s pure electric platform rivals like Volkswagen ID.3 and Tesla Model 3, but the wheelbase is not the only indicator to evaluate ride space.
Interior Comparison
In terms of interior design, each competitor of the ForTwo Coupe has its own characteristics. The interior of Volkswagen ID.3 and Tesla Model 3 are simple and elegant while the interior of MINI remains consistent with its design style and retains more mechanical buttons for better operation while driving, but the overall design is relatively “Old School”. In comparison, the ForTwo Coupe’s interior design is more luxurious.
You might think it’s unfair to compare it to a MINI from five years ago. But don’t worry, spy photos of the pure electric MINI under the joint venture between BMW and Great Wall Motors, Lighthouse Automobile, have been exposed before. Although the interior has been heavily disguised, it still looks similar to the minimalist style of ID.3. In comparison, the ForTwo Coupe’s interior design is more luxurious.
The ForTwo Coupe’s interior style is luxurious and elegant. From the central console design and the steering wheel shape, it still exudes the scent of Mercedes-Benz. Especially the air conditioning vents, the storage compartment cover below, and the central armrest area all follow the elegant interior style of Mercedes-Benz.
There is a wireless charging pad, a Type-C interface, a Type-A interface, and a 12 V power supply interface equipped in the storage compartment below the air conditioning vents. You don’t need to worry much about the practicality of the charging interfaces.
The audio brand carried by smart fortwo #1, which is also favored by young people, is Beats, the brand established by the West Coast legend Dr. Dre. The combination of Still D.R.E and smart fortwo #1 immediately showcases its unique personality. Currently, the car models equipped with the Beats brand sound system are also more inclined towards being youthful, such as the Volkswagen T-ROC and T-CROSS.
The audio brand installed in the MINI COUNTRYMAN is the Harman Kardon that is commonly used by the BMW Group. However, the badge audio system is not used in the Volkswagen ID.3 and Tesla Model 3. But audio is not just about the brand; the actual auditory experience is more important.
In terms of the seats, the smart fortwo #1 adopts a large number of triangular perforated patterns design, and the pattern gradually decreases from bottom to top, which looks very exquisite. Just imagine, placing a pure white LV handbag in the front passenger seat, it couldn’t be more suitable.
From the picture, the rear space of the smart fortwo #1 is not small, and the 2,750 mm wheelbase even exceeds the wheelbase of some compact fuel SUVs. It’s worth noting that the wheelbase of the First Automotive Works-Volkswagen medium-sized SUV TAYRON is only 2,731 mm. The actual space experience still depends on the riding feeling. Although Model 3 is a medium-sized car, its riding space is not as large as imagined.
The rear seats are also equipped with air conditioning vents and a central armrest, which makes smart fortwo #1 a car that can truly take multiple passengers on a trip.
It is worth mentioning that the rear seats of the smart fortwo #1 support 4/6 folding and front and rear movement, which can provide more flexible expansion space for the luggage compartment. According to official information, the luggage compartment can be expanded from 323 L to 411 L by sliding the seats, and it can reach 986 L when the second row seats are folded flat.
Thanks to the pure electric platform, smart ForTwo #1 also has a front trunk with a capacity of 15L. This undoubtedly makes ForTwo #1 the most practical smart model.
For a small SUV, the practicality of smart ForTwo #1 is already strong, but compared to its competitors, it still falls short in terms of luggage space.
Geely Technology
Another major selling point of smart ForTwo #1 is that it’s equipped with Geely SEA architecture, which adds numerous intelligent configurations and makes ForTwo cover all the explanations in a Chinese-English dictionary, flexible, nimble, and smart.
Cabin Comparison
Built on the SEA architecture, it means that smart ForTwo #1 now has OTA capability. According to the official introduction, more than 75% of the vehicle’s ECU electronic control units can achieve remote continuous upgrades.
In terms of the infotainment system, smart ForTwo #1 is equipped with a 9.2-inch LCD instrument cluster and a 12.8-inch central control screen, with 12G of running memory and 128G of storage memory. Also, since it’s based on the SEA architecture, we suspect that the infotainment chipset is likely to be the 8155 chip.
From the perspective of cabin configuration, smart ForTwo #1 performs relatively well in this area without any obvious shortcomings. With the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8155 chipset, there is no need to worry about the smoothness of the infotainment system.
ADAS Comparison#smart Elf #1 is also equipped with a HUD head-up display function. Careful friends may have noticed that the vehicle is in the turn signal state in both the HUD and the dashboard display. This also piqued my interest in the assisted driving ability of smart Elf #1.
Even though smart Elf #1 is at a mainstream configuration level compared to its competitors, the specific strength of its assisted driving ability can only be known after we obtain the actual vehicle and conduct tests.
During the comparison it can also be seen that the Mini Cooper Countryman, which comes from the era of fuel-powered cars, has a noticeable disconnection in terms of assisted driving.
Power comparison
The smart Elf #1, built on the SEA vast ocean architecture, is still agile in terms of power. Like its predecessors, Elf #1 adopts a rear-mounted rear-drive structure. The rear permanent magnet synchronous motor has a maximum power of 200 kW, a maximum torque of 343 N·m, and a 0-100km/h acceleration time of 6.7 seconds.
Smart Elf #1 is very strong in power performance, with its 200 kW rear permanent magnet synchronous motor ranking second in the entire field, only 2 kW behind the Model 3. With a 0-100km/h acceleration time of 6.7 seconds, it even matches the Golf GTI, plus its rear-drive structure and the low center of gravity brought by the pure electric vehicle, smart Elf #1 may have driving fun similar to a sports car. Similarly, the extremely hard SEA architecture of JiKe 001 has already given us a glimpse of its driving feel.
Endurance comparison
Under the body of the Elf #1 is a 66 kWh ternary lithium battery, with a maximum CLTC endurance mileage of 560 km, which basically meets everyone’s daily commuting needs. Excluding the extremely high usage costs of fuel-powered cars, the endurance mileage of Elf #1 is not inferior to its competitors at all, and we also look forward to the actual endurance performance after obtaining the actual vehicle.Based on the driving range and battery capacity, we can further determine the energy consumption level of the three cars. The Smart EQ fortwo #1 consumes 11.79 kWh per 100 km, Volkswagen ID.3 consumes 12.73 kWh per 100 km, and Tesla Model 3 consumes 10.79 kWh per 100 km. Based on the CLTC standard, the energy consumption of the Smart EQ fortwo #1 is relatively balanced among cars of the same class.
In addition, the Smart EQ fortwo #1 supports up to 150 kW fast charging, and can be charged from 5% to 80% in 30 minutes. The MINI COUNTRYMAN may have an advantage in terms of charging speed. However, based on the current price of 9.25 yuan/L for 95 gasoline, it would cost 564.25 yuan to fill up its 61L fuel tank. Not to mention the maintenance costs of 4S shops, three pure electric cars can save you as much as a medium or small-sized LV handbag in a year.
Conclusion
Actually, many people around me are asking why Smart has become so big. In fact, the increase in size of Smart is partly due to practicality compromise, and partly to ensure driving range.
In the process of electrification, Smart has launched a pure electric micro-car Smart EQ fortwo with three doors and two seats. However, with a pure electric driving range of only 153 miles (about 246 km), after some discount, it seems not much different from the Wuling MINIEV. Moreover, the price of approximately 226,000 yuan makes this car just a toy.
With a driving range of 560 km and real 5 seats, the Smart EQ fortwo #1 has become the most practical Smart model. The Smart EQ fortwo #1 is not only a strategy to adapt to changes, but also a return to our vision in more practical scenarios. Moreover, from a configuration standpoint, the Smart EQ fortwo #1 is well-rounded in every aspect, without any obvious shortcomings in space, intelligence, or power. Just like the positioning of this car, it is a high-quality small car. As for the price, Smart has left us with a suspense.In the Chinese market, this type of exquisite pure electric small car has always occupied the majority of the young market. The Eulai Cat, priced at 130,000-160,000 yuan, sold 3,848 units in February this year, while the lower-priced BYD Dolphin even achieved a sales volume of 8,561 units. Among these levels, models with lower prices have better sales advantages because this part of the vehicle is mainly targeted at commuting needs.
Similarly, the Tesla Model 3 sold 4,607 units in February, and consumers have a very large price span when buying electric vehicles. In terms of riding space, Model 3 is not much larger than the first two cars. However, spending an extra 100,000 yuan can bring better brand, stronger power and better materials, which is also a manifestation of consumer demand.
Currently, the high-end pure electric small car market is still blank. For Smart Elf #1, its task is not to achieve high sales volume, because the positioning of Smart Elf #1 is not a street car, but a very personalized and niche fashion item.
Elf #1’s direct rival is the domestically produced pure electric MINI. Both are domestically produced cars of high-end joint venture brands, targeting young and personalized markets. At the end of last year, there were spy photos of the domestically produced pure electric MINI exposed, which would reportedly be built on the Great Wall’s pure electric platform. We do not know if its intelligence and range can compete with Smart’s, and a smoke of war seems to have already spread.
However, for the current market, Smart Elf #1 has provided a good and comprehensive choice for users of this level of demand. Its power, endurance configuration, intelligent configuration and space utilization performance are all very balanced. Moreover, compared to the Model 3 which has become a street car, Elf #1 is more individual and niche; compared to cars such as Eulai Cat and BYD Dolphin, it is more luxurious and high-end in terms of brand and materials, satisfying the demand of this specific segment of the market. As long as Smart Elf #1 is priced reasonably, we believe this car will have a decent market performance.
Finally, welcome everyone to download the Garage App to learn about the latest new energy information. If you want to have more timely communication, you can click here to join our community.
This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.