Here’s a new variation of the CC Effect™: Yesterday I saw this Smart with two guys in it and a big rooftop carrier heading out. My big regret is that I couldn’t get a shot of it from the side, as the combination of Smart and carrier made it look taller than in length. Whether they were off on a trip or even leaving the country is pure speculation, but the news this morning is that Smart is saying aufwiedersehen to North America.
Well, maybe that’s the wrong word, as strictly speaking aufwiedersehen translates as “to your return”. That’s not very likely.
Smart has been a problem for Daimler all along, and bringing them to NA wasn’t likely to help. But fear not, Daimler has found a more suitable location and a partner too: China. Just last month German parent Daimler announced that it was creating a joint venture with Zhejiang Geely Holding Group to build a new generation of Smart models in a purpose-built electric-car factory in China with global sales to begin in 2022. Bingo!
Smart sales have been in a free fall since shifting to a new all-EV strategy. All of 1276 were sold in 2018. Realistically, sales have been declining for years here. It’s just not the right car for this market.
Mercedes says it will continue to support Smarts sold here. But I suspect they will likely disappear a bit faster than average. Another orphan brand, along with Daewoo, Suzuki, and a few others.
From what little I know about the China market, I would have anticipated that Tata would have been a stronger player in the mini car market there than Smart. That is, unless the people that buy Buicks in China could also be target customers for Smart. Tata would be a lower (real lower) price entrant in China, hence a different demographic possibly.
I assume you’re referring to the Tata Nano. Are you not aware that it’s been a big disappointment, sales-wise? Indians don’t like riding in what is seen to be cheap and low-status. Like folks all over the globe, they’d rather stretch a bit financially and ride in a Suzuki.
The Nano is gas engined. Meaning it has zero applicability to China, where the majority of very low end cars are essentially all EVs, due to incentives and regulations.
The Smart has a shot, because it doesn’t read “cheap”. it never did in Europe, where it’s liked for being so small, but not necessarily cheap. It’s going to be positioned as a chic city car with a cool brand image. The Nano would be DOA in trying that, never mind that it’s not an EV.
China is the same way – Chrysler tried to sell them Francois Castaing’s plastic neo-2CV as a people’s car, not realizing the market there is top down. GM did the smart thing and asked the Chinese which brand and model they should bring over, and they asked for the Buick Regal/Century – Jhou En Lai had a Buick and he liked it. GM got the JV with Shanghai automotive.
The Smart was a short term fashion accessory that has hung on for, what, a decade too long? Probably more. This was a car that needed constant updates of colors and themes in an effort to maintain some kind of “cool factor”. If it got any I missed them. And I am amazed it took them so long to pull the plug. Could the long-overdue exit just be Daimler Benz’ unwillingness to admit (another) mistake?
But then here in the wide-open midwest there was just never a real reason to buy one of these. Parking space isn’t really a problem and their level of economy was not far off from much larger cars that could carry more stuff and people.
Could the long-overdue exit just be Daimler Benz’ unwillingness to admit (another) mistake?
Exiting the world’s most profitable market is rarely seen as anything other than admitting failure (i.e. “mistake”). How much more clearly could they admit that it was a mistake?
The latest version (gen 3, below) is a fair bit different looking, but you probably haven’t seen one, which is precisely the problem. And the gen 2 looked a fair bit different than the gen 1. To me, the difference is obvious, but then not many gen1 Smarts made it to the US.
So I would disagree since it got a lot of minor tweaks and changes and variations and colors over the years. But keeping it somewhat consistent in its basic design is smart, actually, just in the same way other fashion accessories want to maintain instant recognition yet some degree of variation.
The Smart was designed for Europe’s cities, where it has a steady market. It’s just not enough of a market to make it profitable. But it does not make sense for the US except possibly a few inner city cores.
This move to a JV in China is the better alternative to pulling the plug totally, which has been under consideration for some time. They’re basically offloading it, yet keeping some involvement too, to be able to import enough from China back to Europe to meet the level of demand there. It’s a good solution to a lingering problem.
I have never seen a third-generation Smart on the road – not even in Boston, Toronto, or Pittsburgh.
It doesn’t even make sense in most American cities, as most of them have metered parked with delineated spaces, so it doesn’t matter much how big your car is. People who assumed the tiny car got great fuel economy were disappointed too – you were better off with a small Toyota or just about any hybrid.
Smart is a european thing. Visit Google maps/streetview of any city in Europe (and of course Italy) and you will see Smarts galore. I had a Smart and absolutely loved it. But of course nobody knows what will happen if Smart is owned by the chinese.
cant say I’m suprised, I hardly ever see any of the current models.
There are two of them in this neighborhood. They do seem to be reliable, but there’s no advantage in a teensy car that accelerates like a fully loaded semi and uses gas. An EV of similar size and non-speed would make LOTS of sense, but nobody is selling those.
Actually the Smart in the US is exclusively sold as an EV currently, so it seems to fit your parameters quite well! 🙂
I don’t know how well they sold previously, but smart managed to find buyers for an entire 1,276 people last year. So, it would seem the switch to EV might have actually made matters worse.
Of course, the smart EV’s range of a paltry 58 miles likely didn’t help matters any…
How are these on the freeway ? Can you hold a conversation with your passenger ? Or will you arrive at your destination with a headache ?
Simply brilliant. GM products can hardly keep up with the comfort of a Smart.
They were great on the freeway, better than you expect. Our 09 cabrio was a hoot! it reminded me of Morris minis the way the suspension sort of crashed into bumps like it had rubber donuts not springs.
Rip smart
The reported engine fires and subsequent recall didn’t help the brand.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/smart-vehicles-recall-engine-fire-1.4657669
Based on local observation, my perception is that the biggest “customer” for these has been Car2Go, and I can’t recall seeing a privately-owned Gen3. But DB seems be moving away from it in favour of 4-passenger MB models, which are much more useful.
When I first saw a smart, I was in love. When I sat in one at an auto show, I was in love. Then I test-drove one, and experienced the worst transmission in the history of the known universe. Love affair over.
The electric model alleviated the problem, and there was a brief period when MBUSA was dumping off-lease electrics at rock-bottom prices. I almost bought one. But as part of the business model, the battery was leased as a separate entity from the car, and there were unclear issues surrounding who actually owned the battery of an off-lease smart. Nobody could clarify that, so I didn’t buy.
I experienced the worst transmission in the history of the known universe in a Car2Go loaner. It wasn’t just bad. It was unsafe.
Somehow they managed to make a gearbox that decelerated the forcefully when it shifted, sort of like engine braking except much stronger. That’s merely annoying in stop & go city traffic. It’s downright dangerous when hoping to downshift as you merge into freeway traffic (ask me now I know).
I often tell people you can’t buy a bad car any longer. The Smart cars (the gen. 1 model, at least) are one of only a few exceptions
The articles say that “certain” Mercedes dealers will continue to service them.
I almost put myself in a similar situation lately as I found a nearly new 500Cabrio that ticked all the boxes, but the dealer’s scummy behavior left me with zero confidence that he would service it after Fiat bails out of the US, or even keep their Fiat dealership, and honor the warranty, before Fiat is pulled. Maybe it is my formative years being filled with car models named Classic, Ambassador, Champion, Commander and Lark that made me particularly aware of the challengers of impending orphanhood.
In an article from a year ago, Marchionne was quoted as saying:
“To speak about significant volumes in (NAFTA countries or) Asia-Pacific for Fiat would be a waste of time” Marchionne said. “
So, with Suzuki and Smart gone within a span of less than 10 years, and if the marginally more successful Fiat follows them, who will walk into a US GAC dealership and plunk down their hard earned dollars on a brand new Trumpchi SUV, the way people snapped up Yugos in the 80s?
Plenty of Americans will buy a Trumpchi if it’s A) big enough and B) cheap enough. Suzuki, Smart, and Fist all failed at point A so point B didn’t matter even though in the case of the latter two the pounds per dollar ratio wasn’t good enough anyway. Maybe they should just sell them in Aisle 25 at WalMart, it’s goong to happen sooner or later.
> Plenty of Americans will buy a Trumpchi if it’s A) big enough and B) cheap enough
and C) if they change its name, because it will make Americans think of the current president, who many Americans despise, and many Americans love, but the latter group would never buy a Chinese car so Trumpchi won’t fly with anyone.
> with Suzuki and Smart gone within a span of less than 10 years
Don’t forget Daewoo
Just a generation earlier, we ran to a similar situation of an orphan car with no support called Daihatsu.
and C) if they change its name,
GAC has had a stand at the Detroit show for several years now. This year, the cars were even unlocked so people could check them out.
The badge on the tailgate said “GAC”, but the headlight bezels said “Trumpchi”.
Don’t forget Daewoo
Yes, used to see several Daewoos running around here. iirc, they bailed out of the US close to 20 years ago.
Then there are the captive imports. Several vital parts for the Opel built Saturn Astra are no longer available from GM, and these cars are only 11 years old. Ditto the Mercedes built Chrysler Crossfire: parts and service unobtainable from most Chrysler dealers, and Merc dealers will not touch them, and people started having problems obtaining service well before the Crossfire was 10 years out of production. As appealing as the current, Opel built, Cascada and Regal are, I would not want to consider trying to run one for 10 years.
Yes, some people will buy just about anything, if it’s cheap enough. Yugo proved that. Thing is, these days, “success” seems to be measured by a high transaction price and fat gross margin per vehicle, not volume. Isn’t there supposed to be a steep tariff charged on Chinese products? I read where GM was trying to get a waiver for the Envision, but haven’t heard how that turned out.
Hey it’s been done before!
Sears and the Henry J/ Allstate!
Maybe Sears could….oh yeah..😛😜😝
Suzuki did reasonably well in the US until GM forced the not-ready-for-prime-time Daewoos on them. Those ruined their reputation at large, but not before they got in one last niche success with the AWD SX4 that anticipated the baby-crossover boom by a full decade.
Hate to be nitpick, but…
Auf Wiedersehen is two separate words with an upper case letter, W.
Otherwise, excellent article. My father had a second generation smart as a loaner for three days. It was one of the most clumsy vehicles I’ve driven with most annoying trait: rocking forward and backward during the acceleration and braking.
Toyota had their own take on the Smart with the Scion iQ. It only lasted 3 years in North America. It looks like their has never really been a market for a city car in the NA market. The only super mini car that had anything resembling success was the Geo Metro/Suzuki Cultus At it’s peak it sold 100,000 units a year and lasted from 1989-2001. However it did not have long term success and appears it primary selling point was price, not small size.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_iQ
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geo_Metro
Does it mean anything that I wasn’t even aware they still sold these in the US?
CC Effect – saw two yesterday as I was driving through Atlanta on my way home.
I cannot imagine who will miss these in the American market. I could see wanting a small, impractical car, but it better also be fun and stylish like a Miata or Mini or the departed Soltice/sky. This was expensive, not sporty, unreliable, drove poorly, and didn’t fill any particular market niche. Yes, in Europe you can park the thing on the sidewalk or in tight spaces, but that’s not much of a concern here. As mentioned, Scion tried it, Fiat tried it, Mini tried it, and Smart tried it and only Mini has had any real success and I think that’s waned a good bit. Whether Americans NEED a two and a half ton vehicle which seats 5 people for daily driving is irrelevant; that’s what they’re going to buy, which makes sense because you buy a car sometimes for those rarer situations, when you do have people/luggage, etc, because the hassle of making that compromise when you do need it is such a pain without any real benefit.
Someone mentioned that the smart was more of a fashion accessory, and that really sums it up quite nicely. As with any fad or fashion, the shelf life is quite short, and that’s exactly what happened with smart. After the novelty wore off, the market simply vanished. Coupled with the issues (not the least of which was a funky transmission*), well, smart departing the US market should surprise absolutely no one.
*The problem with the smart’s quasi-automatic transmission was there was a learning curve to it. Evidently, to get it to shift smoothly, it had to be driven like a manual transmission without a third pedal or shift lever. In effect, there was a specific point in the power curve where you had to lift off the accelerator, wait a moment for it to shift, then push back down on the pedal. It was the only way for it to shift smoothly. As one might imagine, no one wanted to drive like that. If you simply kept your foot on the gas, you’d get the herky-jerky.