Celebrating 20 years of smart

Happy 20^th birthday to the smart fortwo: the compact car that allowed a vision to became reality.

A brief history:

In 1981 the vision began. Daimler published a vehicle study “NAFA”, an extremely compact city car that not only offered capacity in a small space but also aimed to combat problems such as lack of parking and crowded streets. With its small dimensions the “NAFA” showed a whole new way of thinking. From this, the tridion safety cell was born. 1998 saw the birth of the colourful, happy and unique smart fortwo. It was originally known as the smart city coupe. 2006 saw the electric smart fortwo celebrate its world premiere at the British International Motor Show in London. In 2009 smart became the first major European automaker to launch series production of an electric vehicle. 2016 saw smart be the only car manufacturer to offer its entire range of models electrically – the smart fortwo cabriolet is also the only electric cabriolet worldwide. This year we have seen the smart electric drive models become the smart EQ fortwo & forfour.

Quick facts:

1. The name 'smart' stands for Swatch-Mercedes ART - based on the cooperation of the two brands in the car's creation.
2. Smart cars boast an excellent turning circle: fortwo (6.95m) and forfour (8.65m)
3. The smart fortwo has the highest adult and child occupant safety ratings of any two-door city car.
4. Despite it being one of the smallest four door cars available, the smart forfour still has the highest maximum load capacity in the city car class with all passenger seats folded down
5. There are currently six model lines to choose from when buying a new smart fortwo: pure, passion, prime, sport premium, edition blue/red, BRABUS xclusive.
6. Smart partnered with Tinie Tempah in 2015 culminating the smart Disturbing London Edition.
7. The elevated seating position in all smart cars is designed to increase visibility and makes entering and exiting easier.
8. The smart logo with a C and an arrows means “compact and forward thinking”
9. Parking is a problem of the past because the smart fortwo is just 2.7m in length, while the forfour is only 3.49m.
10. As well as creating the smart car's iconic look, the tridion safety cell is made of high-tech steels and encases the passengers like the hard shell of a nut. Therefore, deformation is kept to a minimum in the event of an impact.