Following the ForTwo (Coupe and Cabrio) and the ForFour’s pure electric debut at the Paris Auto Show, the Daimler-owned car maker premiered the three models at Los Angeles.
Smart’s line-up just got greener in the U.S., as the company brought its electric models stateside. Don’t expect them to be different from their European counterparts, though, as the vehicles share the same underpinnings.
Namely, a 60 kW (81 hp) and 160 Nm (118 lb-ft) of torque electric motor, paired to a Renault-sourced, single speed fixed gear transmission that drives the rear wheels. Since there’s no need for any gear changing, the car simply changes the engine’s direction of rotation when “engaged” in reverse.
The powertrain is capable of accelerating the ForTwo from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 11.5 seconds, the ForTwo Cabrio in 11.8 seconds, and the ForFour in 12.5 seconds. To help maximize efficiency, top speed is limited to 130 km/h (80 mph).
Thanks to the 17.6kWh lithium-ion battery, the ForTwo Coupe offers a driving range of 160 km (100 miles), while the ForTwo Cabrio and the ForFour 155 km (96 miles). For now, charging takes about 2.5 hours but from next year Smart will offer a powerful 22 kW fast charger that will juice up the vehicle is 45 minutes.