We’ve added live pictures of Smart’s conceptual study from the first international Munich Motor Show in the gallery below.
The Smart Concept #1 is the start of a radical reinvention of the city-car brand now part-owned by Chinese giant Geely.
Shown in close to production form, the compact SUV is the first ground-up EV revealed since Smart announced it was abandoning ICE engines in 2019, the same year Daimler and Geely announced their tie-up.
Future Smarts will be engineered by Geely in China, but designed by Mercedes, which has come up with a dramatically new design language for the Concept #1.
At 168.9-in (4290 mm) long, 75.2-in (1910 mm) wide, and 66.9-in (1698 mm) tall, the little SUV is little shorter, wider and taller than Merc’s own EQA electric crossover. But the two are unrelated beneath the skin. Future Smarts will be built around a Geely-developed platform that is also likely to find its way into Volvos.
The clean design features narrow headlamps, a raised hood and large illuminated grille, or at least a simulation of a traditional grille. And that’s just the start of the light show. From the grille, light effects move in time to the music along the sides of the vehicle to the rear diffuser.
The C-pillar adopts a now-familiar split style that gives the appearance of a floating roof, and there’s no B-pillar at all thanks to rear-hinged rear doors that open via touch-sensitive light elements, though whether they’ll make it through to the production car remains to be seen.
Related: Geely And Tencent Will Co-Develop Smart Interiors And Autonomous Tech
Smart says that despite the compact dimensions, interior space is the SUV’s strong suit because the giant 21-inch wheels are pushed far into each corner of the car. Though the show car is a four-seater, the production car will have room for five, and legroom on a par with vehicles from the class above.
A large panoramic sunroof floods light into the cabin, which is dominated by a floating center console that blends into the upper dashboard, not unlike on some Mercedes cars. There’s more similarity in the style and location of the iPad-like 12.8-in infotainment screen, which floats above the dashboard top.
Smart hasn’t released any technical details about the EV drivetrain, but does say you can use a smart app as a digital key, and that the SUV features advanced assistance systems and the ability to receive over-air updates.
The SUV should arrive in production form in Europe and China by 2023, but don’t hold your breath for U.S. sales as Smart withdrew from North America after the 2019 model year following a prolonged sales slump.
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