- Smart is building anticipation for the #5’s launch on August 28 by releasing teaser sketches of the compact SUV.
- But pictures of Smart’s biggest ever SUV completely undisguised have already been published by China’s MIIT.
- The compact SUV is Smart’s answer to the Tesla Model Y, rides on a 114.2-inch wheelbase and has up to 637 hp.
Smart’s PR machine is trying to get us excited about the launch of the brand’s biggest car yet, the #5, by releasing teaser sketches of the SUV a week after publishing action shots of a disguised prototype. But unhelpfully for the automaker, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has already stripped away the camo and given us a proper look, well in advance of the official August 28 debut.
The #5 is an important model for Smart because it’s aiming to steal sales away from the Tesla Model Y, the world’s most popular car in 2023. A two-row, upright, all-electric SUV with similar proportions to a Mercedes GLB, the #5 rides on a 2,900 mm (114.2 inches) wheelbase according to MIIT data, meaning it’s as big as a BMW X3 or Model Y, and dwarfs its #3 little brother.
Related: Meet The Production Smart #5 Electric SUV With Up To 637 HP
Smart’s teaser campaign shows multiple sketches of the #5 in which the SUV looks very similar to the Concept #5 unveiled at the Beijing Auto Show back in April. Some of the images even show LED roof lights and pannier boxes on the C-pillar, and in every one the fat wheels are pushed right out to the very edge of the swollen fenders. As is often the case, the reality isn’t quite as exciting.
But that’s not to say the #5 looks dull. We think its looks great, and having seen the finished article without any disguise and in multiple trim configurations courtesy of the MIIT, we feel confident saying that before the covers officially come off later this month. Neither the MIIT images, the teaser sketches or the shots of the prototypes gives us a look inside, but spy shots we ran in April revealed a massive digital screen that extended across to the passenger side, a setup also used on the concept.
Smart tells us nothing about the powertrain mix in its latest release, but we can again refer back to the China drop and also what Smart said about the Concept #5 to help fill in the blanks. The MIIT says four motor options are on the menu, the first two offering 335 hp (250 kW / 340 PS) or 358 hp (267 kW / 363 PS) from a single, rear-mounted electric motor and drawing juice form an LFP battery.
The remaining two options use NMC batteries and pair a 221 hp (165 kW / 224 PS) front-mounted electric motor with either a 358 hp (267 kW / 363 PS) or 416 hp (310 kW / 422 PS) rear unit. The top-spec #5 will crank out up to 637 hp (475 kW / 646 PS), and at the concept’s launch Smart mentioned a 341-mile (549 km) range and said 800-volt tech allows a 100 kWh battery to recharge from 10-80% in just 15 minutes.
We don’t have long to wait now to find out the true range and how fast that 637 hp range-topper goes. The #5’s premiere is in Brisbane, Australia, on August 28.
