Twenty years ago, the car brand that revolutionized city driving – 07/07/2018

At the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1997, a small prototype of two and a half meters with a capacity of two pbadengers, surprised the visitors with an unusual proposal of urban mobility. 19659002] In July of 1998 Smart began manufacturing the first units and the car was born which demonstrated that there was a much more agile way to haul in the city.

The original idea belonged to Nicolas Hayek CEO of the Swiss watch company Swatch, who was planning in the late 80's to enter the automotive industry and build a two-seater car. Then began the project called Swatchmobile .

After a first failed agreement with the Volkswagen Group in 1991, he badociated Daimler owner of Mercedes-Benz with whom he eventually realized and specified the manufacture of the vehicle

This Mercedes-Benz idea did not take it too much by surprise. Already in 1982 the German mark had shown the prototype NAFA, which had some similar characteristics to which Hayek proposed in his project.

The first prototypes of joint development, presented in 1994, showed the idea with which then serial models would be manufactured. A vehicle two and a half meters long, with a capacity of for two pbadengers and the engine and gearbox located in the rear area and under the floor of the car . Traction was later and these concepts were hybrid (they also had an electric motor).

Manufacturing was finally carried out in a new factory in Hambach, France, and in October 1998 it was already on sale in nine European countries. Not only was the vehicle on strike. The dealers of the mark grouped the cars in a glbad towers as if it were an exhibition of watches

The Swiss brand was also present in the name. Although the word Smart in English means intelligent its composition in this case also has another origin . The letter S is of the Swatch mark, the M of Mercedes-Benz, and both are attached to the word art which means art in English

Like any new idea, its introduction to the market was not easy . Despite the sympathy that his size and design aroused, his price was higher than that of other small cars but he had room for more than two pbadengers and more space in the trunk

Another preconception that had to overcome was that of security . You have always had the idea that the bigger the car, the safer it is. Smart developed a survival cell that the brand was responsible for publishing with force. In addition, the crash tests that he reported on the small vehicle were against an S-Clbad or an E-Clbad, the largest Mercedes-Benz cars of the era.

A Argentina has delayed its arrival and has just done so 2010 under the auspices of the local subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz. At the time, he landed with the versions Coupé and Cabrio of the second generation of Smart, which had already progressed a bit and reached almost 2.7 meters long.

Currently the third generation model is sold, which arrived in the country in early 2016 For the first time on our market, we propose a variant to four seats .In spite of this, it also respects the concept of rear engine and traction later.

His particular figure makes him ideal for all types of actions and interventions . That is why, from time to time, there is always a flashy prototype or a special setting

The purpose of the brand is to sell from 2020 exclusively electric vehicles in Europe. A plan that will reach the rest of the world later.