In April, Smart announced its return to its roots with a new vehicle that serves as the spiritual successor to the iconic Smart ForTwo city car. Shortly thereafter, the company unveiled the Concept #2, offering insights into the forthcoming production model.
Today, Smart revealed that the #2 is currently undergoing extensive global testing in preparation for its world premiere at the Paris Motor Show this October.
The testing aims to ensure that the newly reinvented two-seater city car delivers exceptional urban agility, driving stability, and uncompromising safety. The car's performance was evaluated against various real-world urban challenges, including unexpected obstacles, emergency lane changes, and low-grip surfaces.
To maintain stability, responsiveness, and agility, the engineers have focused on refining the chassis hard points, steering ratio, rack travel, and suspension movement control. Additionally, the vehicle was subjected to thorough NVH (noise, vibration, and harshness) validation testing across diverse environments.
The Smart #2 underwent testing with various tire compounds on rough asphalt, grooved concrete, and high-speed straights to achieve an optimal balance between range and noise reduction. The vehicle also faced demanding durability tests on bumpy roads, including deep potholes.
The transition from concept car to production model involved collaboration between the Mercedes-Benz design team and Smart's R&D teams.
