Sporty design and power train
Already from the presentation 2 Months ago we know the technical specs: The vehicle is a bit lower, but a bit longer and wider than the #1 (L/W/H/WB: 4400/1844/1556/2785). The #1 has been slightly lengthened to become a #3. But the motors remain the same. The rear-wheel drive variant has 200 kW and the all-wheel drive version with BRABUS drive comes with 315 kW. smart China themself are mostly showing of how sporty the #3 is.
With the smart #3 the brand gos up in the vehicle segment and is even more luxurious. Apparently there is also a version with a length of 4.5 meters. But what this is or will be is also unclear. It is referred to in homogolation as a "special traction device". Maybe a version with a longer wheelbase, which is something rather popular in China.
Battery and charging capacity same as with the #1
Like the #1, the smart #3 has a 66 kWh battery and can charge via the standard AC charger with 22 kW and DC with up to 150 kW. This means that the battery can be charged from 10% to 80% in less than 30 minutes during the quick charge process. Thanks to the better streamlining, the #3 beats the CW value of the #1 of 0.29 and achieves an even better range with its 0.27. A real 350 km should be realistic.
More luxurious and more expensive than the #1
In China, the #3 starts with a base price of 209.900 CN¥ and is available as a BRABUS at 289.900 CN¥. But putting that 1:1 into a converter gives false hope for prices in Europe. The cars still have to be shipped to Europe and are technically even better equipped in some cases. In the case of the smart #1, it turned out that in Europe it has additional airbags compared to the Chinese variant.
If you take the price differences between the #1 in China and in Germany as a basis, then you can draw a first conclusion about prices in Europe for the #3. Accordingly, 44.900 € for the Pro+, 47.900 € for the Premium and 54.900 € for the BRABUS would be could be what they will cost here.
The smart BRABUS #3 itself is also limited to 1,999 vehicles in China for 2024. If you still want four-wheel drive, you have to switch to the Pulse. This costs 239,900 CN¥ in China, but since there is no European #1 with this variant, I have no idea how it could be priced here.
Although the #3 is more expensive than the #1, it also looks sportier and the interior is even more luxurious than the #1. It also offers a slightly larger trunk and quite unique colors in its already iconic orange and matte light blue.
Cheaper basic equipment and deliveries of the #3 in Europe
It is still unclear whether and when further equipment variants will come for the #1 and #3. In China there is already a basic variant for the #1, which offers a 49 kWh battery and also saves on the additional equipment. But the large infotainment retains. So that the price/performance ratio of #1 is even better. Rumor has it that such a variant is coming to us for the #1 in the summer of this year and could come to Germany for the #3 in the summer of next year. In addition, there is an all-wheel drive variant for the #1 in China with about the same performance as the BRABUS, but without BRABUS logos or BRABUS-specific details. Nothing is known about this in Europe. According to the presentation today, the Pulse needs 4.3 seconds to 100 km/h, while the BRABUS manages the sprint in 3.6 seconds. The variants with rear-wheel drive are specified with 5.4 seconds.
smart is currently announcing deliveries of the #3 by the end of the year here in Europe. Since they did the same thing with #1 last year, I would realistically expect deliveries in early 2024.
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