What is smart?
smart gmbh (www.smart.com) is a business unit of DaimlerChrysler located in Böblingen, Germany. As a premium small car manufacturer, the company is part of the Mercedes Car Group and has more than 2,000 employees. In 2002, 122,300 smart cars were sold with total sales of 1.1 billion euro. smart is currently available in almost 30 markets throughout the world. After launching the smart city-coupé in 1998, smart is now on its way to becoming a multi-product brand. In 2004 the new four-seater smart forfour will be launched and a SUV version will be produced in the Brazilian facility, Juiz de Fora, start of 2006. This unique smart vehicle, developed for the American market, will go on sale in the United States in 2006.

Are there photos available of this SUV version of smart forfour?
No. It is far more than another two years until the market entry in the US. This is a very long timeframe in the development of a new vehicle and therefore the design and appearance of the car is not finalized so far.

Will the whole model range of smart cars be available in the USA?
We plan to launch a variant of the smart forfour onto the US-American market in 2006. However we are not planning to introduce the current model range (smart city-coupé, cabrio, crossblade, roadster, roadster-coupé) and smart forfour there. Decisions will be reached concerning each specific vehicle in relation to the US launch of future smart models which could be available on the market after 2006.

How many countries are smart brand cars now available in?
smart is now represented in 28 markets (status: October 2003). Further markets will follow up to the end of the year, so that smart cars will then be available in over 30 countries around the world.

Are smart cars available in other markets on the American continent?
The official arrival of smart on the Mexican market in August 2003 marked the company's first step on the American continent and the economically significant NAFTA region (North American Free Trade Agreement). smart entered the Mexican market with seven distribution centres. Discussions are presently being held concerning a possible market launch of the smart city-coupé with cdi engine in Canada.

Why do you show cars which won’t be available in the US during the New York City Marathon?
For smart, the top priority in all developments and decisions in the product drive is the transfer of the smart brand DNA and family genes to all new models. All present and future cars made by smart will reflect the key brand values which are embodied in the smart city-coupé as the nucleus of the brand. We are for this reason now revealing the smart city-coupé in New York (around three years prior to the market launch) to demonstrate the emotional qualities and uniqueness of the smart brand and its products to the public. The mentioned key product values of smart are the tridion safety cell, the unusual design, the two colour and two material concept and the typical smart driving pleasure. Every car of the smart brand possesses these four genes. They form the basis for the smart brand DNA, which is characterised by functionality, innovation and joie de vivre.

What is the "tridion safety cell"?
The tridion safety cell forms the core element of the body of each smart car. It is manufactured exclusively from high-tensile steel and creates a cage-like safety structure for the occupants. The tridion safety cell makes the smart city-coupé one of the safest of small cars with regard to its crash safety characteristics. This has been confirmed by numerous crash tests conducted in Europe.

What is the "two material concept"?
The body of all smart cars is distinguished by the two material concept. The high-tensile steel tridion safety cell is combined with body panelling made of recyclable plastic. This plastic is light, thus reducing vehicle weight. It is non-corrosive and exhibits greater resistance to minor bumps received during parking and scratches when compared with sheet metal.