Another electric car brand is headed to Australia this year.
Smart is back after exiting our shores about a decade ago. Gone are the micro cars of the first instalment and in their place are a range of city-focused electric cars produced by a joint venture with Mercedes-Benz and Geely in China.
The Smart #1 and Smart #3 are confirmed to arrive in Australia in the third quarter of this year.
The #1 and #3 are built on the same platform but the #1 is a conventionally shaped compact SUV and the #3 is a coupe-style SUV of the same size.
Both use a 66kWh lithium-ion battery that delivers a driving range of up to 440km on a single charge.
They use a single electric motor that sends 200kW and 343Nm to the rear wheels.
An all-wheel-drive performance version wearing the Brabus badge is available overseas.
Smart hasn’t revealed prices yet but it’s expected to have an entry price that is highly competitive with current non-premium EV offerings of similar size.
This could point to a circa-$50,000 starting point to match the BYD Atto 3.
The Smart #1 is a conventionally shaped compact SUV.
Smart has set up its own operations in Australia and will sell the vehicles through LSH Auto Australia, a network of dealers in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane that currently distribute Mercedes-Benz products.
Global Chief Marketing Officer of Smart Mandy Zhang said the brand is planning a global expansion.
“The Australian market holds significant potential for growth, and with LSH Auto Australia’s extensive local resources and expertise, we are excited to join hands,” said Zhang.
The Federal Government’s new National Vehicle Efficiency Standard is a big reason for Smart re-entering our market.
Under the new legislation car brands will be fined for every vehicle they sell that emit CO2 over a certain level, which will make petrol and diesel cars more expensive and EVs more competitive.
Smart is the latest of many EV brands out of China to announce its headed our way.
This includes GAC, Leapmotor, Skywell, Xpeng and Zeekr.
Geely has a wide portfolio of electric cars. It owns Volvo and Polestar, which are both available in Australia, and its Zeekr brand will be here by the end of the year.
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