Diesel drive is financially still the best alternative

There’s no doubt that smart is capable of coming up with – and potentially also launching onto the market – alternative drives such as hybrid, electric and gas. Indeed, for certain applications, these drive types represent a very realistic alternative. To what extent and by when exactly an alternative drive will be available for the smart fortwo or the smart forfour has, however, not yet been decided.

The demand for these alternative drive types will depend on such factors as the additional cost of the drive itself, the vehicle’s fuel consumption, the price of the respective fuel, and the annual mileage of the vehicle. In short, it is ultimately the customer’s wallet that will be decisive – and that’s true in the small car segment more than any other.

Already ahead of the pack: the smart fortwo cdi is the world’s best-selling “three-litre” car

It’s a fact: with the smart fortwo cdi and the smart forfour cdi, smart already offers vehicles that consume a very small amount of fuel indeed. The smart forfour cdi consumes just 4.6 litres of fuel per 100 kilometres (NEDC) under standard conditions, or a mere 4.4 litres in the case of vehicles with automated manual transmission.

With sales of more than 140,000 cars to date, the smart fortwo cdi is by far the most successful “three litre” car (i.e. consuming less than four litres of fuel per 100 km) worldwide. The diesel version of this two-seater uses just 3.4 litres per 100 kilometres (new European driving cycle). So smart’s impressive sales record hardly comes as a surprise: at smart, environmental issues and economic reality go hand in hand.

Diesel particle filter: still unique in the micro car segment

From spring 2006, the smart fortwo cdi and the smart forfour cdi will be available with diesel particle filters. Up until that time, all customers in Germany and Austria who opt for a smart fortwo cdi or a smart forfour cdi will receive a voucher entitling them to have a diesel particle filter retrofitted to their vehicle free of charge.

That makes smart one of the first car manufacturers in the small car segment to offer its customers a diesel particle filter. We are also still the only manufacturer in the micro car segment to offer this feature, which is fully in line with smart’s aim of providing its customers with innovation, functionality and joie de vivre.