The new smart ForFour Electric Drive is the all-electric version of the popular city car. It seats four people, looks great and has an official range of 96 miles.
There isn’t much to gripe about the way the Smart ForFour ED drives. Its 60 kW electric motor develops a fairly modest 80 bhp, but because it delivers all of its power in an instant, it always feels brisk and zippy.This is exactly what you need in urban settings and, thanks also to the car’s light steering and tight 9.0 metre turning circle, the ForFour ED is right at home in towns and cities.
The 0–62 sprint is dispensed in just 12.7 seconds, you have to remember that, because the car delivers all of its power instantly, it feels quicker than those numbers suggest. As such, the Smart car makes light work of pulling away from traffic, junctions and roundabouts, and takes just 5.5 seconds to complete the 0–37 mph dash.Moreover, there is 160 Nm of torque available which helps with sprightly performance in and about the towns and cities.
The ForFour ED supports the 7 kW charging standard at best, meaning that the 17.6 kWh cell takes 2.5 hours to charge to 80 per cent. Smart says the car has been updated to 22 kW .Charging the car takes 6 hours to recharge it from 20%- 100% using the the three-pin plug in car park near you .However, the recharge time drops to 2.5 hours when you use a fast charger. The motor draws its power from a lithium ion drive battery housed under the cabin floor, with 17.6 kWh.
Ride quality is good, and the car is also significantly more composed than a Smart ForFour has been in the past. Lumps and bumps are for the most part nicely smoothed over, although you will still feel a crash if you hit a bigger pothole at speed.On the whole, the car is a lively, entertaining companion that will keep you company on the commute to work, as well as weekend outings.
Smart has tried to make the cabin as upmarket as possible. They’ve also tried to make it look and feel like a conventional car, and to a large extent, they’ve succeeded on both fronts. Although buyers might squirm at the sight of one or two harder plastics here and there, quality, on the whole, is good. Leather upholstery comes as standard, as do heated front seats.
The fixtures and fittings are the same ones as used in the standard model, although the pod dials on the dashboard here are new. The materials, on the whole, are of a high quality and feel robust, while a 7 inch infotainment system is easy to use.If comfort is your priority then get the 16 inch option and stick to the standard wheels. The boot is however, small hence you will be able to carry few thing on transit.
Some of the safety features and equipment found in the smart ForFour include: standard kit which is in good shape, a 7 inch infotainment system, leather upholstery, a two-piece panoramic roof, heated front seats, electric mirrors, LED daytime running lamps and halogen LED headlights.There is also an extra cabin insulation.Other optional extras include an electric drive design pack, which gets you 16 inch alloys and a white radiator grille.
