Sports Car Modification

The Smart is producer of one of the worldwide most economical and environmentally friendly cars: the smart fortwo. The brand takes advantages by using alternative technologies to develop even more ecologically friendly vehicles. The smart fortwo electric drive demonstrates the pioneering role of the young car brand. As an electric car it is locally emission-free, highly efficient and quite. It represents sustainability at its highest level. At the End of 2009, smart will start the production of the smart fortwo electric drive with a lithium-ion battery. The company is exploring opportunities for the United States market.

Lithium-ion battery technology
The smart fortwo electric drive series will be equipped with a state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery. Lithium-ion technology has decisive advantages over other type of batteries, including its compact dimensions, high performance, shorter charging times an higher reliability.

London pilot project
In 2007, smart started a pilot project in London, England to test the smart fortwo electric drive vehicle. smart leased 100 electric smarts of the former series to gain real world experience and determine the technology's long-term sustainability. The project has proven to be very successful with customers giving very encouraging feedback. In addition, the English authorities have rewarded smart's commitment by exempting drivers of electric smart vehicle from the expensive London congestion charge.

London was selected as the perfect test city due to its high populations and infrastructure density, which has resulted in high traffic, parking shortages, severe noise and pollution. Participation in the project was first offered to companies that operate their own vehicle fleets and those who drive in inner city areas.

The majority of the customers approached smart to participate in the London project. Participants lease the electric smart for four years or 40,000 miles, and the project will officially run until 2012.


"e-mobility Berlin"
In addition to the London test program, smart is consistently working on the future development of electric drive technology. In September 2008, with the support of the German government and the state of Berlin, Daimler AG and the energy provider RWE introduced the "e-mobility Berlin" project. The two companies are jointly creating the conditions for zero emissions with battery electric drives, which is the world's largest initiative in this field to date.

RWE is providing 500 electricity charging stations and Daimler is contribution 100 electric vehicles. Both companies aim to create an intelligent system, and the first joint tests are scheduled for the spring of 2009.
Additionally, an "on-board unit" is being developed that will communicate with charging stations to ensure that the battery is automatically charged with low-priced electricity when the network is not used to full capacity, for example at off-peak times.

"e-mobility Italy"
Daimler AG is launching its next electric mobility project in cooperation with Enel, Italy's largest energy supplier. In 2010, the "e-mobility Italy" initiative will see more than 100 electric cars of the smart and Mercedes-Benz brands roll onto the streets of Rome, Milan and Pisa. Enel will be responsible for developing and setting up over 400 charging stations especially for this purpose in the three cities. The project aims to further develop automotive technology and an intelligent infrastructure, and also establish open standards. Infrastructure is a particularly important issue in Italy, where the majority of vehicles are parked in city streets.

Evonik and Daimler establish strategic alliance for the development and production of lithium-ion batteries
Evonik Industries AG, Essen and Daimler AG, Stuttgart are developing the energy storage of the future. Based on lithium-ion technology from Evonik and with Daimler expertise, both groups will drive forward the research, development and production of battery cells and battery systems in Germany. In the near future, Li-Tec cells will appear in electric vehicles of smart and Mercedes-Benz Cars. This will represent an important milestone in the series production of electric vehicles. En route to achieving its technological leadership in recent years, Evonik has invested around 80 million Euros. The outcome is production-ready hi-tech battery cells that are superior to competitor products in several key areas.

On 15 December 2008, Daimler AG took over 49.9 percent of Li-Tec Vermögensverwaltung GmbH (Li-Tec). Evonik Industries AG already holds 50.1 percent. Both partners are seeking the involvement of a third shareholder in Li-Tec with expertise in electrical and electronic systems integration. Furthermore, the companies will also establish a joint venture with a clear focus on the development and production of batteries and battery systems for automotive applications. Daimler will hold 90 percent of this joint venture, and Evonik 10 percent.

The lithium-ion batteries produced by the joint venture will be used in both the passenger car and commercial vehicle sectors. The capacity available at Li-Tec and the joint venture will initially concentrate on the needs of Daimler AG. Beyond that, the sale of cells and battery systems to third parties is planned.

The Smart Roadster is a two-door microcar first introduced in 2003 by Smart GmbH. Unfortunately, sales of the Roadster and Roadster Coupé were far below expectations, resulting in a halt of production of both models in November 2005.

History
At the 1998 Paris Motor Show, the two-seat, 2.5-metre Smart City Coupe (later named Smart Fortwo) was launched. This was the beginning of a new car brand and one of the more radical vehicle concepts to hit the European market since the bubble cars of the 1950s. It was also the beginning of a difficult period for Smart. The City Coupe had stability problems that were uncovered only immediately prior to launch. These forced a package of alterations to be made that were both expensive and compromised the car’s handling, ride and gear shift. Public concerns over the car's stability, combined with Smart’s elitist marketing and the sheer radicality of the car’s design, proved damaging to initial sales.
Design & Development
Under design director Jens Manske in autumn 1998, Smart's 14-strong design and engineering team began to sketch possible future Smart cars. They soon realised that the powertrain of the City Coupe was ideal for a small sports car, with a compact turbo engine driving the rear wheels via a sequential 6 speed gearbox.

By early 2000 the Smart City Coupe had finally started to gain sales momentum, with its cabrio version making a significant addition to total Smart sales. In March Mauer left Smart for Saab, succeeded by Hartmut Sinkwitz in May. As the third design director of Smart during the Roadster's development, Sinkwitz had to bring the concept to production in a very short time. This task may have been made somewhat easier by the Roadster having been designed from the start to use existing powertrain and other City Coupe components. Given some of the advanced design features, it is a credit to the design team that so much of the concept car made it to production.
Concept Car
the ‘Roadster Coupe’ as shown at the 2000 Paris motor show was already on its way to production form. It shared the design of the Roadster from the doors forward, but had a glass targa roof and rear structure resembling a very small estate (station wagon) in the same way as the BMW Z3 coupe and the Saab 9X concept car developed under Mauer at Saab a few years later.
Production
The Smart Roadster and Roadster Coupé were introduced in 2003, based on a stretched platform of the Fortwo (full length is 3427 mm). The two variants are meant to be reminiscent of the British roadster of yore, such as the Triumph Spitfire or the MG B. Both the Roadster and Roadster Coupé are available with a removable Targa roof or an electrical Softtop. The Roadster is powered by 45 or 60 kW (61 or 82 PS) versions of the turbocharged 3-cylinder engine in the rear, which is engineered by Mercedes Benz. The Roadster Coupé has only the more powerful 82 PS engine. A steering wheel with Formula 1-style gearpaddles, to control the semi-automatic sequential transmission, is optional. With weight as low as 790 kg, it is meant to provide the emotion of driving a sports car at an affordable cost. Still, the Roadster's price is not very far from that of a Fiat Barchetta or Mazda MX-5.
Both the Roadster and Roadster Coupé are available in Brabus-tuned versions with power increased to 74 kW (101 PS). The Brabus versions have a different twin sports exhaust, lower suspension, polished six-spoke aluminum alloy Monoblock VI 17" wheels, front spoiler, side skirts and radiator grille. Exclusive Brabus interior includes leather trimmed dashboard, alloy-effect accent parts, instrument graphics, leather/aluminium gearknob, aluminium handbrake handle, aluminium pedals and Brabus labeled floor mats.