July 1998 was an eventful time for our world – France beat Brazil to win the World Cup on their home turf, the Monica Lewinsky scandal raged on at the White House, the UK banned the importation of landmines and the smart fortwo, a vehicle with true cult status, was born.
It’s fair to say a few eyebrows were raised when the two-seater smart fortwo made its first appearance with its distinctive design and a promise to be a more intelligent driving solution. However, with sales of the vehicle approaching the one million mark it’s difficult to argue with its success.
One of the key reasons the smart fortwo has broken out is because of its success as a green car. According to smart it is the ‘world champion’ for low CO2 emissions.
The smart fortwo cdi’s 33 kW/45 hp two-seater consumes an average of 3.3 litres of fuel per 100 kilometres and can travel for about 1,000 kilometres before having to be refuelled. With CO2 emissions at 88g/km smart claims that the fortwo has the lowest CO2 emissions of a series production vehicle in the world.
Despite its success the company is not resting on its laurels. Last year it launched a pilot scheme in London with selected fleet customers testing 100 smart fortwo electric drive vehicles to determine how they perform under every day use. Currently the manufacturer is working on an electric-drive vehicle with lithium-ion batteries which it plans to launch in 2010.
So happy birthday smart – and here’s to many more successful innovations for the future.
