What's the news?

Smart has launched all-new versions of its diminutive fortwo city car and its sibling, the forfour. The former is pretty much the same concept as before, with a new look and plenty of improvements, while the four-door model adopts the rear-engined layout.

Exterior

Dimensionally the new Smart fortwo is very similar to the model it replaces, with length remaining unchanged at 2.69 metres, while width has grown by 100mm in order to make the cabin feel slightly less cramped for both occupants. The tridion cell remains a key part of the car's exterior styling and in keeping with Smart's philosophy of personalisation, can now be ordered in a greater variety of colours. The lengthy doors remain, taking on a more contoured surface and a less flimsy feel than before.

Undoubtedly the most significant aesthetic feature of the new Smart fortwo is the front-end, which although retaining the minimal overhang design has more character and gives the car a friendly 'face'. Around the rear, a more rounded appearance has been created. The split folding tailgate remains, with boot space totalling 350 litres. Larger rear lights help to give the impression of the car being wider and they round off what is a much improved exterior design.

The fortwo's bigger brother, the forfour, receives a far more comprehensive design overhaul and takes on more similarities with the smaller car appearing more like a four-door version of it than before. An extended version of the tridion cell again plays a key part in the car's image, which overall is more conventional than its predecessor with both front- and rear-end designs aping those of the fortwo. Unlike the fortwo, the forfour has a single-section tailgate that opens to reveal a total carry capacity of 975 litres if the rear seats are folded down.

Interior

Smart has placed a big emphasis on improving the interior look and feel of both the fortwo and forfour. Strong use of two-tone colours adds plenty of brightness to the cabin and if chosen wisely could make it look very, well, smart. Depending on trim level, the centre console can feature a large touchscreen infotainment display, which can be used for functions like satellite navigation. Many of the ancillary controls have been clustered together into one nicely designed unit that sits just ahead of the gear selector.

In both models the driving position doesn't seem to be overly tight, and those additional 10 centimetres of width in the cabin are noticeable. The front seats look sporty and offer reasonable levels of support while rear passengers in the forfour won't feel too cramped. Longer journeys might not be too popular with adults in the rear, but the car is well sized for smaller children.

Mechanicals

Buyers will have a choice of two three-cylinder engines; a naturally aspirated 71hp 999cc unit and a more powerful turbocharged 898cc engine that produces 90hp. Thanks to an electronically controlled waste gate, the turbocharged engine offers increased power with reduced emissions. With 135Nm of torque from the turbocharged engine, the Smart fortwo should feel nippy and should help the forfour when carrying four occupants. Both engines will also feature start-stop as standard and further down the line Smart will introduce a third engine option that will be naturally aspirated, producing 60hp.

Smart will also offer five-speed manual or six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmissions. The latter replaces the old robotised manual gearbox, which was often criticised for lurching between gear changes.

On the safety side of things, both cars will be fitted with Crosswind Assist as standard. This operates at speeds above 50mph and can automatically apply specific braking intervention when it detects that the vehicle is about to suddenly drift off track, thus reducing the potential level of counter steer input required by the driver. As an option, a forward collision detection system can also be ordered alerting the driver to potentially dangerous situations by continuously monitoring the vehicle ahead and closing speeds. Another option that will be available to buyers will be an audible Lane Keeping Assist system that uses a camera to detect if the car is unintentionally drifting out of its lane.

Anything else?

When it comes to city and town driving, making a quick U-turn is sometimes needed. Thankfully the Smart fortwo sets a new benchmark for turning circles with a tiny 6.96 metres from kerb-to-kerb. More impressively, the new forfour turns in almost the same area that the previous fortwo did - just 8.65 metres from kerb-to-kerb.

Dave Humphreys - 17 Jul 2014