Smart #1 Premium
Living with this small electric SUV has done nothing to change our minds; it’s still among the best of its breed
The #1’s looks drew almost universal acclaim, and Mark was mostly impressed with his car’s spacious, high-quality interior. The boot proved only barely big enough, though
Mark Pearson mark.pearson@haymarket.com
THE TROUBLE WITH trying to evaluate my Smart #1 is that it’s too easy to get wrapped up in talking about its cheeky styling. Admittedly, looks are a subjective thing, but all who saw my car and felt obliged to comment mentioned the exterior design, with these people expressing almost universal approval for its deliberately cheery and cartoon-like lines.
For what it’s worth, I approve of its appearance too, but I chose to run a #1 as my company car because I was more interested in finding out if Smart’s much-lauded relaunch and move upmarket had been successful. And I’m pleased to report that on the whole, the answer is, yes, it has. This car fulfilled pretty much all I hoped and asked of it in daily use – albeit with a few important caveats.