At yesterday's (Sunday, 21-April 2024) KL Car Free Morning, Smart Malaysia held the first public preview of the upcoming Smart #3 battery electric vehicle (BEV) in the country.
The larger sibling to the #1, the #3 is the second model to emerge from the Smart Automobile tie-up between Geely and Mercedes-Benz.
Previous reports point that the model is to launch here after China and Europe; development work should be well underway considering the example pictured is right hand drive (RHD).
Launch timelines and indicative pricing were not shared at the moment.
Woven from the same Geely Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) platform as the #1, the #3 more power and longer range over its #1 stablemate.
A 272 PS/343 Nm electric motor is standard while the Brabus' twin-motor (all-wheel drive) variant will get a 428 PS/543 Nm combined output. Range has gone up a bit too, between 415 and 455 km now on a single charge; an improvement partly brought upon by a slippery body that has a drag coefficient of 0.27 cD. All variants are powered by a 66 kWh lithium nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) battery.
Charging is quick, taking under 30 minutes to go from 10 to 80 percent using 150 kWh DC fast-charging. AC charging is up to a maximum 22 kWh that promises a sub-3 hour charging time to get from 10 to 80 percent.
Prices for the Smart #3 in Europe hovers around the € 43,490 (~RM 221k) to € 50,990 (~RM 260k) range. For comparison, the Smart #1 ranges from € 41,490 (~RM 216k) to € 48,990 (~RM 250k).
With humble beginnings collecting diecast models and spending hours virtually tuning dream cars on the computer, his love of cars has delightfully transformed into a career. Sanjay enjoys how the same passion for cars transcends boundaries and brings people together.
