NEW Smart #1 EV SUV review - Top 10 things to know | What Car?

#WhatCar #Smart #EVReview
Forget what you know. This is the Smart #1 (Hashtag One) - and it is NOTHING like any Smart that has come before it. Which is good, to be honest... But what's this new fully electric SUV like? And is it better than a Cupra Born? Watch to find out.
Chapters
00:26 - 1. Background
01:57 - 2. Rivals
02:21 - 3. Interior
04:04 - 4. Practicality
05:19 - 5. Range
05:46 - 6. Charging
06:13 - 7. Driving
08:48 - 8. BEST THING
08:57 - 9. WORST THING
09:01 - 10. Pricing
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[@garrycroft4215]

I’m buying the Smart #1 Brabus so I’m biased but you didn’t do it justice in explaining why it has so much kit it looks like a real bargain.. 13 speaker stereo, electric tailgate, heads-up display, lane keeping assist, auto overtaking, 360 cameras, automatic self parking, full panoramic roof with electric blind, the 22kw onboard AC charger is a game changer at this price, dog mode, heat pump, refrigerated cooler box, matrix led lights, auto closing grill, plus all the obvious things like electric and heated seats, isofix including front passenger seat, adaptive cruise control , full width front and rear light bars. Only the base model doesn’t have all this kit. Oh it has 75% over the air updates. There’s more but I don’t want to hurt your head.😮Oh and VTL

[@MaticTheProto]

and one of the fastest processors on the market

[@mikebarry229]

And apparently 1600kg towing capacity which is pretty rare in an ev

[@garrycroft4215]

@@mikebarry229 yes it does I forgot that, it has so much kit it’s amazing I can’t wait to order the #1 Brabus. Possibly next month with UK delivery from September fingers crossed. I might be mad but I have already got Brabus number plate holders, Brabus tee shirt €85 Brabus team jacket €175 direct from Brabus Germany. 🤣

[@MaticTheProto]

@@mikebarry229 yup

[@greyjamiesod4989]

thank you

[@ilkosamodivkin2395]

Would never agree that 453 EQ is one of the worst because of the low range. For me it is perfect for the city and I don't need long range....ever!

[@ericvet8b]

I like it!!! Hopefully stays at that price in UK with quite a lot of equipment. It looks like a funky small EQA at the rear

[@midknight2K]

£38K is a rip off for any car

[@taomahNEGEV]

An excellent review. Finally a Smart of good quality. Still overpriced by Mercedes. I wonder how it compares to the Volvo EX30.

[@supersonic79]

Looks nice 👍🏻 Standard version sounds plenty powerful enough.

[@cultserpent4501]

JUST WOW, look at the interior aesthetics of this vehicle... FINALLY someone created a GOOD LOOKING interior. Im totally amazed with the aesthetics of this, im legit interested in buying one mainly due to the interior looks..

[@pixelfotografie]

4:36 there is a mistake: boot space of smart #1 is 373 liters

[@runnerball9123]

Personally I’m not struck on the interface as it’s a bit too cartoonish and in my opinion not in keeping with the relatively sophisticated look of the rest of the car. On the plus side that’s only software and I guess could be changed but then again some might like it. At the end of the day it’s nice to have another new car to consider!

[@willmac5642]

How does it compare to slightly smaller Ora Good Cat GT? Sub 7 seconds 0-100 and 500 km range

[@willcookmakeup]

Will this be coming to the States?

[@Carwizzard]

Great review, and congrats on all your content, and good work you put in creating your videos. Just one small remark, if I’m allowed. When stating the range, in ev’s, could you also mention it in kilometres next to miles? Your viewers (like myself) are not only UK based, so it would make our lives easier.😊 Thanks

[@BHBeckenbauer]

Frunk is clearly designed to hold the cables…

[@ivo4357]

why does everyone keep discussing the name? What's so weird about #1? Either call it 'hashtag', 'number' or just plain '1', what's the problem there? For example, would you rather say Toyota bZ4X or Smart #1? To me at least the second sounds cooler and easier to say.

[@josiahrey1544]

I’m cracking up every time he says hashtag 1!! 😂😂 Has the world forgotten that # means “number” when next to a number?! Or have the younger generations been oblivious of this prior use?? It definitely sounds better when you say Smart NUMBER one! 😅

[@GurungyNoHamuster]

It is Smart who insist on "hashtag", and as you say... it's wrong.

[@aacmove]

Just wait for the #2 or will that apply to all EVs with ridiculous prices?

[@taomahNEGEV]

Will you test it against Cupra Born and Volvo EX30?

[@francisdoran971]

Can it tow? Or take roof bars. How big is the boot with the seats slid forward? Pity the boot is so small. Nissan micra's is bigger. Maybe the Volvo version will have a better boot.

[@SNORKYMEDIA]

if that ends up being the price I cant see why you would buy this.....

[@tooflesstesla]

At 05:16, you can fit far more that "just about one high-vis jacket" in the 15L frunk! Don't sell the frunk short 😄👍

[@kimsudara7780]

It's beautiful car, is it for sell?

[@kingoneeyed3433]

Looks like a Hotpoint, which is ideal for people who don't like real cars.

[@morreamanha]

imaginary cars are the best 💗

[@midknight2K]

Smart Cars have always made a small space on the outside, much bigger on the inside, as a 6 1/2 foot person could sit in it and it was comfortable . And it was Swatch and Daimler-Benz who made the 1st series of smart car. Then Daimler-Benz decided to not have the fun in the cars anymore so Swatch pulled out.

[@hoaiphuongthan4956]

Hi 🎉 Do you know their battery manufacturer name?

[@Panagiotis_Pap]

Which is the top speed for the normal and brabus version please?

[@just4therecord]

180kmh for both

[@Panagiotis_Pap]

@@just4therecord Thank you

[@aye3678]

What location did you shoot this review? Scenery is beautiful!

[@thejecs8]

Portugal ;) looks like Leiria's coastline, but I'm not sure about it, but the roads, the tone of the ocean and the vibrant colours are typically Portuguese (trust me, I live in this country for over 28 years)

[@pedrobrigas]

Preety sure its Cascais (more exactly around Guincho) and Serra de Sintra in Portugal. Lots of international car launches happen in the area.

[@just4therecord]

It’s Lisbon near the Ponte 25 de Abril

[@thejecs8]

@@pedrobrigas tens razão, reparei agora nas placas de indicação, se bem que também lembre São Pedro de Moel

[@nr5494]

I’d have to put a sticker over that fox, and I don’t like the button down roof. The froot would surely be a much better place to store the charge cable than under the boot floor though.

[@frankcheung99]

This car looks excellent! Sadly it's not coming to the USA...

[@Najeebster]

Great ‘hashtag’ review 😀 I’m assuming CarPlay & Android Auto are standard so Chinese-inspired UI doesn’t bother me. I would have interested to know more about creature comforts (USB C?, heated seats, reversing camera, etc) but Asian cars are usually very well equipped. Priced right with a decent warranty and stable software this could give the ID3 a right kick in the balls

[@onlyrgu]

In an another review, i heard CarPlay & Android Auto is not an option ATM.

[@MaticTheProto]

@@onlyrgu it will be standard

[@MaticTheProto]

Everything you listed is included

[@talkandplay]

Shame about the price, thanks Liz Truss ...and no android auto, no V2L and once again the firm ride has been confirmed. The tiny boot was not an issue for me but this review has saved me from pre-ordering so thank you.

[@brianjohnstone394]

Not a fan of the PM but why her fault?

[@wut5910]

@@brianjohnstone394 rampant inflation and crash in pounds value Vs dollar and euro

[@stum8374]

Aye v2L is the way to go for all,I was going to say if that was included I would have one but on second thought for that price I could have a twizy and a fortnight in Skeggy for the price lol.

[@MaticTheProto]

There is android auto, plus the price is alright (the British economy however…)

[@JakeM218]

This current inflation wasn’t caused by Liz Truss 😂 None of her policies were implemented.

[@mhouslay7281]

I’ve liked your reports in the past but was pretty unimpressed by the casual slagging-off of the current SMART FORTWO at the start of your presentation. Not good - cheap laughs never are. I love cars - my Toyota GT86, which I modified, was my pride and joy. But we wanted a second car for going around town and local journeys without contributing to pollution there, especially when journeys were short and when parking can be problematic. So we bought an Edition 1 SMART ForTwo. It’s been amazing. It’s nippy around town, turns on a sixpence, you can park it just about anywhere, it’s very efficient, it charges up rapidly (22kw charger), it’s tailgate opens like a Range Rover, you can get loads of food shopping inside, it’s like a mini-Merc inside, it’s so much better to look at than the old SMARTs (has that puppy look) and we had more people stop to admire, enthuse and ask about it than any fancy car that I’ve driven. For local journeys for 1/2 people it’s perfect. Also fun trying to max out on the range - I managed 100 miles this summer !!!

[@coldude2559]

35k! Same mistake as the original smart cars..priced like they actually were Mercs!!

[@janhaugen6034]

i want one esap

[@maccabeus753]

Not Front Trunk or Frunk please - in British/Irish English we say Boot so FROOT would be better. Lovely car all the same and informative video.

[@carlarrowsmith]

I'm not normally bothered by this but the panel gaps on that front bumper are dreadful, can't believe they did that on a press car.

[@user-vl5th7xg3m]

look really good

[@colinrenfrew48]

Interesting but far too expensive for what it is.

[@kevinslegg1576]

Quite like it; its certainly on my list to consider along with the MG4

[@nigel.w]

It looks cheaply constructed to me. IMO, save yourself 9k and get the base MG4, unless you are sure you need more range.

[@AI-qd4vb]

@@nigel.w What "looks" cheaply constructed to you?

[@mrmawson2438]

Great review mate

[@patpong5873]

smart ev #One all down to how they Price it its good for 35k-36k but is it 40k good not sure ?

[@brandonpollard8928]

That little fox is going to get someone in the car accident

[@SNORKYMEDIA]

the twin motor MG4 is gonna kick the Brabus's arse on price

[@willy4177]

Tesla Model 3 is still 3k cheaper (at least in my country), also, I don’t know how reliable an electric chinese powertrain will be tbh

[@transhackr1225]

I’m pretty sure it’s supposed to be called “number one”

[@shroomyesc]

You'd think, but Smart insists on journalists calling it the hashtag one.

[@mikeymike1792]

That would make sense, but as every other major review has called it the Hashtag One, and several making the point they were briefed that way by Smart, it unfortunately has to have that daft name.

[@transhackr1225]

@@mikeymike1792 god help the chinese😂😂😂

[@tm199100]

I would go further and say it’s supported to be called, the Smart One

[@oliverstemp9132]

Smart already said it’s Hashtag One

[@baltvdb]

gorgeous car, more expensive than I'd imagined.

[@erickbarney2506]

I'd love to drive that. Buckle up. Safety first.

[@abelisraelcruzayuso4682]

The first Smart Fourtwo was rubbish? Not my experience…

[@anemeth9281]

Doug is weird...

[@oliverstemp9132]

That knees up seating position in the back is a bit off putting. It’s a shame because the rest of it seems amazing

[@David-Dumont]

Nice

[@sds2954]

You can see this car's design was heavily influenced by the Merc electric range

[@topgazza]

We need a choice of EVs that are sub £25k and around £20k to make the market take off. At the moment it’s company car owners and well off/wealthy people. Basically elitism

[@valerio883]

Smart #1 Production 2022-present Assembly China: Xi'an, Shaanxi Designer Yi Gao and Mohammad Aminiyekta (concept) Body and chassis

[@leventkucukreisoglu]

Please, please please, call it the "Number One"

[@MrOscar5690]

Bring it to the states 😢

[@arsimdreshaj9837]

Smaller mb eqa

[@cars291]

I dont think the 'good quality plastics' are the issue on a car like this nor the touchscreen UI. The questionis: how will it drive and will it last. The other aspects are nuisances at best - even though the manfucaturers seem to want us to believe otherwise.

[@valerio883]

A car made in China that cost 20k euro in China but 41K euro in Europe....make no sense

[@prohojiy]

He really called number sign a hashtag here

[@taomahNEGEV]

He is completely right as Smart#1 is the official name of the car.

[@MotorTorq_ZA]

Smart should go back to making funky small cars and not electric qashqais

[@wltdo6930]

Not keen on the exterior looks but otherwise looks a great car

[@ulfw]

Looks like typical Chinese EV software like BYD

[@effatta]

#1 was supposed to be read as "Number 1" and not as "Hashtag 1" Right? Or am I crazy? He even said in the review this is the 1st car from a line of cars to come....

[@cabottaxi]

Considered a Smart car but decided against it and went out and bought a BMW 2.0 diesel

[@talkandplay]

Which BMW model?

[@ejissajk]

It look like a xl

[@nitraM321]

it's simply incorrect to call it hashtag one, # has always meant "Number", so it's simply Smart number 1, 2 and 3 a hashtag is a # (also called hash) followed by a word, the tag !, hashtag is not the character itself as 1, 2 3 are clearly numbers, not words, the original meaning of the # sign, NUMBER (just check wikipedia) prevails, whatever smart say, they can't change the meaning of letters even if they want to, and i doubt that they intended the car to be called hashtag ! something might have been lost between departments at mercedes, but that is irrelevant, it's NUMBER 1, PERIOD ! (oh no, no period, sorry, exclamation point !)

[@Z-u-m-a]

The closer an EV-only future gets the worse it feels. Tiny ranges and everyone sat around for hours at charging points.

[@MaticTheProto]

Hours? If you don’t use fast chargers ig

[@mrmawson2438]

New Smart is crazy 8:00

[@takuan650]

The user interface design and screen responsiveness is ugly, childish and slow. Other than that not a bad car. Pricing remains to be seen.

[@stevenbarrett7648]

Good idea by Mercedes’ to badge up a Chinese car and charge a super high price but the Chinese competition already setting up in Europe will be as good, if not better with more realistic pricing. So saying, good effort…..we’ve had a few Smarts, two managed to blow their tiny engines within 40k, I guess these electric ones will be more reliable !

[@dt8101]

LOL. Geely's EV architecture is better than Mercedes'. EQE SUV doesn't even has a frunk. But this small EV has one.

[@MaticTheProto]

This thing is actually a bargain. Also I know multiple people who love their smart cars and they serve them well

[@markmd9]

This is a pure Chinese that is sold under Smart brand.

[@Lmwpitt]

Why do you keep calling it Hashtag 1, it's Number 1, the hash symbol means "number"... "Hashtag" comes from using the hash symbol to add "tags" to content/posts.

[@nikitapatel2832]

When will this car be available to order ?

[@MaticTheProto]

Now (at least in Germany)

[@JakeM218]

The originals smarts (created by watch company Swatch in collaboration with Daimler Benz) had so much character, and were extremely unique on the road. There’s nothing wrong with how this car is designed, but I think it would have been better to create a new brand name for it. It’s too far away from the original philosophy and concept.

[@abelisraelcruzayuso4682]

That front 🤦🏼‍♂️

[@MaticTheProto]

Looks good

[@abelisraelcruzayuso4682]

@@MaticTheProto no “face”…

[@Lozenhimer]

we love our 3 cylinder GAS smart, but i won't be buying this...why? it's electric. goodbye smart.

[@Displays.1234.]

A really crappy software, fox what a complete load of capp..... Just give us proper Android auto...

[@squod1]

Number . #1 is Number one

[@midknight2K]

I've seen better reviews of this car too.

[@aacmove]

47K Euros? EVs are really taking the piss. Saw one on the motorway today. Big, ugly, and apparently effing expensive. Like all other EVs coming out now.

[@wozza59]

Hmmm, I get the distinct impression that the car is a good car, but not stunning. The reviewer didn’t really sing it’s praises like I was expecting.

[@Maxmotor2008]

I refuse to call anything a "hashtag one" christ.

[@paguliukas]

Its not SUV !!!!

[@haploguy]

more External Combustion Engine "cars". yawn.

[@Displays.1234.]

The software ui looks completely disgusting, like a child's tablet, looks a complete mess with glossy plastic guaranteed get easily scratched, centre console is huge and ugly.. trying to make comparisons between the crappy id3 to make it sound good, what a complete load of capp both are......

[@jellyd4889]

Hope Opel patented that Opel Adam roof shape and are getting royalties. It is a ripoff of the shape. Smart number one looks ok. No one will be saying hashtag in a few years when Twitter dies...

[@davethefab6339]

Another stupid priced car.

[@wayneheyes904]

Seriously overpriced to the point only middle class or rich people will own one I’m on the verge of loosing the ability to own a car as I can’t afford a huge suv

[@DustinDriver]

Why is everything an SUV

[@MaticTheProto]

Battery

[@mrgraham9007]

Electric cars are just all overpriced they are cheaper to produce but they asked more money for them

[@stum8374]

I take it merc and volvo doesn't bother about china's human rights,well done guys.

[@anemeth9281]

They only care about profits

[@he-yi-jie-you-wei-you-bao-fu]

As Chinese I think you are weird, you keep talking about a China that doesn't exist, a China in your prejudiced eyes

[@MaticTheProto]

Where’s your phone made? And your kitchen stuff? And your clothes?

[@user-di1xb2no4y]

你自己先有了人权之后，再来关心中国的人权

[@Robert-Camperbouwer]

Build by Geely, which in China isn't an appealing brand to show to your family and friends. They'll just launch at you for your poor choice in cheap brand. 😂😂😂

[@mikec6894]

it is Number One... why call it hashtag 🤯

[@derrick021]

like your presenter, pity he still wears women's pants like it's still 2011

[@luisfeliciano4926]

Very ugly and childish design. Poor aerodynamics, big battery yet low range. Will be a flop.

[@exwhyz33]

Every manufacturer has an ugly duckling. This one's been designed by an apprentice.

[@super73glasgow]

Youre not considering the MG4 which is way more competitive. Seems like a biased review really as you hardly highlight any negatives whereby the MG4 it's constant despite it being a great car with a crushing price to this.

[@jonathantaylor1998]

Yes, this an the MG4 LR do share significant similarities - rear-wheel-drive layout, 250+ mile WLTP range, 5-seater 'family' car etc However, Smart is a brand that has always attracted a 'youthful' buyer, more interested in style and quirkiness rather than outright value-for-money - like Doug said at the start, the Smart Fourtwo and Fourfour were well below par for the money, yet they still sold. I'm not so sure the target audience for this #1 would be considering the MG4 LR (as good as it genuinely is...) 🤔

[@MaticTheProto]

Hahahahaha no. The mg4 is way worse quality and feature wise

[@super73glasgow]

@@MaticTheProto lol this is over £40k, you must be smoking crack.

[@Reddylion]

Nice

[@fnerf0]

awful