Smart #1 long-term test

The car Smart #1 Premium Run by Mark Pearson, used cars editor

Why it’s here To see if the trendy #1 cuts it in everyday use and how it stacks up against its many polished competitors in this growing class

Needs to It’ll need to dispatch commuting, work and family life without any range anxiety issues and cope with a wide variety of duties

Miles covered 4895 Price £38,950 Target price £38,950 Price as tested £38,950 Official range 273 miles Test range 220 miles Private price £29,000 Dealer price £32,600 Running costs (excluding depreciation) £224

3 January 2024  – A mobile work of Smart

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.

Positives include a terrific driving position, with supportive seats and impressive visibility over that low bonnet. Modern touches such as automatic start, which means you don’t have to fumble around for a starter button, added to  its ease of use, and I got on well with the gear selector being on a stalk beside the steering wheel instead of between the front seats.

In fact, the interior is a treat, full stop. It’s modern and minimalist, plus it’s nicely designed and neatly finished, with quality materials used up top where you see and feel them, and plenty of really useful storage spaces dotted around for phones, bottles and the like.

There’s also lots of space for people. The front of the car is capacious, despite the high-set centre console that runs between the driver and front passenger. What’s more, the #1 is positively limo-like in the rear – something that's only enhanced by how light and airy it feels, thanks to the full-length panoramic glass roof that’s standard on my Premium-spec model.

Also impressive is the range. Officially, the #1 is good for up to 273 miles, and our scientific testing suggests it gets close to that in real-world use, managing 245 miles in good weather on a full charge. Its overall efficiency in my hands, at 3.8 miles per kilowatt hour, backs this up, indicating that between 210 and 245 miles between charges (depending on the conditions) would be figures to trust.

But as I mentioned, there are caveats. The first is the number of functions that are controlled through the infotainment touchscreen. We’ve reluctantly got used to phone connections and sat-nav being done that way, and I’ll admit that the screen in the #1 is at least responsive, with well laid out menus that you quickly learn. But it’s still annoying that several prods of the screen are required to adjust the door mirrors or turn the car’s autohold facility on or off when parking.

Then there’s the boot, which is far from the biggest in the electric SUV class. It worked for me (just) in everyday use, with two (relatively) grown-up children, but it wouldn’t have been suitable for family holidays or even weekend breaks unless it was just my wife and I going. Families with younger children would certainly need to look elsewhere.

Lastly, I have to reveal that my #1 developed a fault in the infotainment system and lost all audio, which meant no radio, phone or parking sensors. Even the indicator sound disappeared. Worse, because mine was one of the first #1s in the country, it was off the road for the better part of a month while my local dealer investigated a fix. I am assured that the same wouldn’t happen to yours, though, should something similar occur now.

Did that experience put me off? No – I still think the good easily outweighs the bad. You see, I liked this Smart. It’s individual, spacious and very likeable – one of the few cars that shows that you don’t have to buy something big to get a premium interior feel. On top of that, its range never caused me anxiety and its turn of speed was positively uplifting (the 0-60mph sprint took just 5.7sec in our tests).

Smart by name and smart by nature, then? Definitely. Just don’t get completely carried away by its looks.

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