Smart Formore
The first Smart car will go on sale here in 2006, when the four-wheel-drive Formore goes into production in a plant in Brazil and is then shipped to Mercedes-Benz dealerships across Canada.
According to Andreas Renschler, president of Smart GMBH, ''With the Smart Formore we will be applying the typical Smart characteristics of innovation, functionality and joie de vivre to the SUV sector.''
Renschler claims the Formore ''will be a distinctive vehicle, unique in the market -- so unique that we translate SUV as smart utility vehicle.''
Formore will offer more than a unique appearance, Renschler says, promising that it will also ''provide a driving experience loaded with adrenaline -- off road as well as on, expressive design and a high utility value. It is the ideal model to launch the smart brand in the North American market.''
The DaimlerChrysler-controlled firm plans to build 60,000 Formore units in its plant in Juiz de Fora, Brazil, with about half of those coming to North America. Using traditional marketing criteria, that would mean that at least 3,000 units a year would make their way to Canada. The rest will go to what Smart calls its ''core markets around the world.
Renschler says the Formore name follows the naming logic which began with the four-seater Forfour. ''The basic principle of this logic is to give names which have a direct connection to the uses of the vehicle concerned,'' he says.
Other names in the Smart canon include the Fortwo coupé and Fortwo cabriolet, and the Forfour sedan.
Notwithstanding that logic, Renschler adds that the Smart Roadster and Smart Roadster-Coupé are to retain their original, well-known names, since these already describe what all smart models have to offer - sheer driving pleasure.''
No information is available on what powertrains or equipment will be included in the Formore when it goes into production. Likewise, there was no word on pricing, but it will certainly be the least expensive model that Mercedes-Benz of Canada will sell.
