Why not #4?
Since Smart is fifty percent owned by the Chinese Geely, it has a habit of skipping a number in the naming when introducing a new model. After the Smart #1 came the #3 and it will soon be the turn of – indeed – the Smart #5.
The current Smart is a completely different brand than the Smart you knew in the decades before. Parent company Daimler sold half of Smart to the Chinese Geely. Smart’s cars are designed in Europe, but developed in China. It is therefore not surprising that Smart’s first born became a car on a platform that its Chinese parent used for many other models: the SEA platform. This SEA basis has many variants. There is a variant for compact models such as the Smart #1 and #3, Volvo EX30 and Zeekr The Smart #1 was later joined by the larger #3 with a flattened roof and now the brand announces the #5 and it will also be on existing Geely hardware.
The Smart #5 will soon make its debut during Auto China in Beijing. At least: in concept form. Smart is bringing along a study model that looks ahead to the #5, but it seems to be quite production-ready. Although the car that the brand already shows in sketches appears to be on the compact side, Smart speaks of its largest model ever. Not only that, but it also needs to be ‘bolder and squarer’ than #1 and #3. The Smart #1 is 4.27 meters long, the #3 even 4.44 meters. So the #5 is one step above that.
Smart seems to fill the #5 prospect with all kinds of things lifestyleattributes. You will soon find a mattress and air pump, a hammer, a speaker and a trendy flashlight. Smart places a multifunctional system on the roof in which it houses folding seats and a folding shovel. Totally hip.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl