Test: Smart #1 Brabus – How an opportunity was missed

Smart and Brabus, what’s going on here?

Anyone who follows the car news with no more than half an eye is now definitely on the wrong foot. Smart makes those two-seaters for the city, right? And Brabus is a German tuner of Mercedes, right? Let’s set the clocks right and explain how it works. Smart is a well-known brand name for a completely new car. The #1 is an electric car in the C-segment (Volkswagen ID.3, Opel Astra Electric), a class in which Smart has never been active before. But Smart is no longer the Smart it once was. It is no longer a full subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz, but a joint venture of Mercedes with the Chinese Geely. We know that company as the mother of Volvo, Polestar, Lotus and Lynk & Co.

Smart #1 Brabus

What’s Mercedes Benz got to do with it?

But Mercedes still owns the other half of the shares. This collaboration is somewhat reflected in the design. For example, the rear light over the full width of the car is very similar to that of the EQA. And then Brabus, which is the name of the top version. In the old days, the faster Smarts already received this designation, so the brand is sticking to a tradition. Although, they previously had about 100 hp, while this latest Brabus-Smart is well above 400 hp. That extra power comes from an additional 156 horsepower electric motor that the regular #1 lacks. It has a single engine on the rear axle, good for 272 hp, and the Brabus has a second power source on the front wheels, bringing the total to a bizarre 428 hp. In addition to that extra power, there are of course some external differences, such as special wheels, different color combinations and red accents in the car. The most striking difference is the longer roof spoiler and the embroidered Brabus logo in the headrests. All those goodies are not cheap, because the starting price of the #1 Brabus is a sweet €48,895.

Smart #1 Brabus

How does it drive?

We drive the Brabus on a short circuit. You would suspect that it comes into its own on such a sporty surface. That is certainly the case, because his sprinting capabilities are nothing short of impressive. It’s one of the fastest sprinting cars you can get, with a 0-100 that it races in 3.9 seconds according to the manufacturer’s specifications. You must first have put the Smart in the correct driving position via the multimedia system, otherwise you will not get the full potential under your right foot. That multimedia system works intuitively and is just as cheerful as in the regular #1. Even a bit too cheerful in our opinion: a dancing fox on the screen seems a bit infantile in a car with these pretensions. In addition, the functions are arranged around a globe, as if it were a children’s website. The thick steering wheel grips nicely, but on the circuit the Brabus-Smart falls somewhat through the basket. It’s a bullet in a straight line, but in corners the front tires search helplessly for grip. They struggle with weight and speed. The assistance systems do what they can to more or less steer the Smart in the desired direction, but the hoped-for smile on the face is not forthcoming because it all takes a lot of effort. We would advise the people at Smart to study the chassis of a Cupra Born, because the Spaniard has significantly less trouble with fast cornering – with less power, that is.