Production of the smart fortwo electric drive Hambach, France, Begins now Options

[Mike T]

Courtesy of Daimler Media Services

Production of the smart fortwo electric drive Hambach, France
Stuttgart, Germany, Nov 19, 2009

Production of 1,000 units begins
· First European electric vehicle fully operational in everyday use
· Available to the general public as of 2012

Hambach, France / Stuttgart, Germany --- This week, Daimler AG started production of the smart fortwo electric drive at the smart plant in Hambach, France. In a first step, 1,000 vehicles will be provided to customers participating in various mobility projects in major cities in Europe and the U.S., in order to generate broad feedback on electric driving under everyday conditions.

Marc Langenbrinck, Managing Director of the smart brand: “With the start of the series production of the smart fortwo electric drive, the Hambach plant enters a new era – at the same time, the smart fortwo emphazises its pioneering role on the way to individual mobility with local zero-emissions in cities and urban areas. Its innovative battery-electric drive makes the smart fortwo electric drive the ideal vehicle for the city: it combines responsibility to the environment with driving fun and joie de vivre in a virtually perfect manner.”

The second-generation smart fortwo electric drive started now is equipped with the most modern lithium-ion-battery. As of 2012, the smart fortwo electric drive will be produced as a regular part of the smart product portfolio and will regularly be sold through the smart sales network.

First Milestones in 2007 and 2008
The smart brand has taken a pioneering role in electric mobility since 2007. Back then, 100 smart fortwo electric drives of the first generation went into practical customer operation under everyday conditions of city traffic in London. Feedback from this project has been very positive right from the start and confirmed the high degree of maturity of this vehicle concept.

Just one year later, the company introduced the second generation - which is now being produced - with an even more advanced electric drive and an innovative, highly efficient lithium-ion battery. Lithium-ion technology has decisive advantages over other types of batteries including higher performance, shorter charging times, a long life and high reliability. In addition, a smart fortwo electric drive can be charged at a regular household power outlet.

A story of success: The smart Plant in Hambach
The smart plant in Hambach was inaugurated in 1997. Since 1998, it has produced the smart fortwo, since 2007 in its current generation. In 2008, more than 800 employees of the plant and some further 800 people employed by seven system partners produced about 140,000 units of the smart fortwo. In September 2008, the brand celebrated its tenth anniversary along with the 1-millionth smart fortwo produced at the Hambach plant.

The Hambach plant has represented an innovative production concept since its beginning: The assembly line in the shape of a plus sign has been designed to optimally meet the demands of assembly and logistics and ensures highly efficient production processes. This principle enables the system partners to supply modules directly to the assembly line, which reduces transport and logistics efforts to a minimum and hereby also provides an advantage regarding ecological aspects. In addition, the environmentally friendly and cost effective paint shop, an energy concept with numerous savings opportunities and the construction principle of the vehicles ensure that the ecological product responsibility of the smart brand is translated into the production.

About smart
Environmental friendliness and contemporary functionality have been defining features of the smart fortwo ever since it was launched more than ten years ago. Since then its innovative concept has combined sustainable, forward-looking technologies with individual urban mobility. With a length of just over two and a half meters, the extremely compact and fuel-efficient vehicle brings its occupants to their destination comfortably and safely. Its distintive design made smart an automotive lifestyle icon which shows that mobility, responsibility to the environment and joie de vivre are compatible with one another. The smart fortwo has established a class of its own.

Today, smart is present in 41 markets around the globe, with most recent market launches in China and Brazil. Germany, Italy, and the U.S. are key markets.

Further information from Daimler is available on the Internet at
www.media.daimler.com

This post has been edited by Mike T: Nov 19 2009 - 12:24 PM

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[ianjay]

Great news. Now give us some decent colours again and we would have a perfect replacement for the current car. Given the way we use the car, the options I already have for plugging in, electric makes sense.

But I'm NOT going to buy one unless the colours come back.

[SameGuy]

LOL that's what I was thinking.

I'll likely get my name on the wait-list as soon as they announce Canadian plans. But what happened to the fun colours?

[brd]

Courtesy of Daimler Media Services

Hambach, France / Stuttgart, Germany --- This week, Daimler AG started production of the smart fortwo electric drive at the smart plant in Hambach, France. In a first step, 1,000 vehicles will be provided to customers participating in various mobility projects in major cities in Europe and the U.S., in order to generate broad feedback on electric driving under everyday conditions.

Glad to hear that they are assembling the electric drive fortwo in Hambach. When I was there for a tour in May, staff were concerned that smart would assemble the electric fortwo in another facility. With the way they assemble vehicles in Hambach, they should have relatively no problem doing the electric drive ones.

[brd]

Great news. Now give us some decent colours again and we would have a perfect replacement for the current car. Given the way we use the car, the options I already have for plugging in, electric makes sense.

But I'm NOT going to buy one unless the colours come back.

just get a white or a black one and have the panels custom painted.

[smartride]

I was just at the factory last Monday and saw the new high style on the production line along with several mhd's. Too bad I missed the electric drive production by only 4 days. Very cool facility! I aso had a tour of the Magna plant which builds the Tridion cell.

[Mike T]

Oh lucky you, did you have to book the Magna tour separately? I did Hambach twice but never in there.

Anyway, yes it is a good thing that the ED is made in France too.

[smartride]

No, the Magna tour was included with the regular tour. I was hoping to see a giant Canadian flag in the building but alas, no flag. They had a leftover chassis from the forfour and roadster lying off to the side. It was cool to see the robots in action. Sometimes they would stall for a few minutes when the sequencing was out of line, clutching the parts they were working on before handing them off to the next robot.

[t2t2]

eww..green wheels lol

[smartride]

I like the green wheels....it instantly makes the car different and quite noticeable, something that MB wants - people to look at the car.

[herbie]

I just found this on You tube. An Xprize contender with and electric smart car conversion. Very educational. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPnWeFd1G-4

enjoy! ;-)



herbie

[Duck]

Great video! Before someone asks, the table with the dif and drive shaft would be a test mule bench for the electronics people to get their head around the motor controller, with a simulated load only. They're using SolidWorks for the design of the whole thing. Neat to see the Getrag transmission apart with the selector gears indexing. The 451 transmission has 2 gear selector motors/drums, instead of 1 in the 450.

-Iain

[cappytanjack]

Has smart announced their estimated distances between charges? Given the smart's size and weight shouldn't it be in contention to have the longest range between charges of any road-worthy all-electric vehicle?

Cappytanjack ...

[PrairieBoy]

I'm not sure about the charging frequency,but i read somwhere,that the smart EV,has a maximum speed of only 100 Kilo's per hour.
translation: "City car Only".

A better car to buy,may be the new' Nissan Leaf' electric car, coming to a store near you soon.Nissan Canada's web site says,that the Nissan Leaf "is 100% electric,with the performance of a V/6,""Up to 140KM/HR","With room for 5".

This all sounds great!

This post has been edited by PrairieBoy: Nov 22 2009 - 09:35 AM

[Mike T]

Drive it at 140 and the range is probably 1500 metres

100 km/h is fine around here for intercity travel. The speed limit is 90 on the South Island.

[SameGuy]

Claimed range is 115 Km (70 miles). Top speed is governed at 100 Km/h. How does that make it a "city car only"? Top legal speed on any road in Canada is 100.

[ValgardForkbeard]

Claimed range is 115 Km (70 miles). Top speed is governed at 100 Km/h. How does that make it a "city car only"? Top legal speed on any road in Canada is 100.

Actually, top posted road speed in Canada is 110kph, and on some freeways within city limits, the speed limit can be 100kph.

MG

[SameGuy]

AFAIK the legal speed limit remains 100 where most of the population lives in Canada, and over most of the country's physical area. The few roads in the Outback (Prairies ) that are posted at 110 don't count for much. And yes, I wouldn't dare drive a car governed at 100 on a 100-limit road in Southern Ontario. That'd be a near-death experience, for sure!

[Mike T]

The Inland Island Highway from Parksville to Campbell River is 110. The Coquihalla from Hope to Kamloops is 110. Everywhere else in BC the limit is at 100 maximum.

[PrairieBoy]

Yeh,and who drives at the posted speed limit anymore?

If the limit is 100k,everyone is doing at least 110k.If the limit is 110k,everyone is doing 120k.

If your E.V.smart is govered at 100k,you become a hazard ,when everyone else is doing 110k or 120k.

Only if your are driving in the right-hand lane ,of a 'twinned' highway, would it be 'safe' to go at 100k.

I.E.: 'CITY CAR'!!