Daimler pulls the plug on electric smart car sales in US, Canada
Daimler is ending sales of its diminutive all-electric smart fortwo cars in the U.S. and Canada, officially pulling the plug on a vehicle that has struggled to gain ground in North America as the German automaker prepares to bring the brand to China, TechCrunch has learned.
Smart won’t be sold in the U.S. and Canada after the 2019 model year, Daimler AG confirmed after two sources familiar with the decision shared the information with TechCrunch.
“After much careful consideration, smart will discontinue its battery-electric smart EQ fortwo model in the U.S. and Canadian markets at the conclusion of MY2019,” a Daimler AG spokesperson wrote in an emailed statement. “A number of factors, including a declining micro-car market in the U.S. and Canada, combined with high homologation costs for a low volume model are central to this decision.”
MBUSA and Mercedes-Benz Canada will continue to provide owners of gasoline-powered and electric smart fortwo models with access to service and replacement parts via smart and authorized Mercedes-Benz dealers, the company told TechCrunch.
Model years begin and end mid-year, suggesting that June will be the final month of production. Sales of the vehicles will continue through end the of the year.
I’m not even mad. I saw this coming years ago and have wondered why it hasn’t happened sooner.
Their reluctance to advertise, the tiny dealer network, their refusal to import desirable models like the faster turbos, more spacious (and competitive) forfour, or high mpg diesel...the failings go all the way back to the brand’s US introduction in 2008. For far too long smart USA has cried “why won’t anyone buy our cars?” while doing exactly nothing to help themselves. The only partially solved fire problem and other reliability challenges only made the situation worse.
We also won’t talk about the ED/EQ with its advertised 58 mile range. In reality they can go 100+ miles in optimal conditions.. So why the low number? MB wanted to be “forward thinking” by voluntarily rating what the car should get in poor conditions with a **high mileage battery with less than 3/4 capacity. This would be like Apple advertising a new iPhone’s battery life as what the battery is like after 3 years of use. Just...why...
**Real world data would indicate that to get the battery depletion MB used (70%) you would have to drive something like 500,000 miles.
With that said, at least smart managed to kill the Toyota iQ in the US, a feat I’m still surprised about.
I accept condolences in the form of more smarts added to my collection. :D
About The Author
Mercedes is smart’s biggest fan. She’s not only crazy enough to own four of them but she also named herself after the parent company. Yeah...idk either.
Email: the_smart_car@yahoo.com