Smart cars are very niche, and the brand was originally launched by MCC, a joint venture between Mercedes-Benz and the Swiss watch group Swatch, as an ultra-compact car called "Smatchmobile".
In October 1998, the smart car was launched in Europe with a length of only 25 meters, and a rare three-cylinder engine with a displacement of only 06 liters. The maximum speed is limited to 120 kilometers per hour, and it is mainly used as a means of transportation for urban commuting.
Although the products and brand reputation of the smart brand are very high, due to the fact that the products are too niche, smart also sold 150,000 cars in the highest year in the world. The loss was serious, and by 2019, the production of fuel vehicles will be completely stopped.
After Geely Automobile became a shareholder of Mercedes-Benz, smart Auto chose to cooperate with Geely Automobile to carry out the transformation of electrification, and the joint venture company is jointly owned by Mercedes-Benz and Geely Automobile Group, and is committed to building smart into the world's leading high-end electric smart car brand.
In May 2023, smart China officially announced the smart Phantom 3 model, which is priced too high, and after the rise of self-owned brand new energy vehicle companies in the Chinese market, which generally focuses on cost performance, the opportunity for joint venture brands is getting smaller and smaller.