The body of the mini car has a price comparable to that of a compact or even a mid-level car, which is an important reason why smart was not widely accepted by the market in the past.
Even with the bonus of the Mercedes-Benz brand aura, in the eyes of consumers, taking so much money to buy such a gadget is really not a cost-effective deal, so smart can only become a plaything for a small number of rich people.
Perhaps based on the trend of electrification, or perhaps rekindled by the enthusiasm of the Hongguang MINI EV and the like, Mercedes-Benz and Geely joined forces to create this new smart genie #1.
I have to say that compared with the past smart, this smart genie #1 has undergone a rebirth-like change, the first of which is the shape and size.
Smart Genie #1 adopts a new design language, and you can hardly find the shadow of the smart in it, while sitting on a 2750mm wheelbase also makes it jump from a mini car to a small SUV. However, while the space is improved, it also needs to be recognized that this also weakens the flexibility of the vehicle to a certain extent.
However, on the whole, smart genie #1 still takes a small route, which can be said to have brought a good space improvement in the case of limited size increase. Smart Genie #1 can have such a performance, thanks in large part to the architecture of its electric vehicle, and this is also the biggest change in the internal level of Smart Genie #1 compared to the past smart.
Although the smart in the past also had new energy models, compared with the poor 145 km endurance, the smart genie #1 with a 560 km endurance today will obviously be more suitable for the current new energy era.
As a joint venture between Mercedes-Benz and Geely, smart genie #1 naturally inherits the essence of both. For example, Mercedes-Benz's achievements in interior design, although it is only a small SUV, you can still feel a rich and luxurious atmosphere on it.
And Geely's presence is also not lacking in highlights. For example, the SEA haohan platform matrix provided for the vehicle, as well as the intelligent and technological configuration of "Chinese understands Chinese better".
In general, compared with the past smart, today's smart genie #1 has indeed become less niche, with a larger space and a good endurance making it much more universal, so that it is possible to be accepted by more consumers.
However, it is worth mentioning that the unannounced price makes this car still have many variables.
If you consider from the perspective of Geely's responsible vehicle manufacturing, compared with the smart imported smart in the past, the future price of this smart genie #1 will be more grounded. But on the other hand, the cost of batteries is restricting the downward exploration of its pricing.
You know, behind the smart gen #1 more than 500 kilometers of endurance, mainly rely on the 66 kWh ternary lithium battery as a support. The large battery capacity coupled with the current soaring battery cost determines that the cost of the vehicle will be at a high level, which means that there will not be much room for concessions in the price.
In addition to this, don't forget that there is also the brand height of Mercedes-Benz to consider. In the past, smart seemed to be unreasonable pricing, including Mercedes-Benz's high degree of love for its brand. Even if it is a mini car, it is also a Mercedes-Benz, which means that it cannot be compared with low prices and cheap prices. So now that the smart genie #1, which is getting bigger and stronger, seems to have no reason to sell cheaper.
For the final price of this car, it is currently rumored to be 150,000-200,000. If this is the case, smart genie #1 is likely to follow in the footsteps of its predecessors. After all, at the same price, there are many excellent and more cost-effective options on the market.
To be sure, smart's "small and fine" isn't wrong. But as far as the market as a whole is concerned, this path is still too biased, especially with a high brand premium. Compared with the "deluxe version of the Hongguang MINI", consumers will still be more inclined to meet the most basic transportation needs at a low price.
Unless Mercedes can abandon the brand baggage and lower the price, the Smart Genie #1 may still have to play. But, is that a Mercedes-Benz or a Mercedes-Benz?