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While both the fortwo and forfour were originally to be co-developed with Daimler partner Renault-Nissan, smart is now reportedly going it alone with its new two-door city car. Slated to launch in early 2014, the fortwo will continue to use a rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout, but its styling will take inspiriton from the futuristic forvision EV concept.
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While details for the U.S.-spec model have yet to be revealed, power for the European-market version will come from a 0.9-liter two-cylinder with about 64 horsepower. No word on transmission choices, but we'd be surprised if smart didn't abandon the current fortwo's oft-critized single-clutch, automated manual gearbox. An all-electric fortwo with 87 horsepower is expected to join the lineup at the end of 2014, along with a new cabriolet variant.
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The four-door fourfor, which is still being jointly developed with Renault-Nissan, will also arrive near the end of 2014. It will offer a range of turbocharged three-cylinder that were developed in conjunction with Renault, which will sell its own version of the forfour as the next-generation Twingo.
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Finally, the smart model most likely to be embraced by U.S. buyers – the crossover – will arrive in late 2015. The soft-roader is expected to share a variety of components with the next-generation Nissan Juke and feature four-cylinder powertrains along with styling drawn from the forstars concept.
