Smart - ForFour

2004 onwards 

---

It's a four-seater smart, but it's not nearly as revolutionary as the original fortwo city car. Underneath that cute exterior is a fairly ordinary modern supermini, the latest Mitsubishi Colt.

---

	Strong image - fashionable, fun and funky
	Supermini practicality in a head-turning package
	Good fuel economy
	Expensive for its size
	Limited luggage space with four on board
	Choppy ride on poor surfaces

---

Smart's forfour was developed with Mitsubishi, based on their new Colt, so its basic underpinnings are conventional.
The forfour is expensive for what it is, and smart could have tried harder to make it more fun to drive. But it looks sportier than Colt; it's also more imaginatively styled, which is where smart has added value. The cabin demonstrates brilliant attention to detail, while the exterior features pop-out, interchangeable plastic body panels.
It has all the character of the fortwo in a more practical package - with proper rear seats, which fold and slide for good load-carrying capacity and legroom - plus a decent manual gearbox (clutchless transmission is optional).
Best choice is the strong and economical CDi diesel, a three-cylinder Mercedes-developed engine with a choice of two power outputs. Otherwise, there are 1.1, 1.3 and 1.5 petrol units, as in the Colt, none of which are particularly inspiring.