Smart to Trim Its US Dealer Network by a Third
Daimler’s Smart microcar brand is scaling back its operations in the United States, with more than a third of its American dealerships set to close down soon.
Smart recently made the decision to only offer the electric version of its ForTwo compact in the U.S. Mercedes-Benz, which runs Smart, asked the 85 Smart dealerships in the U.S. to decide whether or not they’d like to continue to sell the cars following the change, with only 27 electing to remain in business.
The 58 dealerships that decided to no longer sell the ForTwo will continue to operate as Smart service centers. Many of the dealerships that decided to remain fully operational are located in major city centers and in states that have mandates in place for electric vehicles.
SEE ALSO: Tuned Smart ForTwo Stuffs Lots of Luxury Into a Tiny Package
The vast majority of Smart dealerships will have converted to service centers or begun selling EVs only before the end of the year. The redesigned, fourth-generation ForTwo Electric Drive and ForTwo Electric Drive Cabriolet will go on sale in the U.S. before the end of the summer.
According to Automotive News data, Smart’s shrunken dealer network is the smallest of any brand in the U.S. As of last year, Lamborghini operated 31 dealerships in the U.S., while Rolls-Royce and Ferrari operated 35 and 37, respectively. If you want to be exclusive you can forget supercars – you should grab a ForTwo.
[Source: Automotive News]
Sam McEachern holds a diploma in journalism from St. Clair College in Windsor, Ontario, and has been covering the automotive industry for over 5 years. He conducts reviews and writes AutoGuide's news content. He's a die-hard motorsports fan with a passion for performance cars of all sorts.
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Wondering if there might be plans for a 4 seater model coming, maybe about the size of the Fiat 500. Here is South Carolina the state legislature that seems never to have seen a tax plan they didn't like have a provision in the new gasoline tax hike that would charge Electric vehicles a certain amount in taxes, maybe each year in registration and tag renewal. Those Republican and Democrat politicians don't care much about the citizens, it seems.
Why on earth would smart discontinue the gas-fueled car. True, people did not buy this car. I doubt they will buy the electric version either. Let's face it, America is not ready for the electric car. We currently have the smart gasoline car. Love it. Would buy another one if smart continued to sell it here. What I don't understand is that people buy the Fiat which is not much larger than the smart. What gives?