Smart #5 review

After years of the Fortwo and Forfour, it seems that Smart now has an issue with even numbers. First up for the all-electric rebirth was the #1 – not a teeny city car that can be parked nose on to a kerb, but a fairly generic small electric crossover. Then came the #3, which was essentially a slightly larger and coupe-ified version of the #1.

And now, as you might have guessed, it’s the turn of the #5. And yes, you are supposed to call it the ‘Hashtag Five’. Ick, right?

Surely that can’t be a Smart? It’s massive.

Get those cutesy clever two-seaters out of your brain, because Smart, like Mini, is no longer a small-car specialist. The #5 is almost 4.7m long, 1.9m wide and 1.7m tall. That's ever so slightly larger in every direction than the Skoda Enyaq.

Other rivals are the ubiquitous Tesla Model Y. Think also Hyundai Ioniq 5, Ford Explorer, Nissan Ariya… anything from MGS6 and Citroen E-C5 Aircross to BMW X1.

So yes, Smart wants you to think of this as a proper SUV, and you can get AWD, off-roady accessories and traction-control modes. It can even tow a 1,600kg braked trailer. More than a hint of Mercedes GLB in the looks too, although Smart knows this car is awash with competition so wanted the #5 to “really stand out”. The newly split lightbars front and rear impart a mild truckstop vibe.

Wait, so is it basically a Mercedes underneath?

Short answer: no. Smart is still linked with Merc, but it’s actually now established as a joint venture between Mercedes and the Chinese megazoid Geely. Yep, that’s the overlord that now looks after Volvo, Polestar, Lotus, Zeekr etc etc.

So, the #5 is actually based on Geely underpinnings. As with all new Smarts it’s only available as a full EV. The cheapest model, Pro, has a smaller 74.4kWh lithium iron phosphate battery and a 400-volt architecture. All the other versions come with a 94kWh nickel manganese cobalt battery and 800-volt architecture, still a pretty uncommon feature that has real benefits.

What does that mean for range and charging times?

The entry level Pro trim, costing £39,800, is the only one that gets the smaller battery, and it's combined with a single 335bhp motor for rear-wheel drive. As a result, that’ll take 6.9 seconds to get from 0-62mph and claims a WLTP range of 288 miles. Having only 400-volt architecture means the DC rapid charging maxes out at 150kW, so it's 30 minutes to top up from 10 to 80 per cent.

Step up to Pro+ and Premium (£43,800 and £47,300) trims and you’ll get the larger battery with a slightly more powerful 358bhp rear-mounted motor. These are the rangiest versions of the #5 and claim 366 miles on a single charge. We scored a genuine 270 miles on a trip that was a large proportion of motorway and a 10 degree temperature outside. That's 2.9m/kWh, a good result for a car this stocky.

Plus, because you’re now on an 800-volt architecture your charging time drops to just 18 minutes if you can find a 400kW charger.

Step up to Pulse (£47,300) trim or the Summit Edition (£48,800) and you’re now into twin-motor, all-wheel drive territory. Your charging times are the same here, but you get 579bhp and 474lb ft of torque. WLTP range drops to 335 miles though.

You might think that’s where the range ends, but no, because you can also get the Smart #5 in Brabus form.

Hang on, is that the Brabus I’m thinking of?

Yep, Smart is using the name of the Bottrop-based tuner for its top-of-the-line versions of the Hashtags 1, 3 and 5. Here in the #5 Brabus you're kicked about by a total of 637bhp on tap from the twin-motor setup. The WLTP range doesn't fall, because the WLTP test's gentle driving doesn't use the extra power. But you’ll have to put up with the lightly embarrassing Brabus styling and those special 21in wheels.

What does the #5 look like on the inside?

The main talking points here are the screens. All Fives get a 13in OLED central infotainment screen and a 10.25in digital dial display, but the more expensive versions add a second 13in OLED touchscreen for the front seat passenger and a monster 25.6in augmented reality head-up display.

Away from the pixels it’s much more standard, with five seats, lots of legroom in the rear and very few physical buttons. Plenty of nice soft-touch materials and interesting colour schemes too. It's a really pleasant place to be. You’ll find more detail over on the Interior tab of this review.

And on the move?

Let's start with the passenger experience, because that's the good news. You've loads of room and light, the stereo is terrific, and the suspension is genuinely cushioning and quiet.

For the driver there are issues. The right pedal is unprogressive and has a delay whether you're tipping in or lifting off. It's infuriating when you're trying to keep a constant gap in variable-speed suburban traffic, and feels like awful turbo lag in country roads.

Get a move on and the soft suspension starts to feel underdamped, even in moderately-attempted roundabouts never mind B-road driving when you use the performance. Given the Brabus version's suspension setup is no different despite its monster power, you can see why we say avoid it.

Smart wants the #5 to be ‘Beyond Urban’, and we reckon the best version will probably be the one that can get as far away from the city on a single charge. Yep, it’s yet another occasion where we’re urging you to avoid the fastest version of an EV. The Brabus is mighty quick, but soggy damping and poor roll control mean it’s a chore to drive.

But the Pulse+ and Premium have good electric specs, reflected in the reality of our test. We got good range and efficiency with the bonus of quick replenishment if you plan your stops at modern chargers.

Elsewhere the #5 is roomy, super-comfy and refined, full of decent materials and competitively priced given the kit that comes as standard. Keen drivers should think twice, or indeed twice squared, but they're in the minority. The #5 should give Smart a proper place at the medium-sized electric SUV table. How badly do you not want to go to that dinner party?