From the perspective of this being a new concept vehicle formed of the combined thinking of smart and BASF's ideas for holistic electric mobility, "in concept" I do find it interesting.
Lightweight tridion cell - after some of the hard hits we have seen the steel tridion take, not sure that I'm signing up for a "lightweight" tridion cell.
All plastic wheel - show me one taking a NC pothole at 75 mph as that is not a concept but rather a daily reality on our roads and highways!
"Faceted" side doors - will someone please break out the Bondo?
Without knowing more about what the properties are of the plastic used, I just have to wonder how the fortwo's stock alloy wheels fare on your NC potholes. I've heard of many dented rims. eBay is a good source for dented smart rims too. Maybe instead of denting, the plastic wheels crack or break?? Or not.
"Faceted" side doors - will someone please break out the Bondo?
Funky Smart Forvision EV Concept Coming to Frankfurt
Motor Trend.
"The bottom line is that Smart says all the innovations seen on the Forvision concept could increase the range of an electric car by about 20 percent. We’re all for more range from EVs, but the tweaks made to this Smart make it look laughably bizarre. Maybe, though, Smart will have the last laugh if these ideas make it to mainstream production on future cars."
A quick search on "polyamide composite" turned up a reference by a company announcing a "high performance polyamide composite suitable for manufacturing structural parts for the transportation and construction sectors". So, it may not be as far fetched as it seems. I'm sure there were folks who thought putting on a "carbon fiber" vest that could stop bullets was pretty far out at one time also. It all has to start somewhere... :wink:
A quick search on "polyamide composite" turned up a reference by a company announcing a "high performance polyamide composite suitable for manufacturing structural parts for the transportation and construction sectors". So, it may not be as far fetched as it seems. I'm sure there were folks who thought putting on a "carbon fiber" vest that could stop bullets was pretty far out at one time also. It all has to start somewhere... :wink:
Carrol Shelby had plastic wheels on one of his Shelby Dodge cars back in the mid '80's. It was a small two door coupe with some of his upgrades on it. If I remember correctly, the wheels had no problems.
I don't believe the "faceted" doors would look quite as odd if they were congruent with the rest of the styling, but the front and rear use very rounded, smooth shapes that don't mesh well with the "stealth fighter" doors.
Regardless of the "unique" features shown on these concept cars, they continue to reflect a continuity of design. Each tries out some additional features and concepts but continues to build on a consistent design theme. I think it is safe to say that the the next tridion will extend down and side skirts will be part of it, and the tridion will be retro to the 1st gen Fortwo by having the tail lights intergrated into it. I think it is safe to say that the air inlet will be a smooth slit in the panel on the drivers side (for LH drive)still relying on negative airflow to push fresh air into the engine. Front and rear fenders will extend to cover a wider tread/track. The front "grille" will be more smoothly intergrated into the front end to meet EU pedestrian safety standards.The door handles will be less stand alone. The up wedge shape to the rear will be lessened.The headlights will have some sort of rim on them, but not the bizarre white mascara look of the first concept. At least those are my design thought based on the continuing theme that each new concept smart continues to build on.
Even in diffused light and poor light conditions the transparent dyes of the solar cells can generate enough energy to power the multimedia components and assist with climate management of the vehicle interior.
Just from memory alone, this was already available via solar cells in the sunroof integrated with climate management in the 2003 and later VW Phaeton, in the mid-00's Audi A8, and in the 1991-1996 Mazda 929.
So this is pretty pretty ancient tech, and it is far from "new" stuff.
I have zero interest in an electric car but otherwise welcome any new tech on the smart ForTwo.
Motor Trend.
"The bottom line is that Smart says all the innovations seen on the Forvision concept could increase the range of an electric car by about 20 percent. We’re all for more range from EVs, but the tweaks made to this Smart make it look laughably bizarre. Maybe, though, Smart will have the last laugh if these ideas make it to mainstream production on future cars."
I like the front end design a lot, but think the headlights should only have the led strip around the outside/bottom edge. The perforations for the grill look really fresh to me. Too bad those about those doors; they make me think the team that put the creases on the BMW Z4 doors were part of the concept (and really went overboard).
Hello from Germany!
All-plastic wheels!!!
Look at this study for International Motor Show in Frankfurt 2011:
Source>>
More in english>>
Regards
Schaefca
More details:
Source>>
I found this link shared on Facebook and wanted to share it with everyone on here. I am loving the new design direction. Not so much the crinkled looking side though.
The SMART MADNESS Forum - The smart car Community
A forum community dedicated to all Smart Car owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about performance, modifications, troubleshooting, economy, maintenance, and more!
It would be nice if some of the deisgns in this one is in a future Smart car.
GetSmrt28277 · updated 
JohnnyM · updated 
