Wednesday 28th June 2006

After a flurry of rumours, DaimlerChrysler chairman Dieter Zetsche announced that the company’s urban-focused Smart brand–already popular in Europe—would come to the United States in early 2008. Smart–an acronym for Swatch Mercedes ART–began as a joint venture between Swatch, the company known for its colorful and trendy plastic watches, and the German automaker Mercedes-Benz. The result of this collaboration was the Smart ForTwo, which measured just over eight feet from bumper to bumper and was marketed as a safe, fuel-efficient car that could be manoeuvred easily through narrow, crowded city streets.