2008 Smart Fortwo Passion Cabriolet With 13k Orig Miles on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Car2go now has 1,000,000 members

Turns out, 1,000,000 people sharing 12,000 cars can have a big impact. Now that Car2go has claimed the seven-digit member figure (disclosure: I'm one of those million), the Daimler-owned carsharing company is, ahem, sharing a few figures in the traditional infographic format. Click the image above to enlarge it. Using cars in 29 "Home Areas" in eight countries around the world, Car2go members have driven 136,701,662 total miles over 32 million trips. Daimler also said that the average trip time was between 19 and 25 minutes. We have to assume that the 18 trips used as a "wedding getaway car" took a bit longer than that. Thus far, Car2go is open only in cities in Europe and North America, but we recently learned that expansion to Asia is in the works. The carsharing company has evolved since starting in 2009, adding more transportation options in some areas and turning members' cell phones into a gadget that can start and end trips. Find more in the press release below. car2go Reaches 1,000,000 Members, Marking Its Spot As The Largest Carsharing Company In The World In Celebration of 1M Member Milestone, car2go Reveals User Behavior Data Since Launch AUSTIN, Texas, Dec. 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- car2go, the largest carsharing company in the world, announced today that its revolutionary, one-way carsharing service has reached one million members with access to 12,000 car2go vehicles in 60 cities within 29 operating Home Areas and eight countries across the globe. Additionally, for the first time ever, car2go revealed user behavior data, illustrating its sheer growth since the company launched in 2009. "Providing our members the best car2go experience with their honest feedback has always been such an important part of our overall growth strategy," said Paul DeLong, CMO of car2go North America. "We've seen tremendous growth since we first launched, and the strong adoption rate is a testament that our valued members are truly responding to our efforts to help them get from Point A to Point B with absolute ease. We know that we can't rest - we will continue to innovate and improve car2go in our existing markets, and introduce car2go to additional cities around the world.

Next-gen Smart lineup growing to three models

Still in the testing phases of the next-generation Smart Fortwo and the new Forfour model, Smart could also be planning a new crossover to reach into a more mainstream vehicle segment. According to Auto Express, soon after the redesigned Fortwo arrives in 2014, the Smart lineup will grow to include the other two models by 2015.
As expected, the renderings of the new Fortwo, Forfour and the unnamed Smart SUV are inspired heavily by recent concepts like the 2011 Forvision Concept and the 2012 Forstars Concept (pictured above). One interesting note is that Auto Express says both the Fortwo and Forfour will offer a removable tablet as a center stack display screen. The report says that while these cars were developed alongside the Renault Twingo, the French automaker will only be using the larger of the two hatchbacks for its new model.
This, reportedly, won't be the only tie up between Daimler and Nissan-Renault, though, as Smart also looks to add a new crossover based on the next-generation Nissan Juke, which could arrive by late 2015.

Should Smart bring the Forfour to the USA?

With sales not improving much even with the new Fortwo, should Smart bring the other car it sells around the world? It's called the Forfour because, well, it's for four people. Smart has said it would cannibalize the Fortwo's sales, but sales are money and the automaker should be happy if it can sell more cars and have a real presence in the market. Many people say the only reason they don't buy the Fortwo is the lack of a backseat or because with the price range of the tiny car you can get something bigger. Those issues are resolved with the Forfour. Besides, the USA market is showing some willingness to accept small hatchbacks if they offer good value for the money or are fun to drive that's the reason Fiat came back to the USA with the 500, Chevrolet sells the Spark and Sonic, Ford offers the Fiesta, Toyota imports the Yaris, the Honda Fits is in its third generation, that's why Hyundai keep selling the Accent and Kia the Rio, and Nissan brought the Versa Note, even Mitsubishi sells in decent numbers the dull looking Mirage. The Smart Forfour would be a nice addition to the segment. And an interesting one too as it would be the only one with the engine located in the back, that's right, in the back, below the cargo area. Power is provided by the same engine that moves the Fortwo: 0.9L turbo 3 cylinder with 89 HP, the transmission can be a 5 speed manual or a 6 speed double clutch automatic. Now let's think for a minute: manual, RWD and rear-engined...sounds like fun. While the Fortwo is a niche car bought only for the enthusiasts, ads companies or Car2Go, the Forfour belongs to a real segment with plenty of competition that don't offer the funky style and other features the Smart does. So, the question is: should Smart bring the Forfour to the USA? Let us know in the comments below. Image Credit: Alfonso Rascon smart smart forfour open road