2015 Smart Fortwo on 2040-cars

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Smart bringing electric scooter to U.S. in 2014, will be part of Car2go

In a blink-and-you'd-miss-it announcement during an event in Berlin, the head of marketing and sales for Smart, Martin Hülder, told us that the third model in the Smart e-Mobility range - after the Smart ForTwo Electric Drive and eBike - will be the Smart electric scooter (or "smart scooter"). To be fair, the original announcement happened in mid-May at a shindig in Davos, Switzerland, but Daimler had some new news for us in Berlin.
The stylish two-wheeler was first shown at the 2010 Paris Motor Show but was whisked into limbo from there, presumably to end up a no-go along with several previous ideas from the traditionally cash-burning company. Instead, the scooter has gotten the green light and the United States is a key market for it.
To rehash the features of the silent plug-in runabout, a 48-volt lithium-ion battery pack stored down low behind your feet supplies juice to a 4-kW (i.e. 5.4 horsepower) wheel-hub electric motor at the rear wheel. Top speed is listed at 45 km/h or 28 mph - a choice by Smart that allows the scooter to be driven on streets in many countries before one has a driver's license.

2016 Technology of the Year Finalist: Smart CrossConnect App

One of the most common car-tech-related questions we hear is, "Why can't I just have my phone hooked up in the car?" Indeed, everything we need lives on our smartphones – phonebook contacts, navigation, audio files, etc. And while systems like Android Auto and Apple CarPlay work to bring a sort of mirroring functionality into the car, Smart offers a solution that allows you to, quite literally, just use your phone. It's called the CrossConnect App, available on the new-for-2016 Smart ForTwo. The car comes with a docking port that plugs into the radio head unit, which holds your phone in place, horizontally. From there, you run the app like you would any other, and it lets you work through your phone's existing information to use things like a media player, Bluetooth calling, navigation, and more. The app is free for Android and Apple users. It's a little clunky sometimes, but we like the ability to just use the existing functionality of your phone right there in the car's center console.

Recharge Wrap-up: Pikes Peak Honda CR-Z, Tesla's liquid-cooled cable

Honda will race a CR-Z hybrid in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. The car will use Electric SH-AWD, which probably means it will be using electric motors to power the rear wheels. Whether the Pikes Peak CR-Z uses the same powertrain as the upcoming Acura NSX or the 3.5-liter V6 with three-motor hybrid system used in the Acura RLX Sport Hybrid is still unclear. The car will also use Acura's Precision All-Wheel Steering (P-AWS) system. The CR-Z will be piloted by Tetsuya Yamano. Read more at Hybrid Cars, or, if you read Japanese, at Response. Tesla has introduced a thinner, liquid-cooled Supercharger cable. While the convenience of not having to "wrestle a good-sized snake into the car," as Elon Musk calls it in a shareholder speech, is wonderful, it could also allow for faster charging in the future. The liquid-cooled charging cable "also has the potential for increased power of the Supercharger long-term," says Musk. A cable able to withstand larger loads could mean shorter stops when it's time for a charge. Tesla has installed the first next-generation cable at the Mountain View Supercharger. Read more at Charged EVs. Smart is offering its Twinamic automatic dual-clutch transmission on more models in Europe. In addition to the 71-horsepower Smart Fortwo, the DCT will now be available in the 90-horsepower Fortwo and the 71-horsepower Forfour. In the Fortwo, the Twinamic DCT adds ˆ1,275 (about $1,437) to the price over the manual transmission, and is an extra ˆ1,425 (about $1,606) in the Forfour. The option of steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters as part of the Sport package makes driving the efficient microcar even more fun. Deliveries of the newly equipped vehicles begin at the end of July. Read more in the press release below. smart extends twinamic range for fortwo and forfour: Even more models with automatic transmission Stuttgart. Following in the footsteps of the smart fortwo with 52 kW/71 hp, the smart fortwo with 66 kW/90 hp and the smart forfour with 52 kW/71 hp are now also available with fully automatic twinamic dual clutch transmission. This costs an extra 1275 euros compared to the versions with 5-speed manual transmission (forfour: 1425 euros). This means that both model series now offer a choice between no fewer than nine engine/transmission combinations. Delivery of the new models will begin at the end of July 2015.