Smart Roadster: specifications, photo, price and owner reviews

Smart Roadster is a sports car from the Smart range, part of the international automotive concern Daimler AG.

The car was first introduced at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2003, and then was produced for two full years using original technologies without any changes. The dynamics of production was quite high, with the conveyor descended to 22 thousand units per year. By the time the production was stopped, about 43,000 machines had been produced. In 2005, the last Smart Roadster, descended from the assembly line, was solemnly escorted to the Mercedes-Benz Museum in the German city of Stuttgart.

The emergence of a new model

The background of the appearance of Smart Roadster began back in 1998, when a group of designers from Smart proposed to create a new sports car with a turbocharged engine and a 6-speed transmission on the basis of the Smart City Coupe model. The next five years have gone into the creation of several full-size models, testing of technological processes and all documentation regulating the serial production of the car. The car turned out to be super economical, stylish in terms of novelty of design, compact and with good high-speed qualities.

The first time the Smart Roadster was produced at one of the car assembly plants in France, in the basic version. It was a cabriolet with a soft roof, equipped with an electric drive. The car engine (three-cylinder, with a volume of 698 cc / cm) developed a capacity of 61 liters. Sec., Which made it possible to reach a speed of 160 km / h. At the same time, fuel consumption did not exceed 4.1 liters per 100 kilometers. In urban operation, the consumption of gasoline rose to 5.2 liters, which was also a good indicator. The feedback of the owners of the Smart Roadster has always been exceptionally positive.

Dimensions and chassis

The dimensions of the Smart Roadster were: length - 3 m 42.6 cm, width - 1 m 61.5 cm, height - 1 m 19.1 cm. Wheelbase of the machine - 2 m 36 cm. All these parameters were saved with the subsequent modifications of Smart Roadster in 2004. Then there were the Smart Roadster Coupe and the Smart Roadster Brabus. These two models exactly repeated all the parameters of the base sample and differed only in engine power and speed. At the same time, with the Smart Roadster Coupe, the body height increased to 1 m 20.7 cm against the standard (1 m 19.1 cm), due to the fixed roof. Although the transparent roof of high-quality carbon plastic stationary could only be called conditionally, as it was easily retracted into the trunk, and the Roadster Coupe, thus, turned into a cabriolet.

The chassis of the basic model of the Smart Roadster is designed for a full load of 790 kg, loading the Roadster Coupe - 810 kg, and the Smart Roadster Brabus is targeted at a weight of 832 kg. Front suspension of the linkage structure, with a transverse stabilizer. Shock absorbers are located in the suspension struts. Rear suspension pendulum-lever with longitudinal arrangement of levers and stabilizer of lateral stability. Reinforced with cylindrical coil springs, shock absorbers - telescopic.

Brake system

Brake system Smart Roadster is a two-circuit system with a complete separation of hydraulics on the front and rear wheels. The front brakes are disc brakes, with the support providing a smooth, but quite rigid action of the brake pads. Cylinders-pushers are arranged on the principle of self-return, so the mashing of pads is excluded. Rear brake drum type, with automatic adjustment of the gap between the shoes and the working surface of the brake drum. The effectiveness of the rear brakes is determined by the uniform fit of the pads throughout the contact area. This is achieved by means of a floating device controlling the pressing of said element.

Trust-Plus

Taking into account the specificity of the operation of the sports car, the increased dynamics of which are not always properly controlled, the braking distance of the car must not exceed the minimum values.

The anti-lock braking system is permanently on, it does not have a shutdown option. This is not a regular ABS system, which is used on most cars, but special leveling adjusters. The system used on Smart Roadster machines is exclusive and is called Trust-Plus. The principle of operation is electronic control of tractive effort in combination with stability on the course. The slightest deviation from the parameters of the norm stimulates the adjustment. Thanks to Trust-Plus, a vehicle skid is virtually eliminated. The driver can brake the car even at the entrance to the turn, without the risk of going south.

Security

Safety Smart Roadster is provided primarily by the body structure, which is made in the form of a sturdy capsule, capable of absorbing frontal and side impacts. Security Capsule Smart Roadster bears the name Tridion. In a frontal collision, the engine does not enter the passenger compartment, injuring the driver and passengers, but moves forward due to the inertia of the impact. Thus, the salon does not undergo destruction from the intrusion of a multi-kilogram powerplant, which means that people inside the car will remain intact.

Inside the cabin itself there are also a number of safety devices. Seats are anti-traumatic, their destruction is almost impossible, in any situation, both the seats and their backs remain intact, although at the time of the accident they absorb some of the energy of the impact. In addition, all Smart Roadster vehicles are equipped with emergency fuel tanks, which are located under the bottom of the body. And finally, the most common elements of passive safety are pillows. Calculations showed that these components, together with belts, allow the driver and passenger to save their lives in a head-on collision at a speed of about 100 km / h.

Project closure

In 2005, the Smart Roadster model, specifications Which was demanded by large financial security, fell under the reduction in the program of saving of means of production, which was held by the head office of the concern Daimler. In this case, all the rights to manufacture and sell the "Roadster" - this more than a successful car - were sold to the English company Project Kimber, which immediately began the release of its version of the Smart Roadster in the Wales factories. Of course, the brand was renamed, and the car is now called differently.

Smart Roadster, price Which in the Russian market can change in one direction or another, nevertheless steadily holds in the range of 255 to 650 thousand rubles for a used car not older than 5 years, and the new "Roadster" can be purchased at the showroom of any region of Russia For 550-750 thousand rubles (depending on the configuration).