Sensible’s again, child.
The model that delivered town hero ForTwo and grinningly-fun Roadster earlier this millennium returns as an EV-only proposition, a joint-venture between Mercedes-Benz and Geely.
Two small crossover SUVs are provided – the awkward-bummed #1 and sportier-looking #3. Styling’s finished in Germany, whereas construct and electrical elements hail from China.
Each fashions use a 62kWh (useable) battery, have a single rear mounted motor good for 200kW and 343Nm, and supply vary between 425km and 455km.
There are additionally scorching Brabus variations of every, which characteristic physique kits, racy microfibre suede trim and a further electrical motor over the entrance finish. These ship 313kW/584Nm, and impressively crack 100km/h in below 4 seconds.
Those that’ve been paying cautious consideration will notice Volvo’s EX30 EV shares the Sensible’s spec, because it additionally hails from the home of Geely.
READ MORE: How and the place to purchase a Sensible in Australia – we get the shopping for expertise
READ MORE: Rugged Sensible #5 EV off-roader locked in for Australia in 2025
READ MORE: Volvo EX30 street take a look at – driving the Sensible #1 and #3 sister automobile
Whereas Australia’s market is now comprehensively flooded with small and small-ish EVs – particularly Chinese language ones – Sensible’s correctly leveraging its Mercedes-Benz hyperlinks to push the #1 and #3 right into a extra status house.
The automobiles’ design, cabin high quality, included options and security go an extended approach to justify the premium push, and the #1 and #3 each land just a few grand cheaper than the Volvo different, ranging from $54,900 and $57,900 respectively.
You’ll pay related for a Tesla Mannequin 3/Y, Renault Megane E-Tech, Hyundai Kona Electrical and Kia Niro Electrical, however you’re in a pricier realm than the likes of a BYD Atto 3 or MG4.
It’s a busy pool, giving consumers loads of selection, and Sensible’s a welcome returning participant, even when it re-launches at a time of EV value reductions and cooling gross sales.
There’s one other key factor counting in opposition to Sensible. The model of previous was bought via most Mercedes dealerships, however there’s now zero affiliation with Mercedes-Benz Australia.
Smarts are completely imported and bought by LSH Auto, a large conglomerate working three Mercedes-Benz dealerships in Australia: Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
If you wish to purchase one, these three spots are – for now – the one locations the place Smarts are proven and retailed. Positively, as LSH has large, dazzling showrooms, there’s a high-end really feel to the Sensible shopping for expertise, as we discovered throughout a tour of the Brisbane facility.
2024 Sensible #1 and #3 value and gear
Specification is shared between the #1 and #3 fashions, and every is available in three completely different grades.
Entry-level is the Professional+ costing $54,900 as a #1 and $57,900 the #3. There’s a premium for trying fashionable – within the metallic the #1’s rear finish’s a bit gawky (like a Mercedes EQB), whereas the sleeker coupe-like rear #3 is the prettier of the pair, providing some Benz A-Class vibes.
Inclusions are good from the get-go.
The Professional+ scores 19-inch alloys, panoramic sunroof, LED headlights, energy tailgate and a Kind 2, Mode 3 charging cable.
Inside there are quality-feel material seats with funky rivets, energy regulate and heated driver and passenger seats, an AI-integrated 12.8-inch infotainment display screen, skinny 9.2-inch instrument cluster, wi-fi CarPlay and Android Auto, wi-fi charging, cooled central armrest bin and Sensible’s Superior Clever Driving with Autopilot driver help.
The mid-spec Premium provides $4000 to the invoice – $58,900 the #1, and $61,900 the #3 – and feels a correct step-up in your {dollars}.
Added is fake leather-based upholstery, a 10-inch head-up show, Beats sound system, improved AC charging (up from the Professional+ 7.4kW to 22kW), an power saving warmth pump, Matrix LED headlights and ambient lighting.
When you’re a Dangerous Boy Brabus purchaser, there are go-fast goodies to go together with the additional electrical motor and all-wheel-drive.
There’s 20-inch alloys, a Brabus physique equipment, Brabus courtesy lights, Brabus badging, black logos, simulated engine sounds (not too naff, both), microfibre suede for seats and steering wheel, sports-style pedals, Brabus headrests and many pink – see the seat belts and trim stitching – to remind you’re the sporty sort.
Though there’s at the moment no ANCAP crash security ranking, our Euro NCAP cousins have finished so (the outcomes are more likely to be shared) and each the #1 and #3 returned 5 Star scores.
Included driver help options are autonomous emergency braking, computerized parking help, automated lane change help, 360-degree digicam, site visitors jam help, emergency lane maintain help, blind spot detection, adaptive excessive beam, site visitors signal recognition and entrance and rear cross site visitors alert. Good haul there.
There’s a spread of lifeless and vivid colors, together with black, white, silver, pink, inexperienced, yellow, blue and a matte gray.
The #3 provides unique colors: Ceramic cream, Photon orange, matte Electron blue, Photo voltaic silver and even Sonic pink.
Most energy is 150kW utilizing a DC public charger, with the cost time quoted as half-hour to go from 10-80 per cent of cost.
A 7.4kW house wallbox will do the identical job in below seven hours, however the Premium and Brabus can take AC cost charges of 22kW, so this is able to full the duty in lower than three hours.
Disappointingly, guarantee is barely 5 years/150,000km. For a brand new model eager to shortly achieve belief, it’s shocking Sensible hasn’t matched different newbies with seven years or extra, without having limitless kilometres is poor type.
2024 Sensible #1 and #3: What we expect
Name me a snob, however the Mercedes affiliation instantly offers these Smarts a leg-up within the desirability division.
The #3 has stunning, fuss-free strains. Its lights and proportions have Benz DNA, whereas pop-out door handles and the auto tailgate opening by touching an invisible pad within the Sensible badge’s ‘a’ is a pleasant contact.
The #1’s design is tougher. It’s a bit high heavy like a Tesla Mannequin Y, and is boxy sufficient to remind of a Kia Soul. Brabus physique kits add a touch extra menace, however neither #1 nor #3 Brabii look actually sporty after the tuner’s waved its aesthetic wand.
Transfer inside and there’s extra Mercedes affect, particularly the #3’s trio of central-mount spherical air vents. The #1 presents its centre console barely in a different way, however each really feel nicely styled and completed, there are oodles or storage choices and the standard-on-all chilled field below the armrest is extremely helpful, even when it doesn’t accommodate a bottle of bubbly.
Presentation and house feels good for the phase, and there’s mild incredible with a whopping panoramic roof on all. Sadly, solely the Brabus options an electrical shade to cowl it when desired.
There’s a youthful, enjoyable flavour to the styling, and it’s fairly minimalist with the majority of controls going via the mighty 12.8-inch infotainment display screen. Local weather management is completely illuminated, but it surely’s nonetheless annoying to prod a display screen to vary temperature and air pace.
The display screen’s HD and fast to reply, however the background picture (which we couldn’t work out easy methods to take away) was an advanced mess of distraction (see image beneath).
Sensible’s additionally launched avatars – a fox for the #1 and cheetah the #3 – that are presupposed to be your partaking journey companion. Ours proved fairly dormant and ineffective as we prodded the cartoon picture on the display screen, merely including to our confusion.
Higher is a 9.2-inch skinny digital driver show. It reveals your vitals via the steering wheel, eradicating something superfluous. It’s a lesson in simplicity.
Sprint and doorways characteristic tender contact plastics, seats are spongy and classily panelled, and there’s an absence of low cost parts. There’s much less of the flimsy-feeling eco trim you’ll discover in a Volvo EX30.
It’s price stretching to the Premium in the event you can. The faux leather-based feels glorious and ups the sponginess even additional. It’s a spacious, cosy house to journey in, whereas the bonus of a head-up show and pumpin’ Beats sound system boosts the status credibility.
When you want respectable rear house the #1’s the decide. Its rear seats slide on runners for higher versatility, and there’s a pleasant recline to the chairs. The #3’s again seats are set in place, however nonetheless supply cheap leg room for 2 adults.
The boot’s extra of a difficulty. It’s smaller on the #1 at 323L, whereas the longer #3 offers 370L. Each are means down on the likes of a Hyundai Kona or Kia Niro.
Our drive route was annoyingly restricted. We spent a little bit of time navigating metropolis streets, then desperately tried to seek out some respectable backroad corners (we failed), earlier than sitting in freeway site visitors for an hour. It made it laborious to correctly assess the Smarts. Not least as a result of we had been quickly shuffled between #1s and #3s, completely different grades and RWD or Brabus.
If we ignore the bonkers twin-motor ones for a sec, each Sensible #1s and #3s ship likeable if unspectacular drive experiences. Most likely supreme for the target market.
On the town they’re quiet, responsive and with respectable shove – 100km/h is up in 6.7 seconds – and extremely simple to drive. There’s not a lot steering, brake or throttle really feel, robbing keener drivers of a lot engagement, however for A-B city work they’re reasonably bloody beautiful.
We struggled with the regeneration as drive was altered via the display screen reasonably than handier steering wheel paddles, and by no means managed to efficiently take a look at one-pedal driving.
Crappier street surfaces confirmed the suspension to be a touch agency, however the trade-off is a automobile that feels neatly tied-down and managed when cornering. There’s respectable steadiness to those little Smarts, whereas grip and physique management proved adequate for a little bit of rear-drive enjoyable.
The #3 has barely decrease suspension and is 40kg lighter than the #1 – 1780kg versus 1820kg – making it the marginally extra agile EV. Even so, don’t confuse these Smarts with sports activities automobiles.
And right here’s the issue with the Brabus.
Just like the Volvo EX30, there’s merely an excessive amount of energy, torque and acceleration for the chassis, brakes and tyres. The #1 Brabus hits 100km/h in 3.9 seconds and the #3 Brabus in 3.7 seconds. These are ‘wise’ small household SUVs, keep in mind. And people are supercar numbers.
The all-wheel-drive means the facility primarily will get all the way down to the street, but it surely’ll nonetheless squirm round and I’d advise on conserving that steering wheel completely straight. With 313kW and 584Nm you’re in foolish pace numbers in a short time, and also you barely realise it.
In Brabus mode you will have a selection of synthetic engine notes, and these give a useful aural sign of your misbehaviour. The 2 motors’ response is mega on this mode, whereas steering stiffens up barely too.
There’s simply not the texture in corners although, nor a lot finesse. It really feels a bit pointless, robbing you of enjoyable. I’d recommend Sensible Brabus homeowners could be happier paying a further $10k to get higher sorted brakes, suspension and rubber, very similar to Polestar did with its 2 Efficiency.
However hey. It’s Australia’s most cost-effective approach to go sub-four seconds to 100km/h (in a brand new automobile), and that in itself is praiseworthy.
It’s simply that the #1 and #3 in Professional+ or Premium trims and a single rear motor are higher all-round automobiles.
Our take a look at, though not over as different a course as we’d have appreciated, returned 15.8kWh/100km the Professional+, and 18.5kWh/100km the Brabus, suggesting the power use claims to be correct.
2024 Sensible #1 and #3: Verdict
Subsequent to a sea of latest China-sourced EVs, these Smarts with their Euro flavour really feel refreshingly completely different.
Materials high quality and presentation impress, specification’s spot-on, the drive expertise is usually excellent and so they’re fairly beautiful issues to journey lengthy distances in. All providing over 400km vary is one other sturdy promoting level.
Much less good is the guarantee and solely three factors of sale, though the latter is of little concern in the event you reside in or round Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane, which most of us do.
The #3 Premium is the very best steadiness of worth, gear, vary and magnificence. However there’s a Sensible #1 or #3 to swimsuit many budgets and efficiency needs, giving this revived model a strong probability in Australia’s courageous – and aggressive – new EV world.
SCORE: 3.5/5
Sensible #1 specificationsPrice: $54,900 (Professional+); $58,900 (Premium); $67,900 (Brabus) plus on-road prices.Fundamentals: EV, 5 seats, 5 doorways, small SUV, RWD and AWD (Brabus)Vary: 400-440km (WLTP)Battery capability: 62kWh (useable)Battery guarantee: 8 years/150,000kmEnergy consumption: 16.8-18.2kWh/100kmMotor: 1 rear synchronous, 200kW/343Nm / twin synchronous, 313kW/584NmAC charging: 7.4kW (Professional+) or 22kW, Kind 2 plugDC charging: 150kW, CCS combo plug0-100km/h: 3.9 (Brabus); 6.7 seconds (Professional+ and Premium)
Sensible #3 specificationsPrice: $57,900 (Professional+); $61,900 (Premium); $70,900 (Brabus) plus on-road prices.Fundamentals: EV, 5 seats, 5 doorways, small coupe SUV, RWD and AWD (Brabus)Vary: 400-455km (WLTP)Battery capability: 62kWh (useable)Battery guarantee: 8 years/150,000kmEnergy consumption: 16.8-18.2kWh/100kmMotor: 1 rear synchronous, 200kW/343Nm / twin synchronous, 313kW/584NmAC charging: 7.4kW (Professional+) or 22kW, Kind 2 plugDC charging: 150kW, CCS combo plug0-100km/h: 3.7 seconds (Brabus); 6.7 seconds (Professional+ and Premium)