smart City-Coupé Becomes Smart fortwo as of 2004

Press Release

Consistent implementation of the new product naming strategy

Within the framework of the smart product offensive and the introduction of the smart forfour, the naming logic which began with the new four-seater is now to be applied to the two-seater smart model which has been on the market since 1998. As of 1 January 2004, the smart city-coupé and smart cabrio will bear the new names smart fortwo coupé and smart fortwo cabrio. Parallel to the decision to develop smart from a single-product brand to a multi-product manufacturer, the company has also been working on a new name structure for its range of models. The aim of this approach - as was the case when designing the cars themselves - was to tread wholly original, typically smart paths. This in turn gave rise to the idea of using a name which, for the first time, is directly associated with the actual use of the car: A smart for four people - smart forfour. This catchy and unusual name met with extremely positive feedback from customers. Due to this response, smart has decided not only to use the same logic to determine the names of all future smart models, but also to re-christen the well-established two-seater as smart fortwo. "Changing the name of our city-coupé to smart fortwo is a logical and consistent continuation of the naming strategy which began with the smart forfour", says Philipp Schiemer, Vice President Marketing and Sales at smart. "This approach is the first of its kind ever to be taken in the automobile industry. Instead of being pretentious and inaccessible to customers, the names of our models are snappy and directly associated with the benefits they offer. As well as this, it reflects the typically smart feeling of effortlessness and joie de vivre", he adds. The smart roadster and smart roadster-coupé are to retain their original names, since these already describe what these two smart models have to offer: Pure driving pleasure.