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Smart's take on city centre motoring was at its cutest in open-top fortwo cabrio guise. This third generation version had wider appeal, classier, cleverer and more effective than ever in its town-targeted remit thanks to Mercedes engineering and shared development with Renault. As before, it was almost as nippy as a bike, yet as trendy as the priciest convertible. If you're urban-bound, here's a car with few really direct rivals and one it's hard not to like.
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History
If the best thing about smart in this century's first two decades was the little fortwo, then arguably the best thing about the fortwo was this cute cabrio model. While its fixed-top stablemate sometimes struggled to justify its existence in a market filled with cheaper, more practical superminis, the cabrio version's appeal was perhaps easier to define. It was, quite simply, the least expensive open-topped car you could buy in this period. Here, we're looking at the third generation version.
Before this model's introduction in 2016, we'd had open-roofed versions of this car since the year 2000; there was even a more extreme smart crossblade model in 2002 with no doors, no windscreen and no roof of any kind. Typical fortwo cabrio buyers though, like their creature comforts, hence the standardisation of a fully automatic soft top on all models following the launch of the second generation version in 2007. By this point, the cabrio body style was accounting for over 10% of fortwo sales, making this pricier variant a profitable car for the brand.
This MK3 model was quite a different car to its predecessors. For a start, there were other influences in play with this design: some from Mercedes - as you would expect given the Daimler brand ownership - but others from quite a different quarter. Under the skin of this fortwo lay the underpinnings of a little Renault Twingo, which is why, for instance, customers could at last have a manual gearbox - as well as a much more sophisticated and far smoother automatic transmission option. Renault also helped the smart development team in improving some of the other things that put people off this car in the past, hence the changes made to increase cargo space and improve the previously unsettled quality of ride.
This car's convertible appeal was enhanced as well - to the point where smart claimed it to be the only 'true' affordable cabriolet in its class. Neat removable roof bars enabled the creation of a completely open-to-the-elements feel that direct rivals like Fiat's 500C and the DS3 Cabrio just couldn't match. A sportier-looking Brabus version (with the 0.9 engine) arrived just after launch. The 'Electric Drive' EQ version was launched in 2017. Combustion-powered fortwo cabrio models were offered until 2019, after which an all-electric model (by now badged 'EQ') took over until the end of sales in 2023.
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What you get
Would you like a fortwo cabrio? If you're urban-bound, it'd be hard not to be tempted by this MK3 model, providing the metropolis you have in mind isn't habitually smog-filled. Smart, we're told, is all about 'FUN.ctional' design and with that in mind, it helps that this feels like a proper convertible in a way that comparably-priced rivals from this period simply don't. The roof bars that you have to have permanently attached on comparably-priced rival models can, on a fortwo cabrio, be easily unclipped and then stored in this little compartment on the inside of the tailgate. From inside the car, the mechanism works by pressing a switch near the gear lever. Opening or closing can be done at any speed and the full process occupies just 12 seconds. You may not want complete activation or retraction though, given the appeal of a provided interim 'sunroof'-style setting.
Out back, the twin-section tailgate was carried over from the previous model, complete with its user-friendly upper opening glass section. With everything open, you get an amazingly tardis-like cargo bay, boot space to the window line rated at 260-litres, the same as you'd get in the fixed-top model and 20-litres more than the previous generation model could offer. At the wheel, the spacial surprises continue and you'll quickly find yourself wondering how on earth something so diminutively small outside can feel so large and airy within. Unlike previous fortwos, you feel that you're in a proper car, rather than some kind of cramped urban mobility pod.
The dashboard's a two-piece affair, with the upper part trimmed in a lovely mesh-effect fabric coating that looks great, though we wouldn't want to have to try and get melted chocolate out of it. This can be colour-co-ordinated alongside the central seat facings and the middle panels in the doors, with black, blue or orange themes. Further funky touches include the four spherical air vents with their friendly clickety mechanisms. And an unusually-configured air conditioning unit, on which the desired temperature can be set on a central scale you select from with the aid of a sliding magnifying glass.
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What to look for
We are primarily going to assume here that you're looking at a combustion-powered fortwo cabrio, rather than the later EQ electric model. As a car designed primarily for city streets, it's unlikely you'll find a high mileage example that's spent a life on the motorway. Because of this, the condition of this smart and a service history are more important than the distance it's travelled. Low miles may sound good but urban driving puts more stress on a car than you'd think; regular maintenance is vital. There's also a good chance it'll have seen a few supermarket car parks and tight spaces, so look for damage to the bodywork and wheels. The good news is that the plastic panels should make repairs fairly cheap.
On this cabrio version, obviously check the powered roof mechanism thoroughly. We'd close it and put it through a car wash to check for leaks too. There have been quite a few problems with fortwo engines, so you really need to insist on a service history. Quite a few problems have been reported with the 5-speed automated manual transmission too. We've had reports that gears won't engage or slip out of place. On your test drive, you might notice difficulty in shifting gears - or perhaps the car will skip between ratios. This could be a sign that the clutch is faulty - or it could be a damaged solenoid. Another cause may be a malfunctioning speed sensor delivering the wrong data to the gearbox. If the gearbox feels jerky, it could be a sign of insufficient gearbox oil - or perhaps the oil has lost its quality and needs changing. We also come across reports of the gearbox leaking, which means oil seal damage.
What about all fortwo models including the electric version? Well we've come across reports of the vehicle bottoming out because the suspension is poor. Walk away from cars that do this because the cost of repair is quite expensive, shock absorbers being particularly pricey. We also heard that the brakes wear out fast and pads need to be changed frequently. A normal lifespan for brake pads is about 40,000 miles but on a smart fortwo, you can only expect 25 to 30,000 miles. Otherwise, it's just the usual things: check for alloy wheel scrapes and interior child damage.
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Replacement parts
(approx based on 2017 fourtwo cabrio 0.9 inc. VAT) An air filter is £14-£16, front brake pads are in the £27-£40 bracket, while front brake discs are in the £75-£87 bracket. Wiper blades are in the £4-£23 bracket. And an alternator is in the £243-£300 bracket. A fuel filter is around £13. Replacing the battery and shock absorbers can be extremely expensive.
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On the road
Roof open on a sunny day, your designer shopping bags on the seat beside you, it takes a special kind of urban traffic jam to dent your general good humour if you're a smart cabrio driver. The electric fabric roof operates at a touch of the button provided down by the gearstick and because the car itself is so short, it's quick enough to do at the lights if you're hit by a sudden cloudburst, the process occupying just 12 seconds. If you want, you can have the top partly open in a 'sunroof'-style position. Or, if it's retracted fully back, you can get a full properly blowy open-topped experience if you're prepared to stop and unclip the two longitudinal roof bars.
This third generation model got far more sophisticated underpinnings developed with Renault and a much improved suspension set-up that not only makes things more comfortable in town but also makes longer distance trips more pleasant. It's at its best in the city though, a party piece being the astonishingly tight 6.95m turning circle. There was a choice of engines, both of them three cylinder petrol powerplants. Things kicked off with a 71bhp normally aspirated 1.0-litre unit, but there was also a 0.9-litre turbocharged 90bhp option that offered considerably more pulling power for easier overtaking. Either way, buyers had transmission options for the very first time on this car: there was a manual gearbox if you didn't want the automatic, the 'twinamic' self-shifter much smoother than the jerky sequential auto you had to have with the previous generation model. Whatever your choice of engine or gearbox, running costs won't be very much affected, most models managing 65.7mpg on the combined cycle and 99g/km of CO2.
From 2019, smart introduced the all-electric fortwo EQ cabrio, which then sold all the way to the end of sales in 2023. This used a rear-mounted 80hp motor powered by a small 17kWh battery offering just 81 miles of range.
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Overall
This car represents a clever idea, cleverly executed. If you like the idea of an open-top, you drive your car mainly over short distances or in town and space is not especially important, then you'll likely find this MK3 fortwo cabrio to be an endearing little thing. Fashionable urbanites will be as attracted to this third generation version as they were to its predecessors. It does, after all, remain the quintessential open-topped citycar, stylish, cheap to run, supremely space-efficient and easier to get around in and park than anything this side of a moped. You come away from a drive in this smart feeling that no other small rival has been quite so perfectly tailored for the town.
True, obvious period rivals have the advantage of a rear bench, but you pay for that in so many other ways. Those competitors have smaller cargo areas; their greater size makes parking more difficult and they carry around extra weight which tends to lead to higher running costs. Nor can they offer the kind of full open-air experience you get in a fortwo cabrio with the roof bars removed. So, how to sum up? Well, the extra maturity of this third generation version is welcome, with its smoother driving dynamics, stronger safety standards and extra connectivity. Ultimately though, this is still the kind of purchase you make with your heart rather than your head. Maybe if smart could sell it in some kind of giant designer shopping bag? Better still, one of those convertible, reversible ones. Fashion: don't you just love it?
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