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Mercedes Smart Car
Being inexperienced
in automobiles, Swatch CEO Nicolas Hayek sought
an established car maker to produce his Swatch
car, and found a partner in Volkswagen. Plans
never reached a final stage so Swatch teamed
up with Daimler-Benz. The car proved to be
far from expectations: technology was conventional
and it was more expensive than most small
4-seater cars sold in Europe. The joint venture
experienced heavy losses and Swatch pulled
out. In
2005, DaimlerChrysler decided against purchasing
a 50% share in the NedCar plant used to manufacture
the Forfour. DC also halted development on
the Formore and decided to discontinue production
of the Smart roadster.
The Smart Fortwo was
introduced in Canada in the 2004 calendar
year and sold through Mercedes-Benz dealers.
Only the turbo-diesel powerplant is offered
as power for the coupe and convertible models
because of emmission regulations for the gasoline
engines set forth by Transport Canada. Demand
has been heavy with up to six month waiting
lists in major urban areas in the spring of
2005. The vehicle has been especially popular
for light errand running for small shops and
businesses, with many carrying custom paint
jobs or stick-on graphics boldly advertising
the associated product or service. As of March
2006, Smart Canada says that the government
is still testing the Forfours for import to
Canada.
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