Smart #1 Brabus review

For a car with a sticker price north of £40,000, you’d expect a plush interior, and that’s exactly what you get with the Brabus Smart #1. 

Jumping in the car, it doesn’t feel like the Smart cars we all associate with the brand, such as the ForTwo or ForFour. Instead, it feels much more grown-up and sophisticated, but with a fun edge – a bit like the Mercedes A45 AMG, but quieter.  

Another difference from other Smart models is the amount of space you get inside the cabin. Despite it being 4.3 metres long, Smart claims it’s as large as a Mercedes E-Class inside and we believe them, as it offers plenty of room for taller passengers at the front and rear. 

The #1 feels very premium inside, much like its Mercedes counterparts. The differences between the standard car and this Brabus version is that you get plenty of Brabus trinkets throughout, as well as some red stitching on the seats and headrests, and some fiery red seatbelts – and who doesn’t want that? 

Its infotainment system is fast and responsive, but it’s not based on Mercedes’ MBUX multimedia system like you might expect. Instead, it’s got more in common with the other brand that’s invested in Smart – Geely. This means a more youthful appearance, and there’s even a small, animated fox that sits on your screen sometimes – a bit like the old Microsoft Word smiley paperclip. 

One quirky feature can be found in the climate control menu. Not only can you control how the air is filtered into the cabin, but you can also ‘deodorise’ it, removing any unwanted smells in the cabin. It does this by turning the fans up and lowering the windows slightly to push said nasty smell out. 

While the interior is generally pretty good, there’s one frustrating element that’s become a common trend with modern cars. To operate and alter the climate control settings, you need to go via the infotainment screen, which isn’t so easy to adjust while driving. You can shortcut to it using buttons below the screen, but this is still a tad fiddly to do when concentrating on the road. 

The Smart’s playful graphics and ease of use makes it perfect for those long motorway journeys. There is, however, something else that makes these longer drives more enjoyable – all the driver assistance features you have at your disposal. 

The ones we found to be the best are adaptive cruise control and steering assist, which means you can loosen your fingers and provide minimal input and the car will steer and keep you in lane, even on a twisty country road, though it’s mostly for motorway use.  

While this is useful, the #1 is a city car, after all (albeit a large one), so you’re going to spend your time squeezing into tight parking spaces. This is made a breeze thanks to the car’s 360-degree parking camera, which uses lots of different camera angles and sensors, and its brilliant turning circle and great visibility.  

Located in front of the driver is a narrow and low driver’s display, which is the perfect size because it doesn’t obstruct your view of the road. It shows all the relevant information you need to know while driving such as your speed, battery percentage, music, radio and outside temperature. There is, of course, also a head-up display that means you probably won’t look at this all that much anyway. 

The steering wheel is a good size and shape and has plenty of buttons on it so you can control things such as the various assistance features and your music.  

On that, the Brabus Smart #1 gets a powerful Beats sound system that offers punchy highs, mids and lows for all your favourite tunes. You won’t find any door speakers either as they’re all atop the dashboard – meaning more room for large bottles to your right.  

While the interior is a pleasant and comfortable place to be on road trips, when it comes to performance, this electric crossover blows most other family cars out of the water.  

With twin electric motors – situated at the front and rear – sending all 428hp and 543 Nm of torque to all four wheels, this mad Brabus creation would worry even some supercars. 

In a straight line, Smart claims the #1 – with the Brabus kit – will hit 0-62mph in just 3.9 seconds, which is the same as a Toyota GR Supra and quicker than a 2020 Caterham Super Seven 1600 SV. So yeah, it’s stupidly quick – plus it even goes on to a top speed of 112mph, not that you can reach that on UK public roads.  

This is by no means meant to be a lap time-chasing vehicle, and even Smart’s CEO admits this. But no matter who says what, an electric car is always going to have that ballistic low end, instant torque.  

Now, there are two reasons you’re going to buy this Brabus version over the standard one. The first is you’re a bit of a badge snob and want to show off, and the other is because of the way it drives – more importantly, how high-performance it is.  

We jumped in this car thinking it would be a bit lazy and lacklustre around bends, but Brabus has done wonders with the suspension and power delivery to make it agile and raring to go at every turn (and straight). 

The steering is direct and smooth, and the ride is impressive. The standard fitment is 19-inch wheels, which is on the larger side, but you’ve still got some tyre to cushion you. Overall, it does ride well but it’s a little thumpy over some of Surrey’s less leafy and rougher roads – but this is true of many cars nowadays, and it’s not exactly light at a scratch over 1.7 tonnes. 

You can choose from several drive modes from the get-go: Eco, Comfort, Sport and Brabus. These don’t adjust the ride or suspension, but they do change how the electric motors deliver the power.  

We’d imagine most of the time you’ll be in Eco or Comfort modes to conserve battery, but stick it into Brabus mode and you get very strong performance and the ability to turn off the stability controls, so you can really play with this car as you’re going around – as we demonstrate in our full video review.  

You really feel the extra torque being delivered to the rear wheels in Brabus mode – the car wants to turn and oversteer ever so slightly when you’re pushing on. 

While Brabus mode is the most fun, it may not be the most wallet-friendly, because it eats up battery like nobody’s business. The Brabus Smart #1 has a claimed range of 248 miles when in its most conservative drive mode settings. Thankfully, 100kW rapid charging can replenish the battery from 10-80% in around 30 minutes. 

Saying all this, if you just want an electric car to get you from A to B then this will do just that. The new #1 is much more like a usable crossover rather than one of the small Smart cars we used to know.  

Smart has firmly moved away from making tiny city cars, as is demonstrated by the #1, which enters crossover SUV territory. This bulking phase means there’s more interior space and a larger boot, making it ideal for families. 

As we touched on above, Smart claims the cabin space can be likened to that of the E-Class, and we see what it means. With plenty of front and rear head- and legroom, you don’t feel cramped in what would otherwise be a very small SUV.  

The rear seats even slide forward and back and tilt too, allowing for a larger boot (or more legroom) if needed. 

Storage options are really impressive considering it’s a battery electric car. This means you get loads of room in and under the centre console, as well as two cupholders up front and a large 411-litre boot at the rear that grows to 976 litres with the rear seats folded. 

If you’ve got kids, you’ll be glad to know the #1 comes with rear ISOFIX mounting points, and thanks to the car being fairly high off the ground, clicking car seats into place should be a little easier on your back. Plus, if you have a caravan, this can tow a 1.6-tonne braked trailer. 

While the idea of owning a brand-new electric car may seem appealing, they’re not all as cheap as the MG4.  

The standard Smart #1 will cost from £35,950, which is already steep, but the Brabus model we tested costs an eye-watering £43,450. Of course, cheaper options will start cropping up on the used car market soon enough, but it’s a lot of money for a car by Mercedes that isn’t a Mercedes. 

As for charging costs, these will vary depending on where you plug in. Charge at home with a 22kW charger and you can expect to pay around 34p/kWh, but use a public 100kW rapid charger and this will increase to around 75p/kWh.  

Do this and you’ll get 10-80% in around 30 minutes, so if you’re in a hurry then the latter is the one to choose. 

Another cost-related perk of a newer electric car from the Mercedes family is a solid warranty. For the #1, you get a three-year/30,000-mile factory warranty that can be passed on to subsequent owners. But if this isn’t enough for you down the line, then you can add cinchCare on to your purchase. 

Written by Ben Welham