Struggling to Sell Conventional Models, smart May Have Trouble with Electric Versions

Struggling to Sell Conventional Models, smart May Have Trouble with Electric Versions

Although sales for smart's tiny 2-seater started out like gangbusters in the U.S., the popularity has quickly waned, and now the alternative-car experts over at Edmunds Green Car Advisor are wondering what the brand's extended U.S. sales slump means for its impending launch of battery-powered variants of the smart forTwo.

Data from Edmunds.com indicates buyer consideration for smart is at an all-time low, a situation abetted, no doubt, by continued low gasoline prices. In April, only three in 1,000 consumers seriously shopping for a new vehicle at Edmunds.com indicated consideration of the smart.

Since last August, monthly smart sales have averaged just 633 units, with sales as low as 278 in January.

Incentives for the tiny commuter car also have been rising, also a potentially troublesome omen for the coming electrically-propelled version, which will cost thousands of dollars more than the conventional forTwo.

The situation could say something - or not - about the current state of U.S. consumer "receptiveness" for expensive electric vehicles. Read the total rundown at Green Car Advisor. - Bill Visnic, senior editor

Photo of smart forTwo EV by Daimler AG

Bill Visnic:  is an AutoObserver Senior Editor. Follow @AutoObserver on Twitter