Electric Ultimate E Concept launched by Brabus

Ultimate E Concept is a Brabus tweaked all-electric Smart ForTwo.

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As if to make environmental amends for the vast and thirsty One of ten V12 G-Wagen it also brought to Frankfurt, Mercedes tuning specialist Brabus is also showing off a tweaked all-electric Smart ForTwo.

The Ultimate E Concept has 204hp from its electric motor, 350Nm of torque, and can apparently sprint to 100km/h in just 4.5 seconds. "Electric city sports cars must primarily be fun. This includes breathtaking and virtually silent acceleration paired with a sufficient range," says Brabus CEO Bodo Buschmann.

Bright yellow on the outside, and blue on the inside, The Ultimate E runs on massive (for a Smart) ultra-light 18-inch wheels, and has a one-charge range of 160km. Top speed is 180km/h, low by Brabus standards but more than enough for the car's in-town mission.

It's not guaranteed for production, as yet, but Brabus is testing a prototype and if there's enough customer interest, it'll build the hot electric Smart for sale. It uses a compact 22kWh battery, specially developed for Brabus by Kreisel Austria, and can be 80 per cent charged from a home wallbox in just 30 minutes.

The Smart's body gets some chunky Brabus design details to go with that lurid yellow paint job, while the all-blue leather interior is also bespoke. There's tweaked suspension too, and the whole car weighs just slightly more than one-tonne; not bad for an electric car.

Published on: September 12, 2017