Ranked #202 car in the UK · Crossover SUV (EV) · 989 units sold last year

Smart #1

The Smart #1 marks Smart's reinvention as a maker of electric crossovers - a compact, well-finished EV developed with Geely and a world away from the tiny old ForTwo. Stylish, quick and surprisingly roomy for its size, it competes with the Mini Aceman and Jeep Avenger. The performance Brabus version is genuinely rapid. As a fresh, design-led small electric crossover with a premium-feeling cabin, it's an appealing alternative to the obvious choices.

How these figures are sourced the valuation is anchored to a researched used-market price for this model (AutoTrader median, 2023 at 30k miles). Reliability, mileage and variant data are real DVSA MOT records. Dimensions, tyre sizes and costs, servicing figures and the insurance group are segment-level estimates rather than sourced per car, and are being replaced model by model.

S

Smart

#1

No photo on file

Body
Crossover SUV (EV)
Years
2023–2026
Fuel
Electric
Efficiency
3.6 mi/kWh

typical

Insurance
Group 22

The short version

The Smart #1 holds its value well. On three-year value retention it ranks better than 72% of models. The main things to check on a used one are the lighting & signalling and driver's view.

Pick your version

Estimates are tuned to the version you choose.

Fuel

Electric

Power

272 ps

Drivetrain

RWD

Efficiency

3.6 mi/kWh

The volume smart #1 (the Geely-built, Mercedes-designed small SUV - nothing like the old smart). 66 kWh, 272 PS RWD, ~260 mi WLTP. Heat pump standard.

Tell us about the one you're looking at

2023
20232026
23,178 mi
0Expected: 23,178180k
good
PoorFairGoodExcellent

Tidy and well looked-after for its age — the typical car.

Remembered as you browse other cars.

Optional — fills in the exact year and ULEZ status for your specific car. The registration isn’t stored.

Estimated market value

How we got this number — click for the breakdown, or to challenge it.

£19,100

Range £14,850£23,750

medium confidence

When new (2023)circa £36,000Age-based value£23,227Mileage adjustment+£0Condition & region-£6Market calibration-£2,871Forecourt price£20,350Private sale£17,850Part-exchange£15,700

The depreciation curve

How a 2023-registration Smart #1 loses value over time.

What it costs to own

Over

Based on the 2023 car with 23,178 miles you entered above — worth about £19,100 today — here is the cost of owning it for the next 5 years, at roughly 7,726 miles a year.

5-year total

£12,667

Per year

£2,533

All-in per mile

£0.33

Fuel per mile

7.7p

Depreciation£3,317
Fuel / energy£2,980
Servicing£1,765
Road tax£1,000
Insurance£3,605

Best age to buy — around 6 years

A 6-year-old example loses roughly £1,800 a year — 59% less than the £4,400 a one-year-old sheds. The steepest drop is behind it.

Uses current UK pump and home-charging prices (DESNZ weekly), typical-driver insurance and manufacturer service intervals. "Fuel per mile" is just the energy input — so an EV at ~9p and a diesel at ~22p make running-cost comparison direct. A guide; your own costs will vary.

How it compares

Where this car ranks against the 340 vehicles in our index — higher is better.

Holds its valuebetter than 72%

Percentile rank across our full index. A measure is shown only where the data spreads meaningfully across the index.

Petrol, diesel, hybrid or EV?

How the available versions compare on price, running cost, and the headaches each tends to develop.

Pro+ / Premium / Pulse / Brabus

Smart's relaunch as crossover EV. No longer the tiny city Smart of past. Mercedes-Geely joint venture, Geely-built. Cross-shop MG4, Volvo EX30 (sister Geely), Volvo XC40.

New price
circa £38,000
Annual fuel / energy
£800
3-yr depreciation
51%

Watch for

  • ·Too new for clear patterns
  • ·Software quirks early launch (improving via OTA)
  • ·Dealer network rebuilding in UK (Smart relaunched after hiatus)
  • ·Different from original tiny Smart — now mainstream EV crossover

Fuel/energy costs based on this week’s UK averages (w/c 03/08/2026) · Petrol 159.9p/L, Diesel 179.2p/L, Electricity 27.0p/kWh · DESNZ

Estimated insurance

Group 22 of 50 (mid — around the UK average) · Comprehensive · 3 years NCB

Indicative annual comprehensive premiums for this car, by driver age band and risk profile. Pick the combination closest to your circumstances.

3 years
0 yearsBaseline: 3 years15+
Risk profile:

Estimated annual premium · typical, age 33-39

£721/ year

Roughly £60 per month

Typical

Average UK driver — 3 years NCB, average postcode, no recent claims.
Age bandLower riskTypicalHigher risk
Age 17-25£1,643£2,053£2,669
Age 26-32£857£1,009£1,231
Age 33-39Selected£634£721£850
Age 40-49£538£598£694
Age 50+£480£533£629

How we estimate this

Indicative annual comprehensive premium estimates. The 'Typical' figure represents an average UK driver in each age band; Lower and Higher risk show the realistic spread driven by factors UK insurers legitimately price on (postcode, occupation, claims history, NCB, voluntary excess, modifications). Based on 10,000 miles/yr, £250 voluntary excess, and the no-claims bonus selected above. Always get individual quotes before buying.

Expected annual costs

Adjust the annual mileage to match how you'll actually use the car. Insurance is what you selected above (age 33-39, typical risk, 3 yrs NCB).

7,726 mi/yr
2,000UK avg for this model: 7,72630,000

Routine service

£185

Annual main-dealer service

Major service

£210

Every 2 years, annualised

Road tax

£200

Standard rate, post year-one

Electricity

£579

3.6 mi/kWh, 27p blended

Insurance

£721

Age 33-39, group 22

Clean-air zones

ULEZ compliant
  • Electric variants are compliant with London ULEZ and all UK clean-air zones.

Based on London ULEZ standards — Birmingham, Bath, Bristol, Sheffield, Glasgow and other UK clean-air zones generally follow the same rules.

Total expected£1,895 / year

Excludes depreciation and unscheduled repairs (see next section).

Unexpected costs

What out-of-warranty repairs typically run, by mileage band. Your selected mileage is highlighted.

0-30k miles

£80

per year · low risk

30-60k miles

£240

per year · low risk

60-100k miles

£520

per year · medium risk

100k+ miles

£900

per year · high risk

Tyres

205/60 R16 · 215/55 R17 · 225/45 R18

What a full set of four will cost you (including fit and balance), and which brand each tier of buyer should pick. A typical set lasts about 24,000 miles.

Budget

£300

set of 4, fitted · £60 per tyre

Mid-range

£440

set of 4, fitted · £95 per tyre

Premium

£620

set of 4, fitted · £140 per tyre

What to fit

Optional extras worth paying for

Factory options ranked by how much of their original cost they recover at resale. Anything above 70% return tends to make money back; below 40% is paying for your own enjoyment.

OptionNew costAdded used valueReturn

Tow bar (factory-fit)

Niche, but the buyers who want one will pay for it.

£650£45069%

Parking sensors & reversing camera

Near-expected now — its absence costs more than its presence returns.

£500£30060%

Heat pump

Genuinely useful in winter; buyers increasingly look for it.

£1,000£45045%

Heated seats / cold-weather pack

£450£20044%

Faster on-board AC charger

£800£30038%

Metallic or premium paint

Almost universal — an unusual colour is the bigger resale risk.

£600£20033%

Panoramic / opening roof

£1,100£35032%

Larger alloy wheels

£700£20029%

Parts most likely to fail

Drawn from owner reports and warranty data. Filtered for relevance to 23,178 miles.

Watch now

Failure typically happens around your current mileage.

Upcoming

A known weak point — but you haven't reached its usual mileage yet.

Already due

Past its usual failure mileage. Either already fixed, or about to.

Lighting & signallingUpcoming

Typical at 60k-100k milesCost £15-£120high severityParts high

Recorded in 16.7% of MOT tests 60k-100k miles — from 3,809 DVSA MOT tests analysed.

Driver's viewUpcoming

Typical at 60k-100k milesCost £60-£300high severityParts high

Recorded in 16.7% of MOT tests 60k-100k miles — from 3,809 DVSA MOT tests analysed.

SuspensionUpcoming

Typical at 60k-100k milesCost £150-£450medium severityParts high

Recorded in 8.3% of MOT tests 60k-100k miles — from 3,809 DVSA MOT tests analysed.

Identification & otherUpcoming

Typical at 60k-100k milesCost £20-£150medium severityParts high

Recorded in 8.3% of MOT tests 60k-100k miles — from 3,809 DVSA MOT tests analysed.

"Parts low/medium/high" indicates how easy the replacement part is to source — discontinued or specialist parts mean longer workshop time and bigger bills.

Safety rating

Euro NCAP's independent crash-test rating for the Smart #1, from its 2022 assessment.

5/5
TEST YEAR2022
Current rating · valid to 2028

The passenger compartment of the smart #1 remained stable in the frontal offset test.

Independent crash-test data from Euro NCAP. Star ratings reflect the test protocol of the year shown — newer protocols are stricter, so a 5-star from 2024 represents a higher bar than a 5-star from 2014. Euro NCAP ratings run for six years from publication; a lapsed rating means the protocol has moved on, not that the car performs any worse than it did on test.

MOT outlook

How this model fares at its MOT as it ages — from 3,610 real DVSA test records.

MOT pass rate

83.3%

of 3-year-old examples pass — not yet a wide enough age span to chart a trend.

Longevity

Not enough older examples yet to gauge longevity.

Reliability

Not enough first-MOT data yet. This measure needs cars registered from 2020 that have reached their first MOT at three years old; too few have so far for a figure worth publishing.

Not enough first-MOT data yet — no score. A car needs 100 first MOTs from 2020 registrations onward before this can be measured.

MOT outlook

Insufficient MOT history at this car's reference age — too few tests to compute a reliable percentile.

Things owners say

  • 01A complete change from the old Smart - this is a proper compact crossover, not a city microcar.
  • 02The Brabus version is seriously quick; standard versions are the range-and-value picks.
  • 03Well-finished and roomy for its size; range suits most daily use - check battery health on used cars.

Safety recalls

Manufacturers occasionally issue safety recalls to fix a fault free of charge. You can check whether the Smart #1, or your exact vehicle, has any outstanding recalls on the official DVSA service.

Check on GOV.UK

Opens the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency recall checker. Choose the make, model and year of manufacture — no registration needed.

Theft risk

A general indicator from UK 2025 theft data and this car’s characteristics — not a prediction for any one vehicle.

Whole-car theft

Higher

Desirable SUVs like this are relay-theft targets — keyless entry can be exploited from the driveway in under a minute.

Parts theft

Lower

As an electric car it has no catalytic converter, so the most common parts-theft vector doesn't apply.

Worth doing

  • Keep keys in a Faraday pouch and away from the front door to block relay attacks.
  • A visible steering lock is a cheap, strong deterrent on a frequently-targeted car.

Clean-air zones

Whether driving a Smart #1 into a UK clean-air zone will cost you anything. Rules use the same Euro standard across most zones — petrol from 2006 and diesel from 2015 onwards are exempt; pure electric is always exempt.

Charging zones for cars

CityAreaDaily chargeLikely outcome
LondonAll of Greater London (within the M25)£12.50
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
BirminghamInside the A4540 Middleway£8.00
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
BristolCity centre and part of the Portway£9.00
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
GlasgowCity centre
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
EdinburghCity centre
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
AberdeenCity centre
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.
DundeeCity centre
Likely exempt
Battery-electric — exempt everywhere.

Zones that don't charge private cars

  • BathCity centre (Private cars and motorbikes are not charged).
  • BradfordOuter ring road and the Aire Valley (Private cars are not charged).
  • SheffieldInside the A61 inner ring road (Private cars are not charged).
  • Newcastle & GatesheadCity centres and the Tyne, Swing, High Level and Redheugh bridges (Private cars are not charged).
  • PortsmouthPart of the city centre (Applies to taxis, PHVs, buses, coaches and HGVs only).

Model-level guidance only. To check a specific registration, use the official gov.uk clean-air zone checker. Zone charges and boundaries are set by local councils and change over time.

EV reality check

64 kWh
Winter range
215 mi
Cold-weather realistic
DC charge 10–80%
30 min
Typical
Heat pump
Standard
Standard fit
Battery chemistry
NMC
Higher energy density, faster charging, charge to 80% daily
Cost to charge
~£17
full charge · ~£7.50/100mi

Winter range estimates assume ~5°C ambient with cabin heating; figures from manufacturer cold-weather testing where available, otherwise derived as a fraction of WLTP. DC times are manufacturer-claimed 10–80% on the headline charger; real-world sessions on UK rapids can be slower. Charging cost is a full battery at the home/blended electricity rate; public rapid charging costs more.

UK charging network

119,080 public chargers across the UK

As of 2026-04-01, the UK has 119,080 publicly available EV chargers, up 12.6% on the prior year (13,281 added in 2025). 23% of those are rapid (50 kW+) or ultra-rapid (150 kW+), so the network can support both home and on-route charging.

3-8 kW

50%

Standard

8-50 kW

27%

Standard plus

50-150 kW

12%

Rapid

150 kW+

11%

Ultra-rapid

Source: Department for Transport / Zapmap · Released 2026-05-21 · DfT statistics

Servicing & the dealer network

How well-supported Smart is across the UK — a practical read on how easy servicing, parts and warranty work will be to find.

Franchised UK dealers

~15

Limited network

Urban EV

Network size relative to the UK's largest (Smart is 0.3% of all franchised outlets)

A limited network — you may need to travel for main-dealer servicing, though independent specialists can often help.

For context, the UK has roughly 4,500 franchised car-dealer outlets in total, plus about 15,500 independent garages.

Approximate figures, curated from public UK industry sources (NFDA, Car Dealer Magazine). Franchised networks shrink year on year — these indicate network size, not an exact count.

Dimensions & weight

These are segment estimates, not manufacturer figures. 296 of 325 catalogued cars share one of 14 identical dimension sets, so they describe a class rather than this particular car. Sourced figures replace them model by model.

Length

4,350 mm

Width

1,810 mm

Height

1,560 mm

Kerb weight

1,750 kg

Boot

420–1,300 L

Battery

64 kWh

How many are still out there

How the UK Smart #1 fleet splits: taxed and on the road, parked off the road on a SORN, and gone from the register where that figure is available.

Currently registered

3,039

Currently taxed & on road

3,023

99% of all registered

SORN (off road)

16

1% of all registered

Scrapped or exported

n/a

not in this DfT extract

UK fleet trend — 2023 to 2025

+57.2% vs 2024
4303,023

Source: DfT VEH0124 vehicle licensing statistics (year-end 2025) · Updated 29 Jul 2026

Similar cars

Other crossover SUV (EV) models worth looking at

Same underpinnings

Built on the Geely SEA platform

Geely's dedicated EV platform, used across Volvo, Polestar, Lotus, Smart and Zeekr. Different badges, often substantially different residuals, but broadly the same mechanicals and repair cost profile.

Sustainable Experience Architecture · Geely

Common questions

Smart #1, answered from the data

How much does a used Smart #1 cost?
A 2023 Smart #1 with around 23,178 miles is worth roughly £19,100 today (typical range £15,900–£22,300). Dealer forecourt prices sit higher and part-exchange offers lower; newer or lower-mileage examples cost more.
How quickly does the Smart #1 depreciate?
A new Smart #1 typically loses about 35% of its value over the first three years, then depreciates more slowly. Buying at three to five years old avoids the steepest part of the curve.
What insurance group is the Smart #1?
The Smart #1 sits in insurance group 22 of 50 — the middle of the scale. Exact premiums depend on the trim (some versions sit a few groups higher or lower), your age, postcode and no-claims history.
What goes wrong on a used Smart #1?
The most common age-related issues we track for the Smart #1 are: lighting & signalling (typically around 60k-100k miles, £15-£120 to put right); driver's view (typically around 60k-100k miles, £60-£300 to put right); suspension (typically around 60k-100k miles, £150-£450 to put right). A full service history and a recent MOT with no advisories are the best protection.
What does the Smart #1 cost to run?
Expect around 3.6 miles per kWh on the smart #1 Pro+, £200 a year in road tax, about £185 for a standard annual service. The full cost-of-ownership table above breaks this down per year and per mile for the exact year and mileage you choose.
Is the Smart #1 ULEZ compliant?
The Smart #1 is pure-electric, so it is exempt from the London ULEZ charge and every other UK clean-air zone, whatever the registration year.
How many Smart #1s are on UK roads?
About 3,023 Smart #1s are currently taxed and on the road in the UK, from DfT vehicle-licensing data.

Answers are generated from this car's Forecourt data — DVSA MOT records, DfT licensing statistics and our valuation model — and update with the weekly data refresh.

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