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Smart will unveil an autonomous EV concept in Frankfurt

Urban mobility minicar maker Smart took to Instagram to tease a new concept car it plans to unveil next month at the Frankfurt Motor Show. It's an all-electric, autonomous car that borrows its electric powertrain from the Mercedes-Benz EQ. The partial reveal on Instagram doesn't give much to go on visually, except for an interesting LCD display on the front grille. (Or is that the rear? We're not sure.) It's due to hit the International Motor Show (IAA) Sept. 11. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. In a news release touting its IAA lineup, Daimler touts the car as being "an intelligent solution for shared urban mobility." Here's more from the company (tl;dr version: It's an electric, autonomous, car-sharing concept): With the new, electrically powered smart showcar, the brand is exhibiting a study by the recently founded product and technology brand EQ as a world premiere. This fully autonomously driving study is the first model to comprehensively embody all four pillars of the corporate strategy CASE: "Connected", "Autonomous", "Shared" and "Electric". It stands for maximum mobility efficiency in and for the urban environment thanks to systematic further development of the carsharing concept, and makes the vision of individualised, highly flexible urban public transport a reality. Our recent First Drive review of a 2017 Smart Fortwo Electric Drive Carbrio was fairly brutal, with the author noting that Mercedes' Smart subsidiary "has not learned anything, but simply converted their previous losing formula to run on electricity." Smart announced back in 2016 it planned to electrify its entire lineup. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Video: Green Frankfurt Motor Show smart Technology Emerging Technologies Hatchback Autonomous Vehicles Concept Cars Electric

E.U. executive conditionally approves Daimler, BMW car-sharing deal

BRUSSELS — The European Union's competition authority said on Wednesday it had approved the plan of German luxury carmakers Daimler and BMW to combine their car-sharing businesses, subject to conditions. Under the deal, which includes car-sharing units Car2Go and DriveNow as well as ride-hailing, parking and charging services, Daimler and BMW will each hold 50 percent stakes in a joint venture. They have offered concessions to address E.U. antitrust concerns over the deal they hope would let them better compete with U.S. rival Uber and China's Didi Chuxing. The European Commission has found the deal would raise competition concerns for free-floating car sharing services in Berlin, Cologne, Duesseldorf, Hamburg, Munich and Vienna. It said Daimler and BMW agreed to a remedy package in the six cities. "The commitments thus fully address the Commission's concerns as they will reduce the barriers to entry for competing free-floating car sharing providers," the Commission said in a statement. "Therefore the Commission concluded that the proposed transaction, as modified by the commitments, would no longer raise competition concerns. The Commission's decision is conditional upon full compliance with the commitments." Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska and Philip Blenkinsop. Related Video:

Smart updating EV, cabrio models for the Fortwo

For Smart, the future is now, or at least this fall. That's when the next-generation versions of Daimler's Smart line of compact vehicles, which were unveiled earlier this month, reach European showrooms, Automotive News says. They might be the first of a broader range that would follow them to stores shortly thereafter. The two-seat Smart Fortwo and the four-seat Forfour will start European sales in November, and the word is that a convertible model and a battery-electric version will follow. We don't know when the next-gen Fortwo will reach the US but that Forfour is unlikely to ever be sold stateside. A broader vehicle line from Smart may be necessary for the badge's longer-term survival. The company has registered the term "Formore," indicating the possibility of an extra-long version of the Forfour that would be earmarked for the US and China. The Forfour may get a convertible version (it already has a fabric roof), while another, sportier roadster-type model could also be developed, Australia's Motoring.com says, citing an interview with Smart's design director Kai Sieber. Earlier this month, Smart unveiled the look of the 2016 Fortwo and Forfour, whose powertrains range from 60 to 90 horsepower. A bit more aggressive looking the new Smarts will keep their colorful options with as many as 40 mix-and-match exterior color schemes.