Smart Forease+ adds a fabric roof to electric speedster concept

Sun, Mar 3 2019

We aren't sure what the Smart Forease+ previews, if anything, but the 21-year-old microcar brand is bringing the diminutive concept to the Geneva Motor Show. This is an update on the Forease - no "+" - concept it debuted as last year's Paris Motor Show. The big change is that the Forease+ has a speedster-type roof, consisting of a hard fabric shell with a soft fabric cover.

The removable roof in a "rough amber" color locks into the top rail of the chopped windscreen and at two openings on the rear corner. There's nowhere to store the fabric expanse inside the coupe, so going without means trusting the weather. As with last year's Forease, the Forease+ has no side or rear windows. Nor does it have any climate control; the vent housings remain, but they are filled with supplementary gauges like a battery charge display and a clock. With the supplemental roof, Smart says the Forearse+ is "more than suited to all weather conditions in cities."

Not much else has changed from the last concept. The green highlights in the Paris example have turned to amber, such as in the front vents and the speaker grilles. The tri-LED headlights are exposed, no longer behind glass. The instrument panel is stitched up in amber Nappa leather. And the seat belts are illuminated.

The Forease+ is based on the production Smart EQ, and we wish we could see something good coming from it. As the brand transitions to an all-electric lineup and figures out a future potentially without Renault, what's one to do with another impractical-looking exercise that "develops the predecessor's minimalistic idea?"

By Jonathon Ramsey