Smart->ke83 production cars don't leave too much in the way of the imagination. But as far as its concepts are concerned, the Daimler-owned company has produced some pretty interesting design studies in the past couple of years.

Two, in particular, that stand out are the Smart Forstars Concept and the Smart For-Us Concept. At the 2013 Frankfurt Auto Show->ke235, Smart is unveiling yet another concept vehicle, one that appears to be more audacious than anything the company has done outside the Forspeed Concept.

The vehicle is called the FourJoy Concept->ke169 and really, it's hard to come up with an appropriate adjective to describe this door- and rear window-less vehicle.

The easiest way to probably do it is to say that it's "unique" and even saying that requires some loose definition of the word. In the end, though, this is the kind of thing we've come to expect from Smart when it comes to concept vehicles.

Click past the jump to read more about the 2014 Smart FourJoy Concept

smart-fourjoy-concept

Specifications
  • Make: Array
  • Model: smart-fourjoy-concept
Pros
Cons

2014 Smart FourJoy Concept

Specifications
  • Make: Array
  • Model: 2014 Smart FourJoy Concept
  • Engine/Motor: magneto-electric motor
  • Horsepower: 75
  • Torque: 90
  • [do not use] Vehicle Model: Array
Pros
Cons

Exterior

We're dying to find out whether Smart really has any plans of turning any of one their fancy concepts into actual production cars. So far, the answer has been "no" and one look at the FourJoy Concept looks like that trend is going to continue.

The front profile of the concept is still similar to the ForStars and the For-Us concepts. The square LED headlights and the front grille are virtually identical. Even the honeycomb structure of the air inlets and the overall body surface of the FourJoy Concept harkens back to the past two concepts.

What's new to the FourJoy Concept is the pronounced tridion cell, with is made of polished aluminum with the bright luster finish emphasizing the fun and sporty character of the concept. The use of a Pearleascent White shade on the bumpers, front bonnet, and tailgate also adds a nice touch and an impressive contrast to the aluminum used on the tridion cell.

Similarly, the square rear lights have been integrated into the tridion cell with the cubic configurations incorporated into the plexiglass.

Oh, and in case you're wondering what happened to the doors and the rear window glass, Smart apparently didn't include any of them, proving yet again that quirkiness abounds when the company starts making plans for new concepts.

Interior

If you thought the interior would be free of any futuristic stylings, think again. The absence of doors and the rear window actually defeats the purpose of having an interior. But, again, this is Smart we're talking about and its definition of conventional probably differs from the rest of us with a rationale comprehension of the word.

The most striking interior feature of the FourJoy Concept's "interior" are the two futuristic-looking front seats and the rear seat bench with a similar design. We would have had no issues with organic shapes of the seats if they were couches, but for them to be the actual seats just turns up the uniqueness of this concept. Look closer at those seats and you'll notice that there's a piping-like line that winds around the sides of the seats with the same petroleum color as the plexiglass accents on the exterior.

Moving to the front, the seats and the instrument panel are supported by what Smart describes as a "continuous central structure" that features a convex surface with touch-sensitive operating functions. It looks really good relative to the entire architecture of the interior. Even the instrument panel has the same honeycomb inspiration as that of the exterior with the actual panel support made up of transparent, illuminated plexiglass.

A singe-spoke steering wheel harkens back to the original Smart and a pair of smartphones have been mounted on the dashboard and on the center tunnel at the rear. Again, the purpose of that escapes us but Smart says that it enhances connectivity between the front and rear passengers. Ok, then.

Performance

Like the past concepts we've seen from Smart, the FourJoy Concept employs an electric drive that can be found at the rear of the vehicle. It's actually the same one that you can find on the current ForTwo electric drive, which means that you can expect to see a 55 kW magneto-electric motor that pumps out around 75 horsepower and 95 pound-feet of torque, allowing the concept to presumably hit 62 mph in 11.5 seconds to go with a top speed of 78 mph.

A new 17.6 kWh lithium-ion battery is also part of the drivetrain configuration, allowing the concept to go 90 miles on a single charge.

Pricing

It's a concept so don't expect pricing details to be released any time soon.

Competition

2011 MINI Rocketman Concept

Given the characteristic of the FourJoy as a concept and the nature of its dorky appearance, is there really a car, or at the very least, a concept that can compete with this one?

Maybe the MINI Rocketman Concept from year's past just in terms of sheer funkiness. That MINI had some weird doors, a pull-out rear compartment, and an interior with a "3+1" seating configuration.

Conclusion

We've been big fans of Smart when it comes to concept cars. It doesn't mean that we understand what its trying to do all the time, but almost always, it delivers with the kind of impassioned creativity very few in the industry can compete it.

The only thing we don't like about Smart is that all these incredible concepts rarely translate to production cars, and if you've seen any of Smart's actual models, none of them come in the shape and mold of these concepts.