Smart VIN Decoder & VIN Check — Models, Recalls, Specs, MPG & Safety
“open your mind”
smart Automobile is a Sino-European electric vehicle brand headquartered in Hangzhou, China, with European operations in Hambach, France. Founded in 1994 as a joint venture between Mercedes-Benz parent Daimler and Swiss watchmaker SMH (Swatch) — hence the original Swatch Mercedes ART acronym sometimes attributed to the name — smart launched the original two-seat City-Coupé (later renamed Fortwo) in 1998. After a 2019 restructuring, smart became a 50/50 joint venture between Mercedes-Benz Group and Geely Auto, with Geely leading vehicle engineering and Mercedes-Benz leading design.
The Fortwo (1998-2024) was the smallest production car sold in the United States during its 2008-2019 run there. Modern smart vehicles are battery-electric crossovers built in China: the smart #1 (2022), smart #3 (2023) and smart #5 (2024). The brand exited the US and Canadian markets in 2019 after Daimler ended Fortwo production but continues to expand in Europe and Asia under the new joint-venture structure.
smart's parents Mercedes-Benz Group and Geely Holding trade on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and Hong Kong Stock Exchange respectively. Recall data for every smart VIN sold in the US prior to 2019 is reported to NHTSA. ForCar.org decodes any smart VIN to surface trim, factory options, open recalls and original MSRP.
Smart at a glance
- Founded
- 1994 (joint venture)
- Original parents
- Daimler + Swatch (SMH)
- Current parents
- Mercedes-Benz Group + Geely (50/50 since 2019)
- Headquarters
- Hangzhou, China
- Iconic model
- Fortwo (1998-2024)
- US presence
- 2008-2019 (exited)
- Modern lineup
- #1, #3, #5 (battery-electric)
- Performance variant
- BRABUS
- Basic warranty
- 4 years / 50,000 miles
- Powertrain warranty
- 4 years / 50,000 miles
Decode any Smart VIN
Enter a 17-character VIN below to retrieve the trim, factory options, original window-sticker MSRP and any open NHTSA recall affecting that specific vehicle. ForCar.org pulls the same dataset that Smart dealers use to notify owners of safety recalls.
VIN Decoder
Signature Smart technology
Smart heritage
The smart brand originated in Nicolas Hayek's 1991 Swatchmobile concept — a small affordable urban car combining Swatch's manufacturing scale with Mercedes-Benz engineering. Daimler-Benz and SMH (Swatch parent) formed Micro Compact Car AG in 1994. The 1998 Smart City-Coupé was the production result, offering 8.7-foot length, two seats and an entirely modular body. The 2008 Fortwo entered the US market and reached peak US sales of 24,622 units in 2008 before Daimler discontinued the brand in North America in 2019.
Market position
smart positions in compact and subcompact electric vehicle segments primarily for European, Chinese and Asian urban markets. The brand exited North America in 2019 and has not announced plans to return. Modern smart vehicles compete against MINI Cooper SE, Renault 5 E-Tech and BYD Dolphin. The BRABUS sub-brand provides performance-tuned variants of every smart model.
New-vehicle warranty
SMART VIN Decoder — Free VIN Check Video Guide
Watch our quick SMART VIN decoder walkthrough. Learn how to decode any SMART VIN number to get full vehicle history, recall alerts, specifications, fuel economy (MPG), safety ratings, and known problems — completely free on ForCar.org.
All Smart models (18)
Frequently asked questions
When was Smart founded and by whom?
Smart was founded in 1994 by Mercedes-Benz, SMH (Swatch) and is headquartered in Hambach, France.
Where is the VIN on a Smart vehicle?
The 17-character VIN appears in four standard locations: dashboard at the windshield base (driver side), driver-side door jamb sticker, the engine bay (firewall or engine block stamping), and the vehicle's title, registration and insurance documents.
How many Smart models can ForCar.org decode?
ForCar.org indexes 18 Smart nameplates. Any 17-character Smart VIN is decoded against the NHTSA dataset to return trim, factory options, open recalls and original window-sticker MSRP.
What is the Smart warranty?
Basic: 4 years / 50,000 miles. Powertrain: 4 years / 50,000 miles.
How to check Smart recalls by VIN?
Enter your VIN in the decoder above. ForCar.org queries NHTSA's open-recall dataset for that specific VIN and returns any safety recalls or Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs) that affect your vehicle.
Disambiguation: This page covers smart (lowercase by official styling), the Geely-Mercedes joint-venture EV brand — not the SMART acronym in business or any other smart-named trademarks.
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