I can remember well. It was probably, as Jens writes, around 2003 - I read a report about a smart roadster that had a V700 bi-turbo in the cute rear instead of the usual 3ccm³ 6-cylinder turbo engine. In 2004 I personally drove my first smart, a “42” - later increased in performance to almost 80hp - that was quite an entertaining story.
The V6 in the rear of the “special smart roadster” was a construction of 2 “normal” smart engines and the whole thing was built by the BRABUS company at the time. BRABUS? Bottrop. Bodo Buschmann. Does it click?
Exactly, BRABUS – the Mercedes-Benz tuner. And because smart was - and is - a Daimler construction site, they started to build a “real” engine into the hot roadster (a shame, by the way, to discontinue this series!).
And I was a little jealous when I read that Jens - my colleague rad-ab.com Stratmann now had the opportunity to drive the little bright red two-seater. The small rear-engine roadster had been given 170PS. Man - and Jens was allowed to drive the roadster ...
It's best if you click over and read his report! [click me - I'm a link]
// Photo is from Jens ..