Smart has released the first official pictures of the #2, the incoming successor to the Fortwo, due to arrive late next year.

The electric two-seater will be Smart’s new entry model, slotting below the #1 and #3 crossovers, #5 SUV and #6 saloon.

These new images, released on Monday, show early mules testing the #2's new Electric Compact Architecture (ECA). 

In a first for Smart, the platform is being developed jointly by parent companies Geely in China and Mercedes-Benz in Europe, given that the car is built mainly with a focus on the European market. This differs from the rest of the line-up, which were all engineered by Geely but designed by Mercedes.

This platform has, for the testing phase, been paired with a third-generation Fortwo body. Smart said this confirms that the #2 will offer similar proportions to the car it replaces.

While it has yet to show an official design, Smart said the #2 is a “reinvention” of the Fortwo that will sport a “fresh identity” penned by Mercedes, albeit with the same “wheels-at-the-corners” stance.

Smart has also confirmed the #2 will be offered with the same two-door, two-seat, rear-wheel-drive configuration as its predecessor, resulting in the same “core driving dynamics”. 

Smart CEO Dirk Adelmann earlier this year told Autocar that creating such a platform isn't cheap and suggested that another vehicle would need to use it in order to justify the huge cost of creating it.

“We need the economies of scale,” he said. “The tricky part was to get it small enough for the #2; it’s much easier to expand slightly.” He suggested that Smart could even consider a Forfour successor.

While further technical details are yet to be confirmed, Adelmann said the #2's platform could also accomodate a dual-motor powertrain.

“The wishlist features we gave to engineering was a very small turning cycle – the same as the last Fortwo – to make [the #2] really practical in city centres,” he added.