A Bigger Smart Car

The little two-door Smart car is about to get a big brother.

Nissan is going to build a four door-five seat subcompact that will be sold alongside the Smart, starting in about a year.

"This particular vehicle just meets the consumer request that we've had, input we've had from our dealers," said Smart USA President Jill Lajdziak.  "A lot of the people who are walking into our facilities would like just a little bit more seating capacity.  This vehicle allows us to do that."

Smart, which is distributed in the U.S. by Bloomfield Hills based Penske Automotive Group, started out with strong sales in 2008.  The global recession hurt everybody's sales in 2009.  But, while other brands bounced back this year, Smart sales are still off 62 per cent from last year.

(WWJ AutoBeat Reporter Jeff Gilbert interviews Smart USA President Jill Lajdziak)

Lajdziak says that the new larger, Smart would be about the size of a Chevrolet Aveo or a Ford Fiesta.  While the car will be produced on a global Nissan platform, Laijdziak says it will be adapted to have the unique personality of the Smart brand.

"Certainly you do by the exterior design and the interior and ride and handling.  We compliment that with our great retail experience."

Nissan spokesman David Reuter said the new model will be built at a Nissan factory in North America but declined to say which one. Nissan has two factories in the U.S. and two in Mexico.

Nissan has an alliance with Smart's parent Daimler, and plans to build other vehicles for the Smart lineup in Europe.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Follow Jeff Gilbert on Twitter @jefferygilbert