Mercedes has often turned its Smart brand inside out. Even before its initial launch, the company scrapped plans to make it an electric car. At the time, this drove away ex-partner Nicolas Hayek, the inventor of the Swatch watch brand. Then followed a rescue attempt through cooperation with Nissan. And even the revival of the Smart car with the French did not lead to success. Subsequently, Mercedes sold 50 percent of the brand to Geely. And no wonder: Geely’s founder Li Shufu is the second-largest Mercedes shareholder.
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