BMW 218D vs Smart Forfour

The Forfour costs less to run, by the official figures: about $230 a year less in Australia.

Side by side

Specs are for each car's newest version. The better figure is in green.

BMW 218DSmart Forfour

A typical year's fuel

Australia
$1,428
$1,198 (better)
New Zealand
$1,156 (better)
$1,446
United Kingdom
£1,010
£878 (better)
United States
$1,598
$1,117 (better)

Official figures

Uses
4.5 L/100km
4.5 L/100km (better)
On a full tank
1,136 km
–

Space

Seats
5
–
Boot
468 L
–
Length
4,342 mm
–
Weight
1,445 kg
–

Engine

Engine
2.0 L 4-cylinder turbo diesel
–
Power
110 kW
–
Torque
330 Nm
–
Gearbox
6-speed manual
–
Drive
FWD
–

Safety

Euro NCAP
★★★★★
–

A typical year: New Zealand 11,000 km (Ministry of Transport's average for a light vehicle); Australia 11,100 km (ABS Survey of Motor Vehicle Use average); United Kingdom 11,265 km (DfT National Travel Survey average of about 7,000 miles); United States 21,726 km (FHWA average of about 13,500 miles). Real costs depend on how and where you drive. Work out a particular trip.

218D or Forfour?

Which is cheaper to run, the BMW 218D or the Smart Forfour?

The Smart Forfour: about $230 a year less in Australia than the BMW 218D at today's average prices and a typical year's driving.

Which uses less fuel, the BMW 218D or the Smart Forfour?

The Smart Forfour, at 4.5 L/100km (63 mpg UK, 53 mpg US) to the BMW 218D's 4.5 L/100km (63 mpg UK, 52 mpg US), by their latest official figures.

Each on its own

Other comparisons

What will the drive cost?

Roadtrip works out the fuel or charging cost of any drive for your exact car, finds the cheapest stations on the way, and splits it between everyone in the car.

Rated 4.7 by drivers · 700,000 downloads

The Roadtrip app showing a drive into London that costs £4.81 each, with fuel prices along the way