Niki Smart

{{short description|British car designer (born 1973)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

{{Infobox person

|name = Niki Smart

|image =

|image_size =

|alt =

|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1973|06|10|mf=yes}}

|birth_place = Brackley, Northamptonshire, UK

|nationality = British

|alma_mater = Coventry University
Royal College of Art, London

|occupation = Freelance Automotive Designer based in Los Angeles

|years_active = 1998–present

|children = 2

}}

Niki Smart is a British car designer, known for being the lead designer on the Ariel Atom project and his concept car design for Cadillac, as design manager for the General Motors Advanced Design team in Los Angeles, California.[http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/smart-takes/q-a-niki-smart-and-gael-buzyn-lead-designers-cadillac/19852 Q&A: Niki Smart and Gael Buzyn, lead designers, Cadillac | SmartPlanet]

Smart began designing the Ariel Atom whilst studying at Coventry University,Steve Cropley (1996), 'Your Starter for £10k', Autocar, October 16, 1996 pp74-77: "The project had its germination as a project for 100-odd students of Coventry's School of Transport Design" "As senior lecturer on the Coventry course, Saunders fell naturally into the role of financial manager, enabler and chief critic" "Most of the LSC's primary design is Smart's" in conjunction with Ariel Motor Company boss and senior transport design lecturer Simon Saunders.Ariel Atom#Design origins{{Cite web |title=Ariel Atom buying guide |url=https://www.evo.co.uk/ariel/atom/6247/ariel-atom-buying-guide |access-date=2023-10-28 |website=evo |language=en}} Smart completed his master's in vehicle design at the Royal College of Art,[http://www.cardesignnews.com/site/process/college_exhibitions/display/store4/item42814/ RCA Show 2006 – Car Design News] London in 1999. In 1997, Smart moved on to Tom Walkinshaw Racing as a designer and then to the Ford Motor Company in 1998.

Smart was exterior design manager for the General Motors Advanced Design team in Los Angeles, California up until 2019, and oversaw the design of the Cadillac Urban Luxury Concept[http://www.autocar.co.uk/blogs/motor-shows/caddys-ulc-gets-my-vote Caddy's ULC gets my vote | Autocar] in 2010 and the Cadillac Ciel Concept,{{Cite web|url=http://wot.motortrend.com/video-find-designers-discuss-styling-of-cadillac-ciel-concept-111195.html#axzz2YptSQ8i6|title = MotorTrend: New Cars - Car News and Expert Reviews}} a hybrid electric concept car released in 2011.

Smart also oversaw the design of the Cadillac Elmiraj,[http://www.vanityfair.com/style/stick-shift/2013/09/cadillac-elmiraj-review Photos: Four-Wheeled Future: The Cadillac Elmiraj Concept Car Is Not a Mirage but a Very Real Oasis—of Delight! | Vanity Fair] which was unveiled at Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in 2013.[https://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewdepaula/2013/08/31/cadillac-elmiraj-concept-previews-toned-down-design-approach/ From Overstatement To Elegance: Cadillac Will Tone Down Its Cars, And Elmiraj Concept Shows How - Forbes]

On its debut at the 2019 Quail Motorcycle Gathering, Smart unveiled the ABC 500. It received first place in the Modified Class.{{Cite web|url=http://www.bikeexif.com/honda-xl500-boardtracker-quail-motorsports-2019|title = Showstopper: A 21st century boardtracker wows the Quail|date = 10 July 2019}}