Toyota iQ for Aston Martin!

Toyota will supply a minicar based on the iQ model for Aston Martin, a deal which would be Japanese maker’s only original equipment manufacturing deal with an outside brand.
The Aston Martin version of the car would be called the Cygnet and will be sold across Europe. The Cygnet will have its own distinct styling to differenciate it with the short and stubby iQ, which Toyota says is the world’s smallest four seater car at less than 3 meters long!
The launch date, price and production volumes have not been decided said a Toyota Spokesperson.
Aston Martin CEO Ulrich Bez said: “Much work is still required, but I am confident that this project could become reality in the not-too-distant future.”
Toyota also announced that it would launch a sporty limited edition variant of the iQ customized under Gazoo racing, a racing team under the Toyota operated marketting website www.gazoo.com


Source: Cubic Capacity

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Updated: Aston Cygnet gallery













Aston
Martin has struck a ground-breaking deal with Toyota to launch a
£20,000 version of the Japanese-built iQ commuter car, badged Aston
Martin Cygnet and built at Aston’s Gaydon works in Warwickshire.The
new model, officially billed as a concept, is expected to be offered
for sale before the end of next year. It will initially be sold only to
existing Aston Martin owners and those with cars on order, but after an
introductory period it will then go on general sale.Steve Cropley blog: Keeping an open mind on the Aston Martin CygnetSee the full Aston Martin Cygnet image gallery - including a new artist's impression of the carIt
will instantly become the world’s smallest super-luxury saloon and
represents Aston’s most radical model departure in its 90-year history.According
to Aston CEO, Dr Ulrich Bez, the car is specifically aimed at the
one-third of existing Aston owners who own a Mini-sized car. “This
concept is akin to an exclusive tender for a luxury yacht,” Bez
explains. “It allows us to apply Aston Martin design language,
craftsmanship and brand values to a completely new segment of the
market.” The ground-breaking project, which has been under
discussion for several months, began when Bez met Toyota’s Akio Toyoda,
the newly appointed president of Toyota Motor Co and grandson of its
founder, while the pair were racing at the Nurburgring 24-hour. See today's top stories on autocar.co.ukThe
Cygnet uses standard Toyota iQ mechanical components and proportions,
but with different wheels and tyres. It is believed that both the iQ’s
punchier 1.3 litre four-cylinder engine is the most likely be offered.The
Cygnet’s new exterior, which at the front combines an all-new Aston
grille with standard iQ lights to impressive effect, has been devised
entirely by Aston’s Gaydon design group, led by Marek Reichman.The
luxurious, all-hide interior, also designed by Aston, uses the existing
cabin’s instrument pack and archiecture, but new colours and trim
materials give it a new look, much more luxurious than the standard
iQ’s.See all the latest Aston reviews, news and videoThe
Aston Cygnet will be built in Gaydon, using iQs built in Japan and
specially imported to the UK for the purpose. The Gaydon factory has a
flexible layout that would allow a Cygnet finishing line to be
installed without disruption to present Aston models.Aston
Martin expects to build between 1000 and 2000 cars a year, with
earliest cars earmarked for sale in the UK and Europe where the iQ has
won a five-star NCAP safety rating. Cars will be sold exclusively
through Aston dealers.Aston insiders concede that adding the car
to its range will have benefits for the company's average carbon
dioxide emissions, but stress that this isn't the motivation for
building the Cygnet.Ulrich Bez, who describes Toyota as the
world leader in volume manufacture, wants to offer the Cygnet to
existing Aston owners “as a unique combination of opposites, and a
novel transport solution”.In the longer term, the car could sell
in markets well beyond Europe, if demand is established. It is even
possible that cars which left Japan as iQs could eventually be taken
back as Cygnets — at more than twice the price.Twitter - follow autocar.co.ukThe
participants in the Cygnet project are silent about its implications
for further model co-operation — about Lexus, for instance, providing
hybrid powertrains for future Astons. But each is quick to commend the
other as a quick-acting and friendly partner. Both believe future
co-operation will depend squarely on the success of this project.(autocar.co.uk)



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