toyota iq

Aston Martin Cygnet Pricing Set at 30,000 Euros

When the British luxury carmaker Aston Martin launches the Cygnet in the U.K. this year, it may go down in history as the the day Aston Martin lost its mojo.

After all, the brand perhaps most associated with James Bond is putting its brand on a "micro car," a Toyota iQ really, for purposes of giving Aston a way to comply with European Union's 2012 fleet emissions regulations, and British car buyers a way to drive an Aston more easily in congested cities where car owners are being charged hefty fees to drive anything but mini cars, electric vehicles and the like.

The Cygnet produces 98 horsepower from a 1.3L straight-4 engine. Fuel economy is 58.9 mpg (U.S.)

The starting price of the Cygnet, finally announced by the company is £30,995. Aston is offering two special-edition versions of the Cygnet to mark the car's launch. The first, Cygnet Launch Edition White, is bathed in Snow White paint. The exterior gets a lot of chrome bright work and custom wheels, while the interior gets pearl-white leather and satin chrome accents.

Aston says the Cygnets each get 100 hours of hand-tooling for the interiors to make the Toyota feel like a real Aston.

The second edition is Cygnet Launch Edition Black. The "negative" version of the Snow White is dipped in Magic Black paint that has embedded in the paint...shades of green. Matte-black louvers and chrome accents dominate the rest of the exterior, while the cabin is treated to diamond-pattern black leather.

Gallery: Aston Martin Cygnet

Tags: Aston Martin Cygnet, toyota iq

Toyota iQ Disco

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Diminutive city cars like the Toyota iQ (on which the Aston Martin Cygnet is incidentally based) are all about downsizing. But that doesn't mean they can't get noticed, and noticed in a big way as the case may be with the latest show car.

Called the iQ Disco, this blinged-out mirrored hatchback is a showpiece for Toyota in Germany. It features a mirror-ball finish, Lambo doors, 18-inch alloys and a 130 dB Numark DJ system. It's set to hit a concert festival in Cologne shortly, after which it will tour Toyota's dealerships across Germany as a promotional tool where subtlety needn't apply.

Gallery: Toyota iQ Disco

Tags: disco, iq, iq disco, smal cars, toyota, toyota iq, toyota iq disco

Toyota iQ N-Collection by Neuhaus

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Dining, Luxury Cars & Autos

Seems like they can make anything out of chocolate these days. All they need is the proper motivation. But this is something else entirely: a chocolate car. Well, almost.

What you're looking at is not a car made of chocolate, but a special edition car made to honor one of Europe's premier chocolatiers. The Toyota iQ N-Collection was made in collaboration with Belgium's Neuhaus. It features special paint schemes – either dark brown or cream butter – with correspondingly delicious interiors.

It may be a decidedly different take on the little city car than that taken by Aston Martin with its Cygnet, but it's also even rarer: only 700 examples will be produced, only available in Germany – it is, after all, the land of chocolate – at 14,600 euros (about $19,500), representing a 1700 euro premium over base.

Gallery: Toyota iQ N-Collection by Neuhaus

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Tags: chocolate, city car, n-collection, neuhaus, toyota, toyota iq, toyota iq n-collection

Aston Martin Preparing Cygnet City-Car for Launch Next Year

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Driving an Aston Martin sportscar along a twisting mountain road is our idea of a little slice of heaven. Driving one through downtown city traffic, however, is not. That's what Aston Martin themselves figure with the Cygnet project.

Announced back in June, the Cygnet takes a humble Toyota iQ city car and dresses it up in Aston Martin clothing, offering the British automaker's customers an alternative to driving their sportscars through the city, and saving them instead for a weekend romp through the countryside. Reports now indicate that the car could be ready to go as early as next year. With a price tag of $32,000 – roughly twice as much as the iQ on which it's based – Toyota will reportedly ship the cars pre-assembled from Japan to Aston's facility in England where they will be retrofitted with trademark Aston Martin luxury, only without the big engine up front.

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Tags: aston, aston martin, aston martin cygnet, AstonMartin, AstonMartinCygnet, cygnet, toyota iq, ToyotaIq

Aston Martin Goes Small With The New Cygnet Concept

by Sam Abuelsamid (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

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There is no arguing with the fact that Aston Martins are absolutely gorgeous machines. They are also absurdly fast. But if you live in a crowded city like Manhattan, London or Tokyo they are utterly impractical. Like most exotics they can be hard to see out of and who wants to risk getting entangled with a bus or delivery truck? The crew at Aston Martin are now working on the solution.

The Cygnet by Aston Martin is a urban car concept that would give Aston owners a more practical alternative for when they need to head into the city center. The Cygnet is based on Toyota's recently launched iQ micro-car. While Aston doesn't have any confirmed production plans for the Cygnet yet, it could be offered in the future as an accompaniment to "standard" Astons, much like a dinghy for a yacht.

If only we could afford a "standard" Aston Martin on a blogger budget.

[Source: Aston Martin]

Tags: aston martin, aston martin cygnet, AstonMartin, AstonMartinCygnet, cygnet by aston martin, CygnetByAstonMartin, toyota iq, ToyotaIq

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