Toyota and Aston Martin Collaborate on iQ-Based “Cygnet” Luxury Commuter Car
29 June 2009
Toyota Motor Europe (TME) and Aston Martin are collaborating on the “Cygnet”—a new luxury commuter car based on the iQ platform (earlier post) that will be exclusively built for and sold to Aston Martin owners. The new “Cygnet” would pair Aston Martin’s trademark design flair with the Toyota iQ’s highly compact and low-CO2 city driving package.
The commuter car will be tailored specifically to customer requirements at Aston Martin’s global headquarters in Gaydon, the United Kingdom.
It’s a great compliment that the Toyota iQ has been hand-picked by one of the world’s most prestigious sports car brands, a company with whom we also share a strong friendship. This collaboration represents a natural pairing of strategies: a small yet spacious package, perfect for the city driver, finished off with Aston Martin’s iconic design language. The Cygnet is a good choice for the Aston Martin owner looking for that second or third car, which is luxurious and eco-conscious.
—Tadashi Arashima, CEO and President of TME
Less than three metres in length, the iQ can accommodate up to four people. Featuring a range of design innovations—such as its flat under-floor fuel tank and asymmetric dashboard—the iQ offers CO2 emissions starting as low as 99 g/km.
I wonder if Aston Martin customers will be happy to have a small car with limited horsepower. I hope they will be, but as I see it, it is quite a risk for AM to dilute its brand in a Toyota, even if cars are "tailored specifically to customer requirements".
Not saying that Toyota is no good, just that it is not a luxury brand as AM is.
Posted by: Simodul | 30 June 2009 at 01:40 AM
It is an interesting idea, to give green a bit of an upscale image. Fisker is doing that with the Karma and people seem to be responding to it.
Others have just taken a V6 and added hybrid drives that get a bit more mileage. When you can drive a luxury sports model that gets great mileage AND has great performance, people will notice.
Posted by: SJC | 30 June 2009 at 10:08 AM