After reporting that the Japanese automaker Toyota is planning to build a hybrid version of the Yaris compact city car yesterday, today it is time to move our attention to something even more environmentally conscious, the even smaller Toyota iQ. That is because Toyota plans to produce their first production EV when the BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) variant of the iQ for 2010.
According to iQ’s chief engineer, Hiroki Nakajima, the all-electric iQ will feature in-wheel motors: "In every wheel we had to be able to fit an electric motor." It will also be the first Toyota mass-production model to use lithium ion batteries and will take about 8 hours to fully charge. “Our target is for customers to be able to charge it completely during the night,” and will have a range of 93 miles, more than enough for commuting or around town driving.
In an attempt to dispel the new car buying public’s belief that small means low cost, Nakajima said: “We wanted to position the iQ as premium,” so the BEV version will receive distinct bodywork from the standard iQ and "will get a much better interior” according to the chief engineer. Toyota is a company known for building a well built reliable product so perhaps they can convert a few electric skeptics as well.
The Ford Motor Company has decided to unveil a racing version of the compact Fiesta at one of the oldest automotive competitions in North America, the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb and created this short film in the spirit of the Ari Vatanen Classic "Climb Dance." The blue oval recruited a rally racing ringer, Marcus Gronholm for the nearly 13 mile, 156 turn course that ends at 14,110 feet above sea level. Although they were aiming to break into the record books the team was unsuccessful this time, but even still, it’s not a bad showing that the 800 HP 2.0 Liter turbocharged Duratec inline four cylinder engine powered Fiesta made it all the way up the hill on its first attempt.
If there’s one thing we’ll remember about this global economic crisis, it’s got to be the number of would-be vehicles that were stopped dead on its tracks without even seeing the light of showrooms. The latest to bite the dust is the MiTo GTA, Alfa Romeo’s road-going version of the same concept vehicle that was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show last March. The culprit, as we can all suspect by now, is the financial crisis.
Such sad times, isn’t it? According to a spokesperson for Alfa Romeo, building a high-performance vehicle during this tenuous time wouldn’t have been ‘economically viable’. The worst part is, even if the economy stabilizes and everything goes back to normal, the car that piqued everyone’s interest may never be more than just a pipe dream.
The MiTo was supposed to roll out of production and go on sale by the end of the year at a pretty reasonable price of around £20,000. But all that’s history thanks in large part to the cruel reality that is the economic crisis.
MINI is finally taking a different approach. Long considered as a car that catered to a specific audience, MINI is in the process of producing a car that is considered as the most affordable MINI to date. Called the ‘MINI First’, the car comes with a standard 1.4 liter, 75 horsepower four-cylinder engine that is configured with a six-speed manual
gearbox with a 0-60 mph time of 13.2 seconds.
While it’s far from being considered as the fastest MINI out of the block, the MINI First does have one thing going for it. Its fuel-efficiency, which rounds up to 53.3 miles per gallon, makes it one of those cars that is sure to become a hot item the day it rolls out of production.
The car’s pretty affordable too, thanks to a price tag that comes in around £10,950 (or about $17,950 USD). In addition to that, the MINI First, while considered the cheapest MINI car ever, doesn’t come short on the technology barometer either. Despite the company’s insistence that this car is as bared-down as any MINI car there is, the First still comes with all the standard features of most MINIs, including an auto start-stop, regenerative breaking, variable valve timing, and a shift point indicator.
Honda revealed the official informations about the 2009 Jazz, known as the Fit in the U.S. First launched in 2001, the Jazz grows in size and gets two new engines.
At the exterior Jazz only feature subtle changes and retains the concepts of the previous Jazz with its center fuel tank layout and Magic Seats which gave it world beating interior flexibility.
The car features larger wheels, revised suspension and a longer wheelbase/wider track bring greater agility while enhancing ride comfort. And new 90 PS 1.2-litre and 100 PS 1.4-litre i-VTEC engines deliver better performance characteristics while boosting economy to exceptional levels - 5.1 and 5.3 l/100 km combined, respectively.
CO2 emissions for both the 1.2-litre and 1.4-litre engines have also been significantly reduced. The 1.2 litre engine now emits just 120g/km (down from 129g/km), while the 1.4 litre produces 123g/km in manual or 120g/km with the i-SHIFT transmission (down from 137g/km).
The automaker from Hiroshima dropped a bomb on the automotive market when they came up with the new Mazda3, styled heavily with Nagare inspired lines and bulges this was truly an economy car that you would aspire to own. The exterior of the Mazda3 is interesting to say the least, made up of a multitude of complex curves and detailed lines evidence that the Japanese design team put a good amount of their own blood, sweat and tears into the economy car car’s design. Starting at just under $16,000 for a sedan and closer to $20,000 for the hatchback, the Mazda3 packs a whole lot of car into an affordable package. If you upgrade the sadden to the touring model, not only do you get wave mesh grills, Bi-Xenon headlamps and sporty front and rear bumpers complete with a lip spoiler, but you also get the wonderful 2.5 Liter four cylinder that makes 167 HP and 168 lb-ft of torque to go along with your beautifully sculpted people mover.
The exterior is highlighted by a sense of depth added by the hollow emblem on the front bumper and our car’s Crystal White Pearl Mica paint covered the wide wheel arches that housed a set of stylish 17 inch rims. The Mazda screams style, filled with playful bodylines. When compared to another automobile that we recently tested based on the same platform. We liked the Focus Coupe, and it reminded us of a serious Ford of the past, but the Focus is as plain Jane as sporty can try to be, but the Ford’s exterior was just flat. There was no depth like the Mazda, whereas the Focus is definitely for the person who wants the most car for their buck, while the 3 screams fun for a few dollars more.
Touring car driver turned Fifth Gear host, Jason Plato had a chance to compare two lightweight convertibles that you wouldn’t normally put in the same category. He admits to liking the Mini Cooper S Convertible but he says that the Mazda MX-5 is much more fun. So which is quicker around their test circuit the Japanese roadster or the BMW owned Brits?
Given that we’re all living through one of the worst economic times since The Great Depression, it seems that money pinching and budget tightening has become the new fad these days.
So when the topic of purchasing a cheap car surfaces, there aren’t a lot of manufacturers that can offer more for less than the Tata Nano.
With a price tag that comes up to only $2,200 in India, including taxes and fees, the Tata Nano – not to be mistaken for the Macintosh MP3 player - is becoming the latest must-have car of the cash-strapped man.
While it doesn’t look the least bit imposing, the Nano is still less than a quarter of the next set of cheap cars you can find anywhere.
After all, when you strip down the essentials of a car, the most obvious need is for you to be able to get to Point B from Point A, which after all is what we’re all looking for, right?
The current economic crisis has resulted in the partnership of a number of unlikely car manufacturers. First there was Fiat and Chrysler. Then it was Saab and Koenigsegg
And now we have Toyota and Aston Martin.
While Toyota and Aston Martin’s alliance is not on the level of the other two, the Japanese auto giant is in the process of producing its iQ model for its more upscale colleague in the United Kingdom.
The partnership of the two manufacturers comes at a time when both are in desperate need for bold and revolutionary moves that can jumpstart a floundering industry that’s in dire need of some fresh blood.
As part of the agreement, Toyota will supply iQ cars, which, as a matter of fact, are built in Japan, to Aston Martin, which, in turn, will sell these vehicles under the brand under a pseudonym: the Cygnet.
We here at Top Speed have thoroughly enjoyed our run with the subcompact Toyota Yaris. Since we received the tiny five door, we have thoroughly tested the car both on highway and off. The VVT-i 1.5 Liter four cylinder works hard at higher speeds, but is able to chug along with the flow of traffic. Despite the car’s smaller footprint, the Yaris is extremely spacious on the interior, and the cloth seats were extremely comfortable on our two hour highway stint. The Yaris did quite well on the open road, the car was able to get up to speed quickly, there was minimal exterior noise in the cabin and the seating position kept the controls in easy reach while allowing you to relax for the duration of the trip.
The Yaris shines in a crowded urban environment. The way that the wheels are pushed out to the far corners, just like the original compact car the Mini, allows for many of the same benefits. There is maximum use of the interior space, weaving in and out of traffic is a breeze and finding a parking space has never been easier. For those reasons and many more, we don’t mind trading in massaging seatbacks and fancy hard drive based navigation units for a simpler, less-complicated automobile. However our favorite feature of the Yaris are all the storage compartments hidden in the dashboard.
The Toyota Yaris is not only a great first car; it is also a great second car. Save the 599 for the weekends, tell your wife that you’ll be taking the Yaris to the office today, you’ll just have to be selective about which clubs to bring to the driving range after work, because an entire golf bag definitely won’t fit in the trunk. But for around $15,000 you can’t go wrong with a Toyota Yaris, it also comes with one of the greatest guarantees in the world, it’s a Toyota.
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