Toyota iQ spied testing

This is the world’s smallest four-seater, the Toyota iQ, in its final stages of testing before it goes on sale in the UK in the opening months of 2009.Toyota needn’t have bothered with the disguise; the production version of the iQ was revealed at the Geneva motor show back in March.It’s just 2985mm long and uses a unique 3+1 seating system allowing three adults and one child to sit comfortably, despite it Smart-like proportions.An ingeniously packaged little city car with an asymmetrical fascia, the iQ’s front passenger seat slides further forward than the driver’s seat so an adult can sit behind the passenger. A compact HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) system allows a much slimmer dashboard, and the fuel tank is just 120mm deep. The transmission has also been redesigned so the driveshafts exit forward of the engine’s centre line, allowing the front wheels to be mounted further forward.Although fuller details about the iQ’s range of engines will emerge later, company insiders have confirmed that both petrol and diesel motors will be available. The smallest, high-efficiency version will be a three-cylinder petrol emitting just 99g/km of CO2 – that means it will be exempt from road tax in Britain. Two four-cylinder options will be offered above it (a petrol and a diesel) and both will use stop-start engine technology to bring their emissions and fuel economy figures down.The Japanese giant expects to sell around 100,000 examples of its smallest model in Europe and Japan. Later in its life, when production volumes increase, it’s likely that the car will made for the American market, badged as a Scion. iQ prices will start from around £9000 in the UK.Meanwhile, the same packaging revolutions that have allowed Toyota to fit two rows of seats into a three-metre car will next be applied to the Japanese firms smallest MPV, the replacement for the Yaris Verso. Slightly longer than the current Yaris, the new Yaris Verso (although it’s highly unlikely to use that name) will be a four-metre supermini with three rows of seats, and room for up to seven occupants. As such, it’ll be the first seven seat supermini the market has seen, and should go on sale in early 2010.

Will Powell