New Toyota models making their UK debuts at the British International Motor Show will be out on the nation’s roads within a year. Both the revolutionary iQ premium city car and the B-segment Urban Cruiser SUV will be moving from show stand to showroom in 2009 in the vanguard of a wave of new Toyota products.

They will be joined at the show by Aygo Crazy, a wild concept car that is all about pure driving pleasure. An absolute one-off, this hand-crafted, rear-engined machine was conceived, designed, engineered and built in Britain.

Toyota’s full UK model range will also be on display, including the most recent addition to the line-up, the Hilux Invincible 200, Britain’s most powerful production pick-up.

iQ: Toyota’s revolutionary small premium car
The Toyota iQ is a car in a class of its own, a premium model that is ultra-compact, yet can carry up to three adults plus a child in comfort. Proving emphatically that small does not mean basic, it is a completely new proposition for urban motoring that is stylish, sophisticated, technically advanced and kinder to the environment.

iQ is less than three metres long, but wider and with a longer cabin than a Toyota Yaris. It achieves a breakthrough in small car packaging to deliver unprecedented interior space, thanks to a series of interlinked engineering innovations.

A newly developed differential allows for a more compact engine compartment and for the front wheels to be pushed out to the very corners of the car. An ingenious steering gear design enables the engine and differential to be repositioned, giving the car a shorter front overhang.

Overall length is reduced thanks to a flat under-floor fuel tank and rear-angled shock absorbers, while a significantly smaller heater/air conditioning unit takes up less cabin room, allowing the front passenger seat to be moved closer to the base of the windscreen. The result is an extra 100mm of cabin length compared to Yaris and shoulder room similar to that offered by a Toyota Auris.

Passenger space is further helped by an asymmetric dashboard design and slim, sculpted front seats that optimise leg room for those sitting in the rear. The 3+1 seating configuration provides comfortable space for three adults – plus a seat for a child or luggage space behind the driver.

iQ has a thoroughly contemporary and forward-looking design inside and out, the interior styled on a “techno-organic” theme with geometric precision and high quality materials. The dashboard is a stand-out feature, with its floating V-shaped centre console.

Production of iQ is due to start later this year with UK sales scheduled for spring 2009. Two petrol and one diesel engine will be available, which, together with the car’s light weight and aerodynamic shape, will deliver exceptional fuel economy and low emissions. Details of the powertrains and equipment specifications will be announced later.

Urban Cruiser
Fourteen years ago the original RAV4 pioneered a new and hugely popular kind of vehicle: a 4x4 that is stylish, versatile and fun to drive both on and off-road. The spirit that made the original RAV4 such a success is evident, too, in the next addition to Toyota’s SUV range, Urban Cruiser.  

Urban Cruiser is Toyota’s first SUV in the B-segment in Europe, a car that fully addresses modern motorists’ priorities for fuel economy and low emissions. Expected to set a new benchmark in environmental performance in the 4x4 market, Urban Cruiser, together with iQ, is expected to produce CO₂ emissions of less than 140g/km. Built on the Yaris platform, it is 3,930mm long, more than 300mm shorter than a current generation RAV4.

Aygo Crazy
Many motor show concept cars are designed purely for the stage and are destined never to turn a wheel. Where Aygo Crazy is concerned, however, driving character is its defining quality.

An absolute one-off, conceived, designed, engineered and built in Britain, Aygo Crazy is all about pure driving pleasure. Based on Toyota’s Aygo city car, it is powered by a rear-mounted 1.8-litre VVT-i engine adopted from the MR2 Roadster, driving the rear wheels. Fitted with a Toyota Motorsport turbocharger, power output is 200 DIN hp with a maximum 240 Nm of torque, giving the car a top speed of more than 125mph and sub-six-second acceleration from nought to 62mph. There are no electronic handling or stability aids to intervene in the fundamental relationship between driver and car. 

The rear suspension is also developed from that used on the MR2 Roadster, with adjustable Tein dampers deployed front and rear.

The bodywork is hand-crafted to accommodate 17-inch wheels and a huge front-mounted aluminium radiator that is central to the car’s bespoke cooling system. Details include a carbon fibre rear wing, adopted from a 200mph American Champ Car racing machine, a roll cage and a bespoke interior finished by specialist coachtrimmers O’Rourke.

Hilux Invincible 200 leads full Toyota UK model range
Toyota’s show stand will display models representing its full UK range, including its latest addition, the Hilux Invincible 200.

A limited edition model, this flagship of the range boasts a 3.0-litre D-4D engine boosted by a Toyota Motorsport Diesel Performance Kit to produce 197 DIN hp – more than any other production pick-up on the UK market. Its style matches its performance with metallic-finish alloy wheels, a stainless steel mesh grille, black metallic paint and two-tone leather upholstery.