Aston Martin to Rebadge the Toyota iQ

Aston Martin's Cygnet concept, based on the Toyota iQ

Apparently, a lot of people think the Toyota iQ is a good idea.

Our original post on the minuscule Toyota questioned whether or not the car made sense for the United States, especially with gas prices well below the $4-per-gallon mark.

I remain skeptical, even though a lot of great comments made valid arguments. If one thing can change my mind, though, it’s Aston Martin.

Toyota iQ

The elite car maker is taking the tiny iQ and giving it a new super-luxo skin, complete with a new grill, headlights, trademark side vents, leather interior, and an all-new name: the Cygnet. Go ahead and laugh if you want - I did when I heard Rolls-Royce was decking out a set of MINI Coopers - but Aston Martin’s reworking of the iQ looks like it’s going to work.

At first, the Cygnet will be offered only to existing Aston Martin customers at a price of about $33,000. Only time will tell if they’ll make them available to the public. The iQ, though, should make it to the U.S. as a Scion in late 2010, as a 2011 model.

I still think the iQ and Cygnet are just too small for the United States, but this comment from reader Jerry Zabin and others like it are pretty convincing:

I just returned from Berlin and I saw the Toyota IQ up close. LOVE IT!!! If this car becomes available in the U.S., I am a definite buyer! Gas prices continue to rise and this car would fit the bill. With US carmakers in peril, it is no wonder…the day of the gas guzzler has passed! In Berlin, gas is nearly $5.25/gallon and you rarely see large cars on the road. Let’s get with it America….conservation is no longer optional, it is necessary. The Toyota IQ fits the bill!

If you’re like me, you’ll take Aston Martin’s endorsement of the iQ to heart. Maybe there’s something to this small-car thing after all.

Will a $33,000 rebadged Toyota hurt Aston Martin’s credibility?

-tgriffith

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