Toyota IQ concept on Frankfurt show
Toyota has gone small at the Frankfurt show with this, the little IQ concept.
A tiny vision of a future Toyota urban car, the IQ is genuinely dinky: measuring just under three metres in length, it's 40cm shorter than the brilliant Mitsubshi i and 42cm shorter than Toyota's own Aygo.
But, despite such modest proportions, Toyota says the IQ will fit four passengers. Thanks to a swooping dash, the passenger seat has more space than the driver's, which means it can be set further forward to create a decent-sized space behind.
There's just about enough room behind the driver to squeeze one more, too - Toyota calls the IQ a 3+1, which is a new one to us.
You can make up your own mind on the IQ's styling - we reckon there's something a bit of Lord of the Rings Orc about the pointy little nose and wide mouth - which Toyota describes as 'on-the-edge'. Some people will doubtless love it.
Unlike the similarly sized VW Up! Concept also on show in Frankfurt, the IQ keeps its engine up front. Exactly what engine remains to be seen, but we'd expect something small - quite possibly the 1.0-litre, three-cylinder unit in the current Aygo and Yaris.
Then again, with the IQ unlikely to make it anywhere near to production for a good couple of years, there could be something really different under there. Can you turn hobbits into biofuel?
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