Aston Martin stunned the world last June by revealing the Cygnet super-mini concept that is based on the Toyota iQ. Then the British sports car maker that is fondly associated with mouth watering sports cars announced that the Cygnet will go into production and that the development of the super-mini will continue into 2010. Slated for a market launch late this year or by early 2011, the Cygnet is expected to be sold to owners of Aston Martin’s full-sized sports cars and only 2,000 units are planned.
Aston Martin
Aston Martin To Build Luxury Brand
Aston Martin could co-operate with Daimler AG’s Mercedes on ventures ranging from engines to new models, the British luxury carmaker’s majority shareholder, Kuwait’s Investment Dar, said on Tuesday. Adham Charanoglu, business development manager for Investment Dar, which bought Aston Martin from Ford Motor Company last March, said it had held talks with Mercedes and with LVMH’s Louis Vuitton and PPR’s Gucci on branded merchandising. Charanoglu told the Reuters Islamic Finance Summit that plans to overhaul Aston Martin merchandising had yet to be finished but included opening new centers dedicated to the marquee — made famous by James Bond — in the UK, the Gulf and possibly the U.S. Any brand development would need to be at the top end of the luxury market, with opportunities stretching from apparel, owners’ events and track racing to real estate, Charanoglu said, adding Aston […]
Corporate Business
10-Strong MINI Model Lineup Coming
According to AutoEvolution.com, despite being ideal vehicles for hairdressers and looking like retro hatchbacks, we actually like the cars that MINI makes. However, there’s always that nagging thought in the back of our minds that they are as British as a bratwurst. There’s still hope though, as MINI recently announced a big investment plan in its plant in Oxford, UK to prepare for production of its third-generation Cooper model, a test mule of which was recently spotted while undergoing road trials. The new model, will be based on a new front-wheel drive platform dubbed UKL, which will be used by BMW for its own range of entry-level hatchbacks. A new Cooper isn’t the only kind of ammo that MINI has ready to load, as the company boss Norbert Reithoffer has revealed to What Car? that a 10 model lineup is […]
New Cars
Diesel MINI Lowest Depreciating Car
In a survey of residual values carried by EurotaxGlass’s, publisher of the Glass’s Guide ‘trade bible’, the MINI 1.4TD came out with an average trade-in value of 62.3 per cent after three years. It is the second year in succession that the MINI has topped the table of the slowest-depreciating cars, although the downturn in used car values is indicated by the fact that last year it retained 71 per cent of its value after three years. Seven of this year’s top 10 are cheap to buy and run, small and fuel-efficient. The almost identical Citroen C1, Toyota Aygo and Peugeot 107 were second, fourth and fifth respectively. However, the Ferrari F430 coupe and spyder took third place, retaining 60.9 per cent of their value after three years. The Lamborghini Murcielago was in eighth place (55.2 per cent), while rear- […]