Fiat is rumored to be working on an all-new brand to launch small, inexpensive cars into the Western Europe, with two of the three proposed models being based on vehicles from emerging markets. The third is much more interesting. The new supermini, which could revive the Topolino moniker, is expected to get a new twin cylinder engine that could offer as much as 65 mpg when mated to a dual-clutch gearbox. Naturally, Fiat is targeting the smart fortwo, Toyota iQ and the upcoming up! minicar from Volkswagen, but the automaker is said to be working on a pricing model that more closely matches Renault's low-cost Logan subsidiary. In other words, Europeans may get an efficient, stylish Italian city car that's priced to compete with upper-end motorcycles as basic transportation. Electric versions are also a distinct possibility. Unfortunately, as is often the case, Americans are likely to miss out on this one.
European manufacturers seem to have been taken aback by the recent success of their microcars. Now that consumers have gotten a taste of what life is like when you're choosing between filling your tank or your stomach, industry insiders are predicting that the microcar category will only pick up steam. Daimler is sitting pretty with its smart brand, BMW is working on a city-spec Isetta revival, Toyota has responded with its diminutive iQ and VW went small with its Up! concept cars. But VeeDub's got even smaller ideas on its corporate mind, working on an smaller city car to slot below its already dinky Up! model.
Power for the city car will come from either a 1.2L four cylinder or an oil-burning three-pot. That gasoline engine is expected to feature cylinder cutoff technology so it can operate on just half of its allotment of pistons when full power isn't necessary. All of that adds up to an estimatged 117 miles per gallon. And naturally, an electric drivetrain is also in the works.
Current rumors indicate that the German automaker has given this new model priority status, working to get the car on UK roads by 2011. It all sounds good so far, minus the name: Chico. We're confident that they can think of something better.
Gordon Murray may be best known for his radical supercars, especially the timeless McLaren F1, but his automotive passions span far enough to include vehicles that could be described as the F1's polar opposite. Evidence of such is the T.25 program, a novel city car concept that Murray and his design crew plan to sell to established automotive companies. Gordon Murray Design Limited, the company formed by the man for his day-to-day design aspirations, has just celebrated its first anniversary and some intriguing pictures were snapped at the party, most of all a covered-up T.25 sitting in between some classic city cars of the past and present. Looking extremely short, even when compared to the original Mini, and almost comically tall, the wheels appear to be pushed as far to the corners as possible. Click here to read a transcript from Murray's speech at the event where he compares driving cars that get 20 miles per gallon with smoking.
Fuel-efficient city cars are being created at automaker R&D departments the world over, and even BMW plans on getting in on the action. BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer has confirmed that the German automaker was working on a 'mega city car' that will carry an all-new look, and two powertrains. One micro car will receive motivation with the aid of standard combustion, but the other will be pure electric. The electric vehicle will also comply with a California mandate that by 2012 there must be a fuel cell or battery-powered car that can travel 200 on a single charge. For comparison sake, GM promises at least 40 miles for the Chevy Volt, and Mitsubishi is looking at 100 mpg for the iMiEV. It's also worth mentioning that the BMW CEO specifically pointed out that it meets California regulations, signaling that the vehicle would be available Stateside. There is still no word regarding which of BMW's three brands would be used for the vehicle, but we're still very sure it won't be a Rolls Royce.
As suspected, the KTM X-Bow is just the beginning of the bike-cum-automaker's assault on the four-wheeled world. According to CAR, KTM is in the process of creating a "slew" budget oriented vehicles, including a city car and "the world's first frugal and eco-friendly off-roader."
The SUV, codenamed the New Haflinger, will split the difference between KTM's world-renowned bikes and a traditional utility vehicle, with a small footprint, an open- or closed-top body and the ability to handle the rigors of the Paris-Dakar rally (which it plans to compete in with four wheels) while still holding its own on the road.
Three separate city vehicles are also part of the product onslaught, which is being co-developed with Bajaj Auto, India's third largest automaker. One will be a four-seat, four-wheel runabout, while a scooter and three-wheeled modern take on the tuk-tuk is under development. KTM's aim is to produce a wide variety of bodystyles and drivetrains, and its plans to include gasoline- and diesel-powered models, along with an EV in the future.
If such projections as cutting the cost of driving and vehicle emissions in half sounds a bit radical to you, that's exactly the response that Gordon Murray is hoping for. Before completely dismissing these claims, remember that Murray is the man most responsible for the road-going supercar known as the McLaren F1, as well as quite a number of race winning Formula 1 cars from a few decades ago. Note too that Caparo, makers of the awe-inspiring T1 are also heavily involved in the project. Considering that the team is only halfway through the design process, we hope that they are able to follow through with their early projections.
Murray claims that his newest vehicle, designated the Type-25 (his 25th clean-sheet design), will revolutionize personal transportation by being cheap to produce, purchase and operate. Safety is not forgotten either, as the new vehicle is fully expected to pass all applicable crash testing. What's more, the new car is IKEA ready able to be flat-packed for ease of shipping. So far, details remain sketchy regarding who will produce the vehicle as Murray's company only intends to design the it. Caparo's excellence in carbon fiber design may prove valuable, though we have no indication that Caparo will be the company actually assembling the vehicles.
BMW is taking the prospect of building city cars seriously with the launch of Project i. The new research and development unit of the Bavarian automaker is being established to look at alternative solutions for urban vehicles for use in metropolitan cores where access and emissions pose growing difficulties for conventional automobiles to operate.
Although BMW is not ruling out the possibility of launching a fourth brand based on the project's conclusions, it's waiting to see what those findings will be – anticipated to arrive no sooner than the first half of the next decade (by which time things may not be labeled iEverything anymore) – before it makes any decisions. In speaking with Automotive New Europe, chief executive Norbert Reithofer said his company would first determine what form its city cars would take, and then figure out if it would fit in to the BMW line-up, make a new MINI model or justify its own sub-brand. One thing's for sure, though: it won't be a Rolls-Royce.
