The Toyota iQ, which won the Japan Car of the Year 2008-09
Toyota's small, funky little iQ blazed ahead of 10 other finalists to claim the title of Japan Car of the Year (COTY), garnering 526 votes from 65 jurors. The iQ finished more than 300 points ahead of its nearest rival, the Citroën C5, which stood in second place with 223 votes, while the Nissan GT-R was in third place with 201 votes. (The GT-R, one of the most impressive supercars ever to come from Japan, also won the ‘Most Advanced Technology’ award, one of the most highly coveted awards of Car of the Year Japan 2008-2009.)
But coming back to the iQ, with its innovative seating layout, comprehensive crash protection (including nine airbags), a fuel-efficient 1.0-litre engine and CVT transmission, the small car seems to be just perfect for modern-day cities, with their traffic congestion and severely limited availability of parking space.
The Toyota iQ, which will only be available in Japan and Europe, is not coming to India, which we think is such a pity. Still, Toyota is said to be working on an all-new small car for India, and when it comes out in the next 2-3 years, we’ll see how it stacks up against the iQ…!
But coming back to the iQ, with its innovative seating layout, comprehensive crash protection (including nine airbags), a fuel-efficient 1.0-litre engine and CVT transmission, the small car seems to be just perfect for modern-day cities, with their traffic congestion and severely limited availability of parking space.
The Toyota iQ, which will only be available in Japan and Europe, is not coming to India, which we think is such a pity. Still, Toyota is said to be working on an all-new small car for India, and when it comes out in the next 2-3 years, we’ll see how it stacks up against the iQ…!
