Toyota IQ in USA?

[rsbaker]

toyota will sell a certain number of them Just as Smart has but 2 seater cars always have a built in cieling for sales. I think GM is doing the right and better thing with the soon to be introduced Chevrolet Beat. I hope GM also considers also selling the similarly sized Trax as well. Its more convetional micro SUV looks would be good for those who may be turned off by the Beat's swoopy fururistic looks.


Groove, Beat, & Trax

[ZeroDrag]

Originally Posted by logansowner

...the same pompous asses you see in a Prius. You know the kind, the ones that get out with a bluetooth headset and continue their conversation inside the store without caring that they annoy everyone else

Your statement has absolutely no value and could not be more incorrect. I have never seen anyone like that coming out of a Prius. All the Prius drivers that I have met are nice ladies, gentlemen that seem like have college degrees and good job. Besides, the techie ones usually have BT system installed in the car and don't have the need for headsets anyway. I believe you are describing the Chrysler 300c/Dodge Magnum/Hummer H2 crowd.

The truth is there are owners of every make and model, even Chevy Cavaliers that would match your description.

[Bravada]

What's wrong with using your mobile and headset to actually, you know, talk to people?

[logansowner]

Originally Posted by eurohazard

Why would I think small cars are a bad thing? I didn't say that, if it sounds like I did, please let me reword what I meant.

The car itself is fine. I was PURELY talking about the name of the vehicle(s).

- Smart
and
- IQ

No one else finds that funny?
I guess I'm simple like that!

The new Dodge Einstein will be coming soon, followed by the Nissan Brilliant, and the Volvo Clever!

It's funny now that i see what you meant.. I can't believe I didn't catch on.

Originally Posted by khefer

you would know

That doesn't make any sense.

Originally Posted by Bravada

What's wrong with using your mobile and headset to actually, you know, talk to people?

Nothing, but it still looks weird. With a cell phone you know whats going on, but some of these things are pretty small now, personally I don't want to come off as someone with schizophrenia. I actually bought one when they were super popular, and never used it after realizing how stupid it looked. I remember back in the late 90's the science mags were talking about getting implants in your head which would work like bluetooth does now...that would have been even funnier.

[tgagneguam]

Damned Toyota, offering new models to consumers to increase their presence in the market, trying to be successful, trying to make all their competitors work a little harder. What a stupid plan.

[Bravada]

Nothing, but it still looks weird. With a cell phone you know whats going on, but some of these things are pretty small now, personally I don't want to come off as someone with schizophrenia. I actually bought one when they were super popular, and never used it after realizing how stupid it looked.

I am pretty much speechless...

[jcgable]

Originally Posted by Bravada

I am pretty much speechless...

There's a first for everything. (Kidding :-D)

In reality, I think he is making a pretty gross generalization about people that is (worst of all) incorrect.

[gaffo]

Originally Posted by logansowner

It's got 71 horsepower and wants premium fuel and costs much more than much nicer economy cars. EPA says 36MPG. Disregarding the looks, there are other cars that do it better for less money. Especially the interior, it's atrocious. The price in Canada was jacked up to $15,000, but if you want power steering, add $700, and another $800 for AC.

The point is that you can do better for less. And we have all sen the crash tests. They say how safe it is because the cabin stays intact, but the problem shows up with our good friend physics. This super safe little car is going to come to a very sudden stop, sure it won't collapse and crush your legs, but that energy has to go somewhere. That's why an F1 car disintegrates during a crash. I have no doubt it is a safe LITTLE car, the point is, big beats small. Crash a Smart into a Civic and the Civic is going to win.

The trouble with the Smart is that to make it safe they had to add so much weight that it took away a fuel efficiency advantage it would have over bigger cars. Diminishing returns if you will. You go too small and you have to add more weight so you don't die.

Smart is a boutique BS item for folks with money to blow. My Yaris is twice the car, get the same gas mileage, runs on REGULAR gasoline, and cost less.


not rocket science.

Now the IQ is the car I would have bought had it been over here (Yaris hatch is more car than I need - just the smallest I could buy in the States).

IQ has the potential to be a practical small car - for practical people. IF they don't scew the pooch and NOT offer the version the Europeans will get.

Oh - like dropping the 1.0 liter and putting the 1.5 in there.
Oh - like dropping the manual 5-sp and only offering automatic.


So that the 50 mpg the European IQ gets ends up being the 35 mpg version WE GET!!

If Toyota does this - I will not buy their offering. I suspect this is exactly what they will do. Refuse to offer the 1-liter and refuse to offer the manual.

Just like they did with the Yaris!!!................making it take 8-months for me to get a manual Yaris with any upgrade package (since they only literally import 40 a year or so!!). Automatic Yaris' out the ass - but manual? what's that?

lol. I'm surprised Yaris is such a great seller (esp. the Hatch - since initially they offered only 1 in 5 as hatches and almost didn't even offer the hatch at all in the US!!!) considering how hard Toyota when out of their way to make sure it would not sell in the US.

..............

as for weight - I hear over and over and over about safety = weight. But I see no proof of this claim. What crash protection items are suppose to wiegh so much?

..........

Yaris weighs 2250 lbs, so there is no way that tiny IQ weighs the same.

Looking at it it looks to be the same size as the old Honda600z, which would put it at 1300 lbs. - but a 1000cc/1200cc wieghs more than the Honda 600cc engine - so add 200 lbs.

we get a car that should weigh 1500 lbs - no more. If it weights more there is something wrong.

..................

Smart weighs 1800 - that is way too heavy for such a small car. It is smaller than the IQ. Smart's wieght is the main reason its gas mileage sucks. sure a small 700cc engine, but put it in a 1800 lb car and you shoot yourself in the foot WRT effiecency. They must make the Smart out of Lead because it is around 500 lbs heaver than it should be for its size.

[gaffo]

Originally Posted by Saturn69

Now, which compact car has power windows, locks, mirrors, remote keyless entry, AC,

My Yaris has the above plus cruise control for 13.3 k


It does not have the below - but thats ok. some of that crap is more a hindrance than an aid (i.e stability control...maybe ABS).

Originally Posted by Saturn69

ABS, traction control, electronic brake force distribution, stability control, a panoramic roof and gets 41mpg highway (EPA 33C/41H 37mpg average, just checked the site) for $13K?

same mileage I get.

[gaffo]

Originally Posted by skylark68

Why does a car this small and light comparatively speaking need ABS? I didn't have ABS, traction control, etc. in my Miata and I never needed it.

EXACTLY!! one knows how to drive your car by how she "feels" - feel when the front/backend is near her limit/etc..seat of pants driving. car become extension of ones body and become one with the road!

.................

"why does a car this small and light need ABS?"

Why indeed - because Americans have become gadget freaks, never mind that it is no usefull!! - it can be done! so we have to put it in!!

Blue tooth! - Must have! - GPS navigation!! - must have!! (paper maps are for troglodite oh so 20th century losers!!).................ok I want those things, and a food/drink autoservice, oh and auto driver unit so i can sleep while a drive, hhhhmmmmmmmm yes add that autoflush unit too.

- we've become rediculus. All I see each day are folks doing everything (usually eating and yacking on their phones (I know I don't have anything important to say so i know that yacker don't either)) EXCEPT DRIVING while they are "Driving".

makes me mad as hell.

[logansowner]

Originally Posted by Bravada

I am pretty much speechless...

Too bad the headset talkers aren't speechless, then we wouldn't be discussing this.

You don't think walking through the grocery store with 1 in 10 people talking to themselves is weird looking?

It's fine in the car, although I don't think you should be talking on a cellphone in a car anyway, but whether you have the headset or hold a phone to your head, it's still rude to do in public. You think I want to hear that your poodle got dewormed at the vet and they overcharged you? I don't. I'm not some anti tech freak, I have a cellphone that I use all the time, I do however not use it-ever when driving, and I don't proclaim my days events loudly in public either. Nobody wants to hear about my life, and I don't want to hear about anyone elses' either.

[SpaceCowboy]

Gaffo, much of the weight attributed to safety features in cars isn't all just from the addition of airbags and such (although these can be hefty themselves) Most of it comes from the added strength and reinforcement in the body.

While I very much like the idea of safer cars should you end up in a crash I think a lot of it is probably overkill, however recently I've seen pics of the same frontal crash at 54km/h on a Yaris and a 10 year old Commodore (same as I drive) and I was mortified by the way the older, larger car deformed. Perhaps it's not all hocus pocus after all. It's just a shame it works to the detriment of performance and economy.

I also agree with your stance on gadget fixation. I'm often amazed by some of the things I see people doing when they are supposed to be driving, whilst driver aids aren't a particularly bad thing, you should always have the option to switch them off and experience real driving for yourself. As for the ever increasing amount of in-car-entertainment, I worry about how often this is responsible for driver error due to distraction.

[blkwrxsti]

Originally Posted by gaffo

EXACTLY!! one knows how to drive your car by how she "feels" - feel when the front/backend is near her limit/etc..seat of pants driving. car become extension of ones body and become one with the road!

"why does a car this small and light need ABS?"

Why indeed - because Americans have become gadget freaks, never mind that it is no usefull!! - it can be done! so we have to put it in!!

You do realize that the US and the EU have enacted (are passing?) laws to make stability control standard in the next few years, don't you? How about the reams of statistical data that says it reduces accidents by at least 20%? I've seen Mercedes throwing around estimates as high as 33%.

http://www.chooseesc.eu/en/news/mandatory.htm

By the time you add in hardware to handle stability control, you might as well do the traction control and ABS (which have been shown to have no significant benefit on accident rates).

Even if you know how to drive your car by the seat of your pants - F1 has taught us over the years that a good system can be tuned to outperform the most talented drivers in the world, in the most performance-oriented machines in the world. Like the Bosch commercial says - do you have 4 feet and the ability to read all 4 wheel speeds in milliseconds?

As for the rest of the gadgets you mention - if you're going to spend 1 hour or more per day in your car, it makes sense that you would want to take a few things with you on your trip. Sounds like you like the journey, but there are people who are more interested in the destination.

[blkwrxsti]

Originally Posted by Bravada

The car is 2/3s the size of a Yaris, don't get confused! It is REALLY small.

Yes - I figured that out before I posted - the car also seats 1/2 the number of people that the Yaris does, and as others have pointed out, weighs the same.

I get that it's more luxurious, and may ride/handle better, but why should I have to give up a back seat to get that?

[johnriley]

Originally Posted by Bravada

The car is 2/3s the size of a Yaris, don't get confused! It is REALLY small.

But what about the Aygo? How much more economical is it than that car?