Auto Express 1703

Visit autoexpress.co.uk for all the latest new cars news WE’RE big fans of small cars here at Auto Express. They’re large enough for the majority of use cases, they’re generally more economical and they’re often among the cheapest new cars you can get onto your driveway. Small wonder that manufacturers call them “access points” to their wider ranges. That’s not as true today as it was five years ago, mind. Ever-tightening emissions rules and the constant push for more safety kit have priced many brands out of the city car market altogether. Vauxhall, Ford and Renault don’t sell cars smaller than superminis, for example; Citroen and Peugeot are about to go the same way. So it’s heartening to see Toyota trying something a bit different with its new Aygo X…

John_McIlroy@autovia.co.uk @johnmcilroy Visit autoexpress.co.uk for your daily news updates ● Developed by Toyota alone ● On sale by late spring 2022 RISING costs and tightening rules on emissions have forced many brands to abandon their smallest models – but Toyota still believes there’s a future for the city car, and it is aiming to capitalise on the thinning out of prospective competitors with a new generation of Aygo, called Aygo X. Pronounced “Aygo Cross” by Toyota, the new car’s name is designed to reflect a dramatic rethink on its bodystyle. This is the first Aygo that isn’t a joint venture with Peugeot and Citroen, and Toyota has used this freedom to switch the car to a version of its TNGA-B platform, the same architecture that supports the Yaris and Yaris…

Q What’s the reason for the change to the stance? The Aygo X almost has an ‘off-road’ look. A “The concept of the Aygo has evolved. Since we launched the first version, the difference is that the car is no longer king of the road; drivers share the road in the city with pedestrians, bicycles and so on. Raising the car’s height is about visibility, making sure the driver feels comfortable and can see other road users. The growth in size is in response to our customers, who still want compactness, but more practicality.” Q Although the boot is 60 litres larger than before, it’s quite tight in the back seat for taller passengers. Did you compromise rear legroom for boot space? A“Our research shows that rear-seat usage in this…

sean_carson@autovia.co.uk ● Stylish and sporty electric saloon to take on Tesla Model S ● Rapid 4WD Quadrifoglio version could be on the cards THE Alfa Romeo Giulia will live on as an all-electric saloon, the brand’s chief executive officer Jean-Philippe Imparato has revealed. But the firm will also focus on electric SUVs, and launch its first full EV in 2024. Imparato told Auto Express, “I [Alfa Romeo] will have a future for Giulia. Alfa Romeo will do the job for SUVs too, because we are Chinese and we are American, but that shape of the Giulia is fantastic, I don’t want to lose this. The car is absolutely gorgeous, so there is a future for this type of car, but it will be electrified. It means probably 100 per cent…

FOLLOWING an initial 12-week delay to improve the car’s performance, Alfa Romeo boss Jean-Philippe Imparato confirmed that the Tonale compact SUV will launch in 2022, and it will be available with plug-in hybrid power. The car marks the start of Alfa Romeo’s electrified product line and will be followed by the launch of another new model in 2023, likely to be a smaller SUV called the Brennero. This model will be followed by the brand’s first electric model a year later. “The first full EV will come in 2024 and we’ll see a big launch in 2025, 2026, then we’ll see Alfa Romeo as full BEV in 2027. This is validated and funded,” Imparato said. It’s not yet known how far Alfa intends to extend its product line-up. However, with…

tristan_shale-hester@autovia.co.uk @tristan_shale ● 7,000 chargers in West Sussex ● 190,000 nationwide by 2030 ELECTRIC car chargepoint provider Connected Kerb has announced the biggest ever local-authority roll-out of new public EV chargepoints, with a contract to install up to 7,000 sockets by 2030 in residential streets, public car parks and community facilities in West Sussex. The contract is part of a nationwide roll out of chargepoints promised by the UK firm founded in 2017. It says it expects to sign contracts for another 30,000 chargepoints during 2022, and is on track to install 190,000 chargepoints by 2030. That’s the date of the government’s ban on the sale of non-hybrid petrol and diesel cars, after which drivers without access to off-street parking have frequently expressed fears they won’t be able to charge…