Minicar

Mark your calendars, the production version of the Volkswagen Up! will be unveiled at the Grand Palais on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, France on August 22. Both three- and five-door versions of the much-anticipated minicar will be on hand, according to VW Up Blogspot. Following its world premiere in Paris, the VW Up! will head to Germany for its on-stage debut at the Frankfurt Auto S

In mid-May, Nissan and Mitsubishi announced the official establishment of a 50:50 joint venture related to the automakers' minicars that are sold exclusively in Japan. The establishment of the minicar JV builds upon an agreement signed in December of 2010 that expanded the scope of co

On Friday, Nissan and Mitsubishi announced the official establishment of a 50:50 joint venture related to their minicars sold in the Japanese market. The establishment of this joint venture builds upon an earlier agreement, signed in December of 2010, to expand the scope of cooperatio

Launched in Europe in 1972, the Renault 5 (aka the R5) supermini was an innovative vehicle that was sold in countries across the globe. In North America, the R5 was badged as the Le Car and was marketed through American Motor Company's (AMC) 1,300 dealers from 1976 to 1986. Unfortunately, the Le Car never caught on here in the States, but it was nonetheless one of Renault's best-selling vehicles, with production hitting 5.5 million units b

According to Inside Line, Skoda is jumping into the minicar game with a little help from parent company Volkswagen. The Czech automaker is set to introduce a new model based on the same platform as the VW Up, with production gearing up toward the fall of 2011.

Toyota's minicar division, Daihatsu Motor Co., has announced that it will recall more than half a million cars due to taillight lenses that can fade from long-term UV exposure. Apparently, the vehicle's rear lenses, which are originally orange in color, can loose their lustrous glow as the sun's penetrating rays sap the orange right out of them and turn the lenses an off-white hue. This present

The European automotive market is decidedly different than ours. For one, Europeans tend to have an affinity towards vehicles with wee dimensions, while a lot of Americans still trend towards a go-big-or-go-home mentality. Since Europeans seem to have a better grasp of the benefits of small cars, Peugeot-Citroen (PSA) feels that it will need three small electric vehicles (EVs) to fil

The last time a Messerschmitt KR200 was mentioned in our pages, it was in conjunction with a new minicar book published in 2007. It's not surprising that we don't write about the car that often – it hasn't been produced since the 1960s. But the minicar design, beautiful lines and three wheels show that Smart ForTwos, NMGs and Apt

According to Alain Visser, Opel's head of sales and marketing, Opel needs a minicar to compete. However, developing a new minicar is a huge expense, and even though Opel has set aside €250 million for this car, the company would like a partner. It's not unusual: Ford and Fiat share the Fiat Panda/

Mystery concept car in Barcelona -- Click above for image gallery

click above for a high res gallery of the Toyota iQ

The Dodge Breeze is A #1. Or, rather, it's an A1. Chinese automaker Chery's deal with Chrysler LLC to produce small cars for Chrysler's three brands begat the little buzz-about you see above. The photo appeared on a Chinese forum and is supposedly the Chinese Plymouth Dodge Breeze, one of the aforementioned adventures in rebadging. The cars produced as a result of the agreement would Jonathon Ramsey

Daimler's not taking the close resemblance of a Chinese minicar to a smart fortwo lightly. The German automaker has gotten a court order forbidding Martin Motors, the European distributor for China's Shuanghuan Automobile, from displaying the Shuanghuan Noble at the upcoming Bologna Auto Show. This is the second time Daimler has blocked the Noble from being displayed, having taken similar action at the F