Unveiled: Toyota Aygo X Prologue
Toyota’s A-segment concept for the European market trades “cute” for “badass”
Toyota Europe Design Development (ED2) unveiled the Aygo X Prologue, a concept version of the sub-compact city car made for the European market. The team then gave the first design review of the vehicle on day two of the Car Design Dialogues Europe event.
“We wanted to move away from a cute rental car appearance of an A-segment car and give it a more badass appearance,” says Ian Cartabiano, ED2 president, in an exclusive interview ahead of our live Q and A on Thursday, March 18. Enter the Aygo X Prologue, which design director Lance Scott describes as “playful with a pinch of spice.”
The Aygo X Prologue was designed entirely at ED2, Toyota’s satellite studio in Biot, France. The funky crossover is defined by bulging fenders and a wedged roofline, with bold volumes and heavy sculpting throughout the body, much like we’ve seen in other recent Toyota and Lexus vehicles. Headlamps hug the hood to create a wing-like shape, and the lower front face and tail lamps build on the brand’s signature hexagon theme. Integrated, low-profile roof rails give the Aygo X Prologue an extra sporty look. Because it’s a show car, some of the coolest features won’t make it into production, such as the massive wheels and the pop-out door handles. Even so, the Aygo should stand out on roads often crowded with boîtes de merde.
Unlike the outgoing Aygo, which was done as a joint venture between Citroën and Peugeot, the next production car will be exclusively Toyota. And while most brands are taking their line-ups from ICE to EV, Toyota will break with the trend and keep the new Aygo powered by a combustion engine to keep sticker prices down. “People seem happy that Toyota isn’t giving up on small ICE cars for Europe that are affordable and fun to drive,” Cartabiano says.
For more on ED2 and the new Toyota Aygo X Prologue, look out for the Car Design Dialogues studio tour and live Q and A with Cartabiano, Scott, senior CMF designer Julie Schwieder, exterior designer Jung Presciutti, and chief designer of mobility Laurent Bouzige. It will be available to view on demand soon.
