It is safe to say that no one predicted this…
The Aston Martin Cygnet has been criticized by some as being a glorified Toyota IQ. But what we have is far more than an ordinary mainstream hatchback of the same size dressed in a tuxedo. This short-lived city car was scrapped in 2005. It has been revived about five years later for a unique project that really took us by surprise.
The tiny 1.3-liter four cylinder engine is gone as Aston Martin’s talented engineers have been able to fit the V8 4.7L unit of the Vantage S into the engine bay. This makes the Cygnet a pocket rocket. The seven-speed Speedshift II automatic transmission was also borrowed from the Vantage by Gaydon’s talented engineers.
The Toyota iQ, and its Aston Martin counterpart, have a front wheel-drive layout. However, the Cygnet was modified to allow for a RWD configuration. The modifications required extensive modifications, including a modified chassis, shortened Vantage driveshaftshafts, a new transmission tunnel and a reworked bulkhead.
The V8-powered Cygnet is heavier than the regular production model. The standard car weighed in at just under 1,000 kg (2,204 lb), but this Cygnet weighs 1,375 kg (3.031 lb) and is evenly distributed at 50/50 front/rear. The interior was modified to include a pair Recaro body-hugging seat and a carbon fiber dashboard. This helps keep the weight down.
It takes just 4.2 seconds to go from 0-60 mph (0-100 km/h) before reaching a respectable 170mph (274 km/h). This is a significant improvement over the production Cygnet which took 11.8 seconds to sprint and had an average speed of 106 mph (171 km/h).
The V8 conversion saw the car get an independent double wishbone front suspension and rear suspension. Brakes were beefier thanks to 19-inch alloys that are much larger than the 16-inch stock set. The Cygnet looks like a little hatchback with its carbon fiber wheel arches.
The Aston Martin Cygnet V8 will be on display at the ongoing 2018 Goodwood Festival of Speed.