It seems French automaker PSA Group may have found a way to cheaply enter the U.S. market after a 16-year hiatus, and it doesn't involve buying Chrysler Group. Instead, the manufacturer of Peugeot and Citroen may enter through an alliance with a Japanese manufacturer, but not one on the scale of rival Renault, which has a global alliance with Nissan Motor. Instead, PSA's Czech Republic-based joint venture with Toyota may result in the importation of the Citroen C1, a microcar sometimes referred to as a city car, as the Toyota Aygo. The C1s have been seen in the vicinity of Toyota's Ann Arbor, Mich., testing facility, according to AutoBlog. Toyota reportedly is considering bringing the C1 to the U.S. as a possible edition to its lineup below its smallest U.S. Model, the Yaris. The Aygo/C1's 57 miles per gallon would not only beat the Yaris subcompact's 40 mpg on fuel economy, but also the Prius Hybrid's 50 mpg. On a related note, the possible intro of a Toyota city car could spell trouble for DaimlerChrysler's SMART unit, which is expected to debut in 2008 — the same time the Aygo could see sales in the U.S.—Matthew Wurtzel
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See earlier post about PSA
See earlier post about SMART
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