Toyota launches the Auris concept

28 September 2006 23:58 GMT / By Stuart Miles

"Perfect imbalance" ... no, not the Tom Cruise/Katie Holmes weirdalism that is their relationship, but Toyota’s brand spanking new concept – the Auris.

Supposedly designed from the inside out, the Auris "space concept" – revealed for the first time at the Paris Motor Show – looks a bit like a Yaris has mated with a bumblebee. The idea is to create a spacious and practical environment for driver and passengers, so what you get is a whopping panoramic glass roof, low floor and high window surfaces coupled with a bridged centre console. The latter forces up the height of the gearstick and leaves an open section in the lower part of the console that increases the sense of space around the driver and front seat passenger. It looks quite cool, too.

The exterior is fairly pedestrian and is characterised by a powerful front-end with strong vertical lines, wide shoulders and short overhangs. The Auris also gets sporty 19in rims, freeform geometric lamps, juicy brake callipers and a deep rear bumper with integrated chrome exhausts adding to the dynamic look. Did someone order a dose of phat?

The striking gold exterior paint finish and interior piping also pointlessly reflect the car’s name … auris being derived from aurum, which apparently is Latin for gold. Well you know what they say about all that glitters...