Hands up, those of you who remember the W12-powered Volkswagen Golf, or even the 330bhp Tata Silhouette that looked like an Indica. For those that don't, think instead of the Nissan Juke R, and you'll be close to what is being rumoured about the Aston Martin Cygnet - the company might just let it be powered by one of its 12-cylinder engines.
The Cygnet is a small city hatchback that is based on the Toyota IQ. It is currently powered by a 97bhp 1.3-litre four cylinder petrol engine. Extensive modifications will be necessary to fit the engine in the current engine bay, but Aston says that they're "not insurmountable". Of course, with the change of the engine, everything else will change - the rear wheels will have to be driven, which will lead to a change in the interior space or the exterior. Suspension, wheels and tyres will change.
The sanity of such an exercise will always be in question, but like the Juke R, one can never say if the idea will take flight. If it does, we'd certainly love to see what the results are.
