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Aston Martin DB11 fully exposed before Geneva debut

You're forgiven if you don't remember much about Daniel Craig's last adventure as James Bond 007 in Spectre. The movie was largely forgettable, but the Aston Martin DB10 built for the film was nice to look at, until it took a swim in the Tiber. Since the DB10 was never intended for production, the DB11 is on its way as a DB9 replacement. We've been seeing camouflaged DB11 prototypes running around Europe for a while now. And now, thanks to a photographer taking a picture when he or she wasn't supposed to, and posting that image to Twitter, we can show you what the front of the upcoming DB11 looks like well ahead of its probable Geneva Motor Show debut. Twitter user @Rudybenjamin13 posted the photo you see below earlier today, although with the caveat that the account was just sharing the photo and didn't take it. Whether that's the case is neither here nor there. On me dit que je risque d'etre emmerde donc tant qu'a faire ... #astonmartin #DB11 . Je relaie .... pic.twitter.com/Xle3BkjJF9 — RudyB001 (@Rudybenjamin13) February 17, 2016 It's a much more traditional front fascia than the DB10's concept-car aesthetic. Bigger, road-legal headlights and a more traditional Aston grille bookend an incredibly sculpted hood. Where the DB10 was shark-nosed and aggressive, the DB11 looks traditional and profoundly powerful. It will fit right into the lineup, which can't quite be said for the DB10, whatever you think of it. From this angle, it's both expected and satisfying. We can't wait to see it in the flesh, hopefully in Geneva. Related Video: Spy Photos Aston Martin aston martin db9 aston martin db11 spectre aston martin db10

Weekly Recap: Geneva's splendor reflects growing demand for ultra-luxury cars

Geneva is one of the most glittering auto shows in the world, but the list of high-powered and bespoke luxury cars was decadent this year even by the rich standards of the Swiss exhibition. It's great for enthusiasts to revel in the flame-throwing Aston Martin Vulcan, the racing-inspired elegance of the Bentley EXP 10 Speed 6 concept and the insane performance of the Lamborghini Aventador LP 750-4 Superveloce, but there's a reason for all of this opulence: the luxury market is big business. And it's growing. IHS Automotive forecasts that so-called ultra-premium sales will nearly triple this decade from 123,000 to 353,000 units around the world. The estimate includes brands like Aston Martin, Bentley, Ferrari and Rolls-Royce, but doesn't count BMW, Mercedes and Audi, which offer less expensive models in addition to their high-end flagships. Though IHS includes Porsche and its relatively large volume in the study, the ultra-premium segment is still set grow at about the same rate, even without the German automaker's figures. So what is propelling all of this growth in the most expensive segment of the auto industry? Put simply, there's more rich people. IHS Automotive principal analyst Tim Urquhart pointed to economic expansion in China, market recovery in the United States and a surge in the lucrative technology sector as contributing factors. This dovetails with a research report by UK-based Oxfam, an international relief organization, which found the world's richest one-percent owned 48 percent of global wealth in 2014, and it's expected to increase to more than 50 percent by 2016. View 17 Photos Carmakers are moving quickly to capitalize with new products, expanding their portfolios with low-volume speedsters like the 800-hp V12 Vulcan at Geneva, and plans to enter new segments, like Rolls-Royce's strategy to make an SUV. "Ultra-premium carmakers are looking to explore ways of growing their product offerings, and thus their bottom lines, in this most potentially profitable of segments," Urquhart wrote in a report on the Geneva show. In a nutshell, there are more choices for people with more money. It's a good time to have expensive taste. Other News & Notes 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata production launches It won't be long now. The 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata arrives later this year, and it's officially in production. Mazda announced this week that the roadster began rolling off the assembly line at its Ujina factory in Hiroshima, Japan.

Aston CEO claims Cygnet cancelled because Toyota is dropping iQ in 2014

While slow sales and a $50,000 price tag may have been contributing factors to the Aston Martin Cygnet being cancelled last month, Aston Martin CEO Ulrich Bez is pointing the finger at Toyota for the demise of this luxurious little city car. In a discussion with Autocar, Bez is quoted as saying that the ultimate reason the Cygnet was cut is because Toyota plans on dropping the iQ (on which the Cygnet is based) in 2014 - a claim denied by the Japanese automaker.
Interestingly, the article also cites another publication reporting that a Toyota importer in the Netherlands heard the same news as Bez, and it has already stopped importing the cars. If the European Toyota iQ is cancelled, that would likely spell the end of the slow-selling Scion iQ in the US, which has sold just 3,365 units through September (a drop of 51 percent year over year).
Regardless of why production of the Cygnet ended, Bez also says that a lack of support from Toyota on the project prevented it from being offered in the US or receiving a supercharged engine, which are two factors that likely would have made the car appealing to more buyers.