My little ‘i’

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Mitsubishi i

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Mitsubishi i

Mitsubishi has said aye to the 'i'.

But before we get bogged down in Scottish accents or poorly mimicked Ali G-isms, let's be clear that what we're talking about here is Mitsubishi's techno puppy city car.

The 'i' is already a phenomenon in Japan, where its cute looks and gadget appeal have earned it cult status.

The 660cc turbocharged three-cylinder engine has 64bhp and is mounted under the rear seats, so you can poo-poo friends with mere front-engined cars as you show off your mid-engined exotica.

The four-seat 'i' is no ball of fire, with 0-50mph in 11.2 seconds. To be honest, we're not even sure if it reaches sixty.

A four-speed automatic gearbox doesn't help performance but it should take much of the hassle out of city driving.

The 'i' uses an aluminium frame and pushes its passenger compartment right to the edges of the car to create as much interior space as possible.

But it's still narrower than a Citroen C1, allowing it to zip through traffic gaps more readily.

There will only be one model in the 'i' range, which gets climate control, a CD player and, erm, four wheels.

Nonetheless, we're rather smitten with the little 'i'. It's a funky, timeless piece of design and we can't wait for it to arrive this summer.

Sales start on July 1 and the price is set at £8,999.