Skip advert
Advertisement

Volkswagen XL1 and Toyota ME.WE up for global design award

Volkswagen’s XL1 and Toyota’s ME.WE are the automotive representatives in the nominations for the Design of the Year Awards 2014

Volkswagen XL1 action

Both the Toyota ME.WE and Volkswagen XL1 concept cars are competing against 74 other innovatively designed products to be crowned Design of the Year 2014 in the London Design Museum’s awards.

Judges have been impressed so far by the cutting edge design features and pioneering environmental technology used by the only two cars to make the shortlist.

Advertisement - Article continues below

The unique Toyota ME.WE shows the latest steps Toyota is taking towards groundbreaking eco-friendly cars and comes with a lightweight aluminium structure, electrically powered wheels and an interior made of bamboo.

Toyota ME.WE front

Its doors, bonnet and bumpers are constructed from 100 per cent recyclable polystyrene that’s easily replaceable. Toyota claims this car can function as a pickup, convertible, off-roader and a small city car.

The Volkswagen XL1 is equally as impressive. The car was first unveiled at the 2011 Qatar Motor Show and unlike the Toyota, it’s available to buy. Advanced hybrid technology means it’s the first car with groundbreaking fuel economy figures of 313mpg and 24g/km of CO2 emissions. Put simply, this is the world’s most fuel-efficient car. Volkswagen has confirmed the Volkswagen XL1 for an initial production run of 250.

Other finalists in the Design of the Year awards include electric bikes, the Citymapper public transport app, a floating school in a Nigerian lagoon, mobile phones you can build yourself and a calendar made entirely of Lego. The shortlist is certainly a broad church.  

This is the seventh Design of the Year awards and as usual it sets out to celebrate the very best in global architecture, digital, fashion, furniture, graphic, product and transport design. The overall winner will be decideTwo d by a voting system.

All the nominations will be on display at the London Design Museum from March 26 to August 25 2014 and advanced tickets – £13.88 for a standard adult ticket - can be purchased here.

Which car do you think deserves the Design of the Year 2014 crown? Do you think the Toyota ME.WE or the Volkswagen XL1 concept car should win or are there better car designs out there? Let us know in the comments section below... 

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Recommended

The best ever popemobiles
Best ever popemobiles

The best ever popemobiles

For nearly 100 years Popes have had bespoke transport – here we chart the astonishing history of the popemobile
Best cars & vans
8 May 2025
New Toyota bZ7 is a £17,000 electric saloon, but it’s not coming here
Toyota bZ7 - front 3/4 static

New Toyota bZ7 is a £17,000 electric saloon, but it’s not coming here

Toyota is looking to expand its bZ-branded EV range
News
23 Apr 2025
Best Toyota cars: Our top Toyotas present and past
Best Toyota Cars - header

Best Toyota cars: Our top Toyotas present and past

Want to know which are the best Toyotas to buy? Here is our guide to the brand’s best cars, present and past
Best cars & vans
22 Apr 2025
Toyota MR2 (Mk2, 1989-1999) icon review: mid-engined thrills for the masses
Toyota MR2 Mk2 - front tracking

Toyota MR2 (Mk2, 1989-1999) icon review: mid-engined thrills for the masses

The Toyota MR2 was nicknamed the ‘poor man’s Ferrari’, but was that actually high praise rather than the insult it was intended to be?
Road tests
25 Mar 2025

Most Popular

Labour hints at major luxury car tax U-turn to boost EV sales
Luxury car tax

Labour hints at major luxury car tax U-turn to boost EV sales

Is pressure from retailers and car makers finally cutting through with ministers?
News
22 May 2025
New Ford Fiesta: latest details on supermini’s potential return
Ford Fiesta exclusive image

New Ford Fiesta: latest details on supermini’s potential return

The Ford Fiesta could be coming back as an electric car, and here’s everything we know so far
News
20 May 2025
Flawed hybrid car efficiency data to stifle UK EV sales and propagate pollution
Connecting charger to Hyundai Tucson PHEV

Flawed hybrid car efficiency data to stifle UK EV sales and propagate pollution

Half a million extra PHEVs could reach UK roads by 2030 in place of cleaner EVs due to changes surrounding the ZEV Mandate
News
19 May 2025