71 New Models Unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show

Rethinking personal transportation requires setting convention aside and exploring new dimensions. The Tokyo Motor Show is a place to witness future technology, cutting edge design, and automotive whimsical wackiness. It's an eclectic mix of pure fantasy and viable solutions to our mobility challenges.

Staged at the Makuhari Messe complex in Chiba, Japan on the outskirts of the Tokyo sprawl, the show covers five exhibit halls and more than 44,000 square meters of floor space. The 40th show didn't disappoint in the area of new product introductions, with 71 world premiers highlighted among the 520 cars, trucks, and motorcycles on display. No one product stood out as a landmark vehicle, but the variety was impressive.

EVs SHOW PROMISE

From a Green Car perspective, electric vehicles are a priority awaiting technical advances. Two notable EVs debuted in Tokyo: the Subaru G4e and Mitsubishi
i-MIEV Sport.

The G4e is a sporty five-seater showcasing Subaru's "next-generation" vanadium technology lithium-ion batteries. Developed in-house by Subaru, the batteries are said to double energy density and allow the G4e to travel 200 km on a charge. A full charge requires eight hours, but the batteries can be juiced up with quick charge in just 15 minutes to bring them up to 80 percent capacity.

Mitsubishi's iMIEV Sport is the company's environmental flagship. It features an advanced 330 volt lithium-ion battery and an electric powered four-wheel-drive system utilizing three motors. Two in-wheel motors drive the front wheels and a single motor powers the rear wheels. The driver never needs to plug the iMIEV in, thanks to a wireless charging system that utilizes a microwave transmitter that can be mounted in a location like the garage floor and a receiver that's located in the underside of the car.

THE PODS HAVE LANDED

Sci-fi aficionados always feel right at home at the Tokyo Motor Show. Pod shaped bubble cars aren't a new idea because they maximize space and Tokyo was flush with them.

Honda showed the funky Puyo concept that pushes the pod design way out there. The bubble top gull-wing door design is unique in many respects, with no feature on this car more bizarre than its soft gel-like rubber body panels that are kinder to the touch. The material incorporates a special light technology that glows in changing colors to alert pedestrians of Puyo's running condition.

The Suzuki Sharing Coach (SSC) is a two-seat fuel cell powered transporter that utilizes front wheel mounted motors and a battery that can regenerate through roof and window solar panels. The Sharing Coach is a mobile garage for the Suzuki Pixy personal low-speed mobility device. The egg-shaped Pixy incorporates a fast charging capacitor and collision sensors for added safety.

Perhaps the most bizarre concept in Tokyo was Toyota's RiN, a mood ring on wheels. RiN takes driver-vehicle interaction to new levels to promote a healthier lifestyle. The steering yoke, for example, is fitted with an electrocardiogram sensor intended to "mood-train" the driver through bio-feedback. Many other calming effects are employed so that you arrive healthier than when you left.

The somewhat more conventional Toyota Hi-CT is a plug-in hybrid that seats five with an outward form reminiscent of a diesel locomotive or cabover heavy truck. A rear truck box can be removed to reveal a functional rear deck area that can expand into the rear seat area when the rear hatch is open.

Not to be left out, Nissan took the Pivo rotating cab concept, first shown in 2005, another step with the Pivo2. The electric Pivo2 features multi-directional in-wheel motors and a lithium-ion battery pack for propulsion. A dash mounted cartoon-like robot head moves to entertain occupants and hopefully help road-rage drivers calm down. You certainly can't take the concept too seriously, although its electric drive system is no doubt the real deal.

HOT GREEN CONCEPTS

Honda pulled the cover off its latest hybrid concept, the sporty CR-Z. The CR-Z's nose hints at the Honda S2000 sports car but the lines are much crisper. CR-Z is clearly a new generation of the popular Honda CR-X compact sports coupe and while still fun, lightweight, and efficient...it's clearly much greener. Honda did not reveal many details about the hybrid powertrain, but we expect that it is a front drive four-cylinder gasoline engine with Honda's integrated hybrid drive, and it will likely use supercapacitors for added punch during hard acceleration. CR-Z could be production-ready as early as 2009.

Mazda added a fourth chapter to its recent generation of Nagare design series concepts with the unveiling of the Taiki in Tokyo. Roughly translated, Taiki means "Atmosphere" in Japanese and this aerodynamic form is sleek and slippery, if not a bit busy. Importantly, the Taiki is powered by what is said to be the next generation rotary engine that's more powerful while offering cleaner emissions. Still the only major automaker to embrace the rotary internal combustion engine, Mazda is aggressively pursuing hydrogen as an alternative fuel source and naturally Taiki makes use of H2 as a super-clean fuel.

LIGHTEN UP

One of the simplest — yet technically most difficult — ways to improve efficiency while also improving performance is to remove weight from an overall vehicle package. In modern cars, with all their mandated safety equipment and advanced technologies, that's easier said than done. To this end, Toyota showed off its latest weight-saving concept called the 1/X. Essentially, the unibody structure of the 1/X is made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic rather than steel. Toyota teases that adding plug-in hybrid and flex fuel strategies to the powertrain will make the 1/X ultra green, but only a body shell was on display here. Perhaps we'll get a further glimpse of what Toyota has in mind next time as part of the dazzling automotive spectacle that's sure to be on hand at the 41st Tokyo Motor Show.