Tokyo Motor Show 2017: Toyota unveils numerous concept vehicles

Toyota’s “Concept-i” equipped with Artificial Intelligence (AI)

  The 45th Tokyo Motor Show 2017 was held at Tokyo’s Big Sight exhibition center from October 25 to November 5, 2017 with the theme of BEYOND THE MOTOR to convey a sense of progression into the future. This report provides an overview of the Toyota exhibition.

  During Toyota’s press conference on opening day, Executive Vice President Didier Leroy introduced the Toyota theme of "Start Your Impossible" (attempting to achieve what seems impossible), emphasizing Toyota’s commitment to "Mobility for All" so that everyone can realize the freedom and joy of mobility. The GR Hybrid Sports and Tj Cruiser were in the center of the exhibit stand, to remind people that cars must be fun and are something to be enjoyed.

  Moreover, Toyota introduced the three technological areas it will focus on to enhance the value of its future product portfolio, using the concept vehicles on display at the Toyota exhibit. The first was its Concept-i series that uses artificial intelligence (AI) and connected car technology. Also, these technologies will enable the all-new Crown Concept to become the new standard for Japanese connected cars.

  The second area of focus was automated driving, a key technology to provide mobility to those who cannot enjoy it now and realize Toyota’s “Mobility for All” vision. Toyota plans to introduce systems for highways to the market in 2020 and for normal roads in the early 2020s. Highly autonomous driving level systems will likely be used in the Concept-i series.

  The third technological area was electrification. Undoubtedly, electric vehicles (EVs) will be a key solution in the near future and the Concept-i series uses an EV powertrain. The press conference also focused on clean mobility, and fuel cell vehicles, with Mr. Leroy stating that "We believe our solid-state battery technology can be a game-changer with the potential to dramatically improve driving range" by the early 2020s. Toyota is also continuing its efforts to develop fuel cell vehicle (FCV) technologies, as seen in the Toyota concept vehicles for the Fine-Comfort Ride premium FCV and Sora Fuel Cell Bus.

  At the Lexus booth, the LS+ Concept, which is equipped with the latest automated–driving technology that Lexus is aiming to deliver in the near future, made its world premiere. Lexus is working to realize automated driving technology at Level 4 (High) or Level 5 (Full). In addition, the Lexus booth included exhibits for the new LS model released in October and the Lexus LC that was released in March 2017.

 Related reports:
Tokyo Motor Show 2017: Exhibitions from Bosch, Denso, Aisin, and Mitsubishi Electric (November 2017)