Posts Tagged "motor show"

CDN Live coverage – 2011 Tokyo motor show by brand

Posted by cdnlive December 2nd, 2011

To help you navigate our coverage on the live site, the list below details our coverage by each brand:

Audi:
What exactly is ‘Sportback’, Audi?

Daihatsu:
Best in showstand: Daihatsu
Photo Gallery: Daihatsu concepts

Honda:
Honda shows concepts galore in Tokyo
Honda opens the N-Box
Honda EV-Ster concept: electric, but not organic
Photo Gallery: Honda alternative mobility
Photo Gallery: Honda concepts
Photo Gallery: Honda ‘N’ Cars

Isuzu:
Surprise star: Isuzu T-Next

Kobot:
Meet the Kobots [w/ gallery]

Mitsubishi:
Sad fall from grace of Mitsubishi

Nissan:
Nissan NV350 Caravan: fit for a whole platoon of Storm Troopers
Photo Gallery: Nissan Pivo 3

Subaru:
Subaru Advanced Tourer Concept
Toyota GT 86/Subaru BRZ: so near yet so, so far
Video: Subaru Advanced Tourer interior with Yohei Noshiro
Photo Gallery: Subaru at Tokyo

Suzuki:
Suzuki Regina concept: the mini aero delight
Happy Birthday Lapin!
Photo Gallery: Suzuki concepts

Toyota:
Turn the lights down low…
Toyota GT 86/Subaru BRZ: so near yet so, so far
Video: Tokuo Fukuichi, Toyota’s Design Chief, on the Fun-Vii concept
Photo Gallery: Toyota production cars
Photo Gallery: Toyota concept cars

Yamaha:
Yamaha’s Moegi motorcycle: A satisfying blend of old and new

Volkswagen:
Volkswagen Cross Coupe concept represents “the next step” [w/gallery]
Photo Gallery: Volkswagen at Tokyo

Misc:
Tokyo’s Smart Mobility City
Tokyo Motor Show 2011 opens its (new) doors
Ken Okuyama’s designer brakes
Mitsubishi: Cafe with a Kei
Sonic Design
Weirdest thing I’ve ever seen at a motor show (**Warning** contains a girl and two donkeys)

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Happy Birthday Lapin!

Posted by cdnlive December 1st, 2011

This year marks the 10th birthday of the Suzuki Lapin, perhaps the cutest in the adorable genre of Kei cars. Its mix of retro and bento box aesthetics and teeny scale are balanced out by design execution that still looks remarkably fresh and – something of a rarity in its class – an appealing cabin.

To mark the occasion a special edition has been created with cappuccino coachwork, navy and cream interior and a unique grille featuring a chrome bunny ear motif.

Happy birthday little rabbit!

By Owen Ready

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Yamaha’s Moegi motorcycle: A satisfying blend of old and new

Posted by cdnlive December 1st, 2011

One of the unique attributes of the Tokyo motor show is the fact that nearly every form of road transport is represented: commercial vehicles sit beside kei cars, motorcycles beside cars.

This Y125 Moegi motorcycle, making its debut on the Yamaha showstand beside some of the motorcycle manufacturer’s mopeds and electric bicycles was one of the coolest vehicles on show.

Simple and elegant, the Moegi’s blend of old and new elements make for a timeless design, and the attention to detail paid in its realization make it one of the standout designs in Tokyo.

Eric Gallina

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Photo Gallery: Honda alternative mobility

Posted by cdnlive December 1st, 2011

Honda E-Canopy

Honda E-Rolling Chair

Honda MotoCampo

CDNTeam

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Tokyo’s Smart Mobility City

Posted by cdnlive December 1st, 2011

Every automaker with an environmentally efficient vehicle was showcasing it at this year’s Smart Mobility City exhibition space, a new initiative occupying two halls adjacent to an outdoor parking area that was used for test drives of production vehicles in the category.

Besides the Kobots (see previous post here) GM was showing the Chevrolet EN-V, Toyota has a static display of the i-Real and there were numerous hybrids, plug-in hybrids, fuel cell and electric vehicles on show in the two-hall exhibition space.

The exhibition was open to a broad range of industrial sectors, some showcasing new social infrastructure system that supports smart cities and others displaying technology systems and how they relate to the future of automobiles, people and cities.

Eric Gallina

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Photo Gallery: Volkswagen at Tokyo

Posted by cdnlive December 1st, 2011

Volkswagen Cross Coupe concept:

Volkswagen Passat Alltrack:

CDNTeam

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Sad fall from grace of Mitsubishi

Posted by cdnlive December 1st, 2011

The photograph above is of the Mitsubishi PX-MiEV II concept car, but its effects were so soporific we were unable to remain awake long enough for the shutter to snap.

The Mitsubishi stand at this year’s show is a rather sad place to be when you remember what a hotbed of fresh, exciting design the brand was under the vast wing of Daimler and the design direction of Olivier Boulay. The PX and new Mirage supermini offer nothing new, exciting or fun in their respective market segments and show a total lack of direction. Their demonstration of how so much can be forgotten so quickly is the one remarkable thing about them.

Thankfully, solace can be found in the last glimmer of greatness from its halcyon days in a small number of Mitsubishi i cars dotted around the stand.

By Owen Ready

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Weirdest thing I’ve ever seen at a motor show (**Warning** contains a girl and two donkeys)

Posted by cdnlive December 1st, 2011

By Owen Ready

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Photo Gallery: Honda ‘N’ Cars

Posted by cdnlive December 1st, 2011

Honda N-Box:

Honda N concept 4:

CDNTeam

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Nissan NV350 Caravan: fit for a whole platoon of Storm Troopers

Posted by cdnlive December 1st, 2011

The sheer visual presence of Nissan’s latest people carrier needs to be seen up close to be believed.

The NV350 Caravan’s super high windscreen and belt line translates to a massively deep and near-vertical hood and an overall impression of a capable and capacious vehicle channelling both Scooby-Doo’s van and some kind of Star Wars transporter.

Global design boss Shiro Nakamura was on hand to explain to CDN this unusual proportion is caused by having the engine under the driver and passenger seats and thus creates a very high H-point. The downside of this package is a small cabin which goes some way to explaining why the model won’t be sold in the US and Europe. As Nakamura added, “to get in and out you’d have to be quite acrobatic”.

The Tokyo show version features two rows of seats with room for a Kayak inside and massive luggage room behind, but different length versions will allow seating for up to 15, said chief vehicle engineer Atsushi Omura.

The icing on the cake came when we found out about the square porthole in the rear sliding door, which is due to stay on the production version along with almost all of the other elements of this pre-production concept.

Expect the vehicle in showrooms in 130 countries including Japan, Mexico and the Middle East from summer 2012.

Guy Bird

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