Scion t2B
Scion, Toyota's "youth" brand, showed the t2B: its name stands for "tall 2-box", and that's exactly what it is, though it's based on the Avensis platform. The show car is fitted with Toyota's 2.4-litre petrol engine, and a number of features unlikely to make production, including an asymmetric layout with one large electric-powered door on the passenger side, two clamshell-hinged doors on the driver's side and a huge rear windscreen which can be used for projecting films or computer games. Although it looks like a more futuristic version of the xB already in production, it's said to be merely an exploration of where the Scion brand could go next; it was displayed alongside two further concepts, scale models of a mini pick-up truck and a three-door hatchback which could be based on the same underpinnings.
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| Subaru Forester |
Subaru Forester
Subaru is updating its Forester for 2006: this low-riding 4x4, which the company is now calling a "crossover", gains a blunter front end with larger grille and new headlamps, plus some interior tweaks and touches. Expect a new centre console and more user-friendly load space, plus a modified, more rigid chassis and revised suspension. For the US, the non-turbo 2.5-litre models have received a power upgrade from 165 bhp to 173 bhp, and the turbocharged XT gains an extra 20 bhp for 230 bhp. Similarly-revised models are expected to go on sale in the UK later this year, though they are to have the 2.0-litre engines as in the recently-launched new-look Japanese-market models.
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| Suzuki Concept-X2 |
Suzuki Concept-X2
Concept-X2 follows the Concept-X unveiled in Detroit, but it's not the same midsize SUV, a stage nearer production - it's a smaller compact five-seater SUV, Suzuki's Freelander rival. Suzuki claims to have combined traditional 4x4 ladder-frame construction - the assembly method for old-school mud-pluggers - with a modern car-like monococque, describing the Concept-X2 as having a "unibody with built-in ladder-frame"; it has four-mode full-time four-wheel drive with transfer case and a locking differential, so should prove highly competent off-road. It is fitted with a new V6 engine delivering around 185bhp and a five-speed automatic gearbox; its exterior and cabin finishes are sporty, with black/silver leather upholstery, flared wheel arches and 18-inch aluminium alloy wheels, yet it is well-specified, with heated seats, a CD player, automatic climate control and a wireless remote control system. Safety kit includes ABS with ESP, traction control, stability control, front and rear curtain airbags and a specific head-impact protection structure. This level of detail suggests that this car's not far off production; expect it to share a platform with upcoming new SUVs from GM, as well as with Fiat, a partner in this programme.
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| Toyota i-unit |
Toyota i-unit
i-unit is a curious single-seat "personal mobility" device. Toyota says that it "seeks to balance freedom of movement, harmony with society, and harmony with the Earth's natural environment. Its design was inspired by a leaf and expresses the power of the unknown, the logic of living things and the simple beauty of waste-free functionality." Far-out, man: this is the mobility scooter of the future.
The battery-powered i-unit weighs 180kg and is made from recyclable and decomposable materials, and it can operate in either a chair-like upright mode or reclining with a low centre of gravity for a higher speed. It has drive-by-wire electronic controls, an information system using lights, sounds and vibrations, and could be linked to a system of specially-equipped lanes in which it could be operated on auto-pilot. To top all this off, it can have its body colour 'personalised' according to the driver's mood, and a recognition system memorises settings for controls and music. After the NY show, it will go on display at EXPO 2005 in Aichi, Japan.
