Japan is a world of sensations. Travelling 25 hours to eastern lands is like flying to the future. It is amazing to discover so much technology and perfection in a country hardly bigger than the Province of Buenos Aires, where no less than 125 million people live. The Tokyo Motor Show that opens its doors every two years couldn’t look out of place. This show, always dazzling, with its technological advances, showed a very green trend. Up and down the catwalk rode hybrid prototypes: family compacts, sport cars and original urban designs. Everything was quite ecological. Obviously, the local brands were the main hosts of the show where there wasn’t any innovation for our market and European automotives played a secondary role.

It’s worth pointing out that this edition, Nº 40, finished on November 11 and received almost 1.450.000 visitors. Ladies and gentlemen, fasten your seat belts and hold on tightly. In a second you will be sailing into the future.

Toyota, one of the main hosts displayed all the technology on the parades surprising with RIN, a hybrid vehicle with green glass windows that reduce ultraviolet rays. Among other elements it has a humidifier that keeps the correct level of oxygen and humidity inside the car. Hi-CT was another compact design that caught the attention, mostly for its appearance that looks like a combination of locomotive and truck. It is fed by a gasoline engine of 1,5 lt. and an electric engine that can be plugged anywhere. One more attraction was i-Real, a kind of armchair with three wheels and an electric engine, devised just for one person. Lexus, Toyota’s luxurious brand, came up with LF-Hh, an all terrain vehicle that has a V6 and an electric engine. This prototype would reveal the future of the RX.

Another star of the motor-show was the Suzuki Pixy, a sort of cargo van called SCC that resembles a kangaroo and houses two vehicles with room for only one person. That brand also introduced Kazashi 2 Concept, an evolution of the sport Kazashi exhibited in Francfurt. This prototype is supposed to be an advance of the next Suzuki’s luxurious crossover. On the other hand, Honda surprised with Puyo, a space car with a gel-textured  bodywork that shines in the dark. That car can turn 360 degrees on its axle and, instead of the usual steering-wheel it is driven with a joystick. Yes, like the ones used to play. The brand made the internationally launch of the new Fit and displayed the sporty CR-Z and the attractive FCX, two prototypes with electric engine that will be mass-produced in a near future.

Nissan Pivo	Honda Puyo

Nissan was in charge of another launch that echoed in the industry. The new coupe will be very self-confident in the European market. The secret? The 480 horsepower V-8 engine and its four-wheel drive system. In the stand there were other attractive prototypes like Pivo 2, the second generation design, displayed in the last Buenos Aires motor show. This vehicle stands out because it incorporates a copilot robot that, among other things, can chat with the driver when it detects that he is tired.

Subaru introduced officially to the European market Impreza WRX STI with a gasoline engine of 2 litres and 308 HP while Mazda did the same with Atenza, a medium sedan. The brand exhibited the most impressive concept cars of the show. The focus of all glances was Taiki, a super sporty, very futuristic car, that hides under the bonnet a rotary engine RENESIS 16x. On the other hand, Hakaze is a compact SUV with a sport profile that attracts attention due to the design of its front end. Honestly, there’s no need of a leafy imagination to compare it with a whale. Mitsubishi paid tribute to the ecology with i-MiEV Sport, an electric automobile that not only can be plugged into any wall plug but can also be used wireless or by means of a microwave.

Toyota Rin	Suzuki Pixy SCC	Suzuki Biplane

European and American companies had also their small place in the show. Each one was seen to exhibit the most important of its “repertoire” and only two companies introduced novelties: Audi and Volkswagen. The ‘brand of the rings’ uncovered Metroproject Quattro which is no more no less than the A1 that will be on sale in 2009. It is based in the platform of the current Fabia, the same that will incorporate the new Seat Ibiza and Volswagen Polo. Maybe it is unusual that Audi waited until the Tokyo Motor Show to reveal its image. As a strategy it is not unwise if one takes into account that the greater part of the Japanese Automotive Fleet comprises compact automobiles.
VW in turn, settled with Space Up!, the family version of the “chiquitín” up! that was introduced months ago in the Francfurt motor show. In Tokio there was also room for the motorcycles. The main Japanese brands, Yamaha, Honda, Kawasaki and Suzuki exhibited their range of models and they also took the liberty to introduce models with alien galaxy designs. With electric engines, however.