Tokyo Auto Salon 2011: Electric Boogaloo


There’s a lot to see at the 2011 Tokyo Auto Salon, but let’s start with something both electric and nostalgic. Proving electricity can be fun, the Toyota Sports EV Twin weighs 700kg (1543lbs), can go 160kph (100mph) and has a range of 100km (62mi) on one charge.


Built by the Toyota Technical College of Tokyo, a pair of electric motors replaced the two-cylinder boxer that resided in the original Sports 800. Hooked up to lithium-ion batteries and a four-speed transmission, they put power to the rear set of those pearly white Wats. Though the paint looks black and white, it’s actually green because the paint is water-based for eco-friendliness. Based on the 1965 UP15, it’s nostalgic in more ways than one — the yotahachi also formed the basis for Toyota’s first hybrid, the 1977 GT Hybrid Concept.


A slammed sanitora is nothing unusual, but why do those Work Equip 01s up front have front-wheel-drive offset?


Because the guts have been replaced with that of a Toyota Prius hybrid drivetrain. This Frankenstein-like blend of drivetrains and power sources is called the WIZ Concept V Hybrid Sunny and it’s the mad creation of the International Institute of Information Technology.


Peek into the bed and you can see an exposed array of batteries, along with a heavily re-worked bed and frame to accommodate that demon camber.

Stay tuned tomorrow for more Auto Salon madness of the more traditionally petrol variety.

[Images: Response, Gazoo, Goo.net]

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6 Responses to Tokyo Auto Salon 2011: Electric Boogaloo

  1. E-AT_me says:

    that sports ev would be a great daily driver for me! with a 110mile round trip commute i could go all week on one charge!!

  2. Jim-Bob says:

    If they can get 684 miles of range on one charge then you have to wonder why the new electric cars on the market today (like the Leaf) can only get 100 miles at best. I almost wonder if something was lost in the translation.

    • Ben says:

      Um, oops… something WAS lost in the translation. This is the sentence. 1充電走行距離100km

      Plug that into Google Translate and you get 1100km. But it’s actually 100km. 🙁

  3. Nigel says:

    I’ll take the b110. The ultimate minitruck.

  4. Tyler says:

    Perfect. Is tomorrow a boso zoku feature day?

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