This agile mongoose of a car has finally made its debut at the 2007 Tokyo auto show.
As you can see, the Mazda Taiki's aerodynamic design gives the illusion that the back wheels are tucked under wings. This is the fourth car Mazda has released in its Nagare (which means "flow") design series, a vehicle that "visually expresses the flow of air," according to Mazda.
The two-seater sports car concept has a front engine rear-wheel drive layout and Mazda's Renesis rotary engine.
Think you can do better with the next concept design? Mazda welcomes you to try. The company has launched a contest to design the 2018 model Mazda 3 via Facebook (log-in required). The winner, who will get to work with a Mazda design team to bring the car to fruition, will be announced at the 2007 LA auto show this November.
Check back Thursday for live pictures of the Taiki from the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show.
Mazda's Taiki concept car.
(Credit: Mazda)
(Credit:
Wayne Cunningham/CNET Reviews)
Is there such a thing as a mini minivan?
Volkswagen's Space Up, which was unveiled at the 2007 Tokyo auto show on Wednesday, certainly seems to qualify.
The four-door Space Up is just 3.68 m (12 feet) by 1.63 m (5 feet) compared to the VW Touran minivan, which is roughly 4.3 m (14 feet) by 1.8 m (6 feet).
The Space Up follows the two-door Up that debuted at the 2007 Frankfurt Auto Show. As with the Up concept car, the drive train for all of the gasoline, diesel, and electric drives for this line of cars would be located in the rear, as they were on the old Beetle, according to VW.
(Credit:
Wayne Cunningham/CNET Reviews)
(Credit:
Wayne Cunningham/CNET Reviews)
(Credit:
Wayne Cunningham/CNET Reviews)
Where do you draw the line between a motorcycle and a car?
Toyota's iQ Concept, a concept car that debuted in Frankfurt and will be at the 2007 Tokyo auto show, might be better suited for the next rally in Sturgis, SD.
The iQ from Toyota.
Toyota is in collaboration with two Japanese companies to develop a 1-liter engine for the iQ that will be based on a Yamaha motorcycle engine, according to reports from Auto Blog and Automotive News Europe.
Toyota plans to produce about 80,000 iQ cars for Europe by 2009 and possibly more for the Indian and Chinese markets. But don't expect to see it in the U.S. anytime soon and probably for good reason.
The ultracompact is roughly as wide as a Mini Cooper, but almost one foot shorter. It holds about three adults and "one child (or luggage)," comfortably, according to Toyota.
Honda, which has stumbled in hybrids compared with rival Toyota, will try to regain its footing later this month when it shows off a hybrid sports car at the Tokyo Auto Show.
The CR-Z
(Credit: Honda)The CR-Z, which stands for Concept Renaissance Zero, is a lightweight sports car based on a hybrid system developed by Honda. The company will also display the Puyo, a fuel cell car designed as an economy car. Economy car and hydrogen are now kind of a misnomer. Hydrogen cars cost about $1 million to make at the moment. Still, in a decade or two, hydrogen proponents say the cars will be realistic and much cheaper.
Both of these are concepts. In the near term, Honda will also start to sell a new version of the Fit in Japan and a car called the Inspire, which sports variable cylinder management for better gas mileage. Rumors have been flying about a hybrid version of the Fit so this might be it. Honda may also display a clean diesel that gets over 60 miles a gallon. It plans to bring the car to the U.S. in 2010.
Honda's theme for the show is "for the endless joy of mobility on our earth." I love translations of marketing materials.
The Tokyo Auto Show, which actually takes place in nearby Chiba, kicks off October 27 and is one of the big shows in the car world. At the show, Nissan will also show off the Pivo 2, a car with a pivoting cockpit. Nissan will also discuss some of the safety features and its plans for electric cars. (At Ceatec last week, we conducted some interviews with Nissan execs about the safety features and Nissan's plans to mass produce an electric car in about four years.).
One big honking track ball.
(Credit: Michael Kanellos/CNET Networks)TOKYO--It's as big as 3D gets.
The Cyberdome is an 8.5-meter-high hemisphere-shaped screen for 3D computer images at the National Center, a technological showcase for National (a subsidiary of Matsushita) in the Shiodome area of Tokyo. At that size, it's one of the biggest computer screens in the world, according to National. I wanted to get a picture of it, but it wouldn't fit into the viewfinder of my camera.
It's also got a track ball the size of a crenshaw melon. (see picture). The system is driven by 19 PCs and 18 projectors. (That's the picture of all of the equipment.) The projectors are suspended above the viewing platform. The viewing platform is a couple of meters off the ground so that the viewer's eyes can stare straight at the center of the screen, which is also the apex of the dome.
The projectors of Cyberdome.
(Credit: Michael Kanellos/CNET Networks)The Cyberdome exists as a way to demonstrate National's technological prowess but also as a way to help city planners and architects. The system, which requires that viewers wear glasses, gives you a bigger-than-life 3D simulation. You fly through simulated versions of city plazas or the lobbies of buildings. Designers mix it with their own CAD-CAM designs to try to better understand how people will ultimately interact with their creations.
Everyone in my group, a bunch of high-tech writers from the U.S., thought it was one of the more engaging 3D simulations they had ever seen. Gary Merson of HDGuru gave it a big thumbs up. However, it works best when you can fly through the simulations relatively slowly. You don't feel queasy when it proceeds at a pace similar to walking. We flew through a simulated urban plaza and a couple of rooms in a house. If you played Halo 3 on this thing, your head would explode in twenty seconds.
The Dual Shock 3 is a bit heavier than the existing Sixaxis controller.
(Credit: SCEA)The official announcement of the vibration-enabled Dual Shock 3 controller for the PlayStation 3 was the biggest news from Sony's otherwise lackluster Tokyo Game Show keynote address. Since the broad strokes of the original announcement, GameSpot was able to glean some additional details on the new controller--and get some hands-on testing of the unit as well. Here's what they found:
... Read more
The Dual Shock 3 will add the vibration function missing from the original Sixaxis controller (shown).
(Credit: Sony)One of gamers' biggest beefs with the PlayStation 3 will soon be a thing of the past. At the kickoff press conference for the Tokyo Game Show, Sony Computer Entertainment President Kaz Hirai confirmed longstanding rumors that a rumble-ized version of the PS3 Sixaxis controller is on the way. The Dual Shock 3--which looks essentially identical to the existing Sixaxis PS3 controller--will hit Japan in November, then make its way to North America and Europe early in 2008. Devil May Cry 4 and Metal Gear Solid 4 are two of the first 11 games that will support the new Dual Shock's vibration function, and existing titles can be retroactively updated to support rumble via online updates.
Other notable announcements from Hirai's keynote: ... Read more
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