Toyota Had the Biggest WTF Moment at the Tokyo Motor Show

The 46th Tokyo Motor Show 2019 had everything: cutesy-patootie sub-compact cars, bonkers concept SUVs, cool-looking EVs, a new stylish wagon, and then you have this: the Toyota e-broom. It had the biggest “WTF” moment at the show and elicited more confused reaction than applause when Toyota President Akio Toyoda and his cartoon counterpart, Morizo showed it to the press.

Officially, Toyota describes the e-broom as: “Modeled after a broom used by a witch to fly through the air, this mobility platform integrates people and machines, allowing users to reaffirm the enjoyment of mobility.”

It’s also a very literal take on “being swept up in the mobility of the future.”

In reality what we see is a phallic-looking stick with an electric motor stuck to it. Well, at least it allows its riders on inline skates to zip through feeling like Harry Potter.

Toyota says it’s all part of their grand plan to transform itself from being just an automaker to a full-blown mobility provider. But honestly? It shows their engineers just have too much free time on their hands. C’mon Toyota—we almost forgave you for coming up with the BMW Supra, and now you give the world the e-broom?

Here's Hoping Toyota Will Adopt Force Blue As Their New Signature Color

There just aren’t enough cool blue cars on the road. While Subaru’s made it a point to make it their trademark hue, here’s hoping that potential-future parent company Toyota does the same with Force Blue.

Debuting first on the upcoming Mirai, it uses multiple layers giving it exceptional brightness and depth (sounds familiar)? Blue is rarely executed well but, in this case, it works well to accentuate Toyota’s second-generation fuel cell vehicle’s taut lines and 21-inch wheels.

More than just a new color, the all-new Mirai (scheduled for a Japan market launch in late 2020) will now swap its driven wheels from the front to the rear thanks to the TNGA platform. The migration to the new platform doesn’t just promise better driving dynamics, but it actually increases the seating capacity from four to five. New platform aside, Toyota’s also worked on improving the Mirai’s fuel cell powerplant giving it 30 percent better range than before.

More importantly, the space whale styling of the previous Mirai has also been abandoned for something more Lexus-y. In fact, squint and there are some similarities to the GR Supra here. Inside, there’s a low, expansive cockpit with a configuration that “embraces” the driver. A 12.3-inch screen serves as the infotainment system interface along with some-sort of touchpad-like system.
In 2014, Toyota launched the first hydrogen-powered production vehicle, the Mirai. It sure had some great potential, but was saddled with rather questionable styling. Toyota though has seemed to learn from it.