When most people think of TAS, it’s the Japanese big-name tuner builds that usually come to mind. However, those cars actually only make up a small percentage of what Tokyo Auto Salon has to offer.
The 2023 event was no different, so I thought I’d take a look at some of the other vehicles on show this year, which I’ve split into three distinct categories: big, small, and bizarre.
The Big
This is a show where you can see everything from giant off-roaders to dinky city cars. The ‘big’ category really sells on the go-anywhere dream, although even with an 8-inch lift, I hope this is an AWD version of the popular Toyota Alphard.
You’ll find the rest of each category in the huge gallery chapter at the end of this post, so if you have any questions about any of the cars shown, feel free to leave a comment.
The Small
There were so many little charmers on display at TAS 2023, but two particular ‘small’ concepts stood out. The first was this track-day-inspired pairing from Daihatsu.
The idea is, people can rock up to a circuit anywhere in the country, extend the rear section of their Hijet mini truck, and have a comfortable place to take a nap after thrashing their Copen around the track for a few hours.
It’s basically glamping for petrol heads.
The next offering, this time from Nissan, was aimed at a slightly different demographic.
The concept here is to enjoy peace and quiet while traveling to a vineyard, where you might get the urge to serenade a wedding using the battery from a Nissan Leaf. Or something along those lines.
Inside the cabin, Nissan has used a special honeycomb fabric to greatly reduce the transmission of outside noise to the passengers.
The Bizarre
Okay, so beauty is most definitely in the eye of the beholder, but using a little poetic license, my ‘bizarre’ category is made up of all the stuff that’s just a bit out there.
These are the cars which serve no purpose other than to shock. Intense paint jobs, custom interiors, questionable body kits and bucket loads of bling – it’s all part of the wonderful tapestry of cars on show at TAS.
So enjoy the best of the rest, the pointless and the absurd. They’re all part of car culture, whether you like it or not.
Toby Thyer
Instagram _tobinsta_
tobythyer.co.uk
OFFICIAL SPEEDHUNTERS SUPPLIERS
Do you have any more shots of that copen?
Only what’s here sorry
Love how there are many builds here in different sizes lol
That green Rolls Cullinan is absolutely baller those wheels just suit it so well
Love the off-road Land Cruiser and Hilux builds too
What is that white doubled-ended thing with the KG badges?
Nevermind, I'll just call it the Blumpkin, cause it looks like it's coming and going at the same time.
KG Minimum Mobility Concept
A small electric car that pursues the fun of driving in a single-seater center position. A symmetrical front-to-rear design with a polaroid camera motif from the 80's that is both retro and futuristic. Because it is small, it has excellent environmental performance and is also excellent in cost performance. Next-generation mobility that pursues fun, ease and eco-friendliness.
You missed the joke, and I cannot believe you left my comment up this long!
I'm a bit surprised how much I enjoyed looking at all these little "lifestyle" cars meant for camping, glamping, adventuring or whatever. Must be a sign that I'm getting older! But very cool concepts packed into tiny Japanese vans is pretty rad
More on the Lexus ROV please!!
Any more details on that funcom image 126 and the moped image 143?
Good to see airless tyres topic has emerged back to the surface.
I'am making over $15k a month working online. I kept seeing how some people are able to earn a lot of money online, so I decided to look into it. I had luck to stumble upon something that totally changed my life. After 2 months of searching, last month I received a paycheck for $15376 for just working on the laptop for a few hours weekly. I was amazed how easy it was after I tried it copy below web…https://www.payto5.com
I'm a bit surprised how much I enjoyed looking at all these little "lifestyle" cars meant for camping, glamping, adventuring or whatever. Must be a sign that I'm getting older! But very cool concepts packed into tiny Japanese vans is pretty rad.....http://www.payto5.com
What's with the masks?
There’s a global pandemic
So great to see so many 4x4's on display. We need to see more of that. Great job Toby!!!