Tokyo Show 2009 Highlights: Toyota FT-EV II Concept

If you thought the Toyota IQ was reaching the lower limit of four-passenger vehicle size, think again. Toyota is taking packaging to another level with the FT-EV II Concept, an electric city car even smaller than the IQ.

How does Toyota do it? It’s a matter of reducing the size of two major components of a vehicle, the drivetrain and the controls. While small engines, and indeed electric motors, are not a new idea, the compact nature of the electric motor allows Toyota to do away with the traditional hood and engine bay to shorten the car’s overall length and offer much greater forward visibility. In fact, visibility is even enhanced with an auxiliary window below the windshield, see-through LED tail lights and video cameras instead of side mirrors. Entry and egress is made easy by power sliding doors.

While the electric drivetrain reduced exterior dimensions, the real trick was freeing up interior space. To do it, Toyota made all of the major controls drive-by-wire. From brakes and accelerator to even the steering, there is no mechanical connection between the driver and the vehicle. Doing so allowed Toyota to free up a good deal of interior space around the driver and incorporated a retro-futuristic joystick-style control rather than a traditional steering wheel. More than that, it eliminated the traditional dashboard all together -- freeing up even more room for passengers.

The FT-EV II is powered by a compact electric motor and lithium-ion battery pack that Toyota says is good for a range of roughly 55 miles and can propel the car to a top speed of about 62 mph. Toyota says making the FT-EV II exceptionally quiet took a good deal of fine-tuning of the motor control technology.

While the FT-EV II is certainly an interesting display of technology, we don’t expect to see it in the U.S. It’s far more likely that if it makes it to production, it will compete in Japan’s fierce Kei Car market for ultra-small cars.

Thanks to: Motor Trend