Toyota shows the way: AE86 H2 Concept and AE86 BEV Concept
See them in action! Toyota proves there’s a way to inject new life into older cars with two impressive concepts
The world’s governments have spoken: fossil fuels must go.
Electric vehicles are the future, hydrogen is the future…maybe e-fuels will someday not be a scam…you know the drill. Finally, a mainstream manufacturer is exploring alternatives that avoid condemning old vehicles to the scrap heap.
At the 2023 Tokyo Auto Salon, Akio Toyoda put his face on an initiative to repurpose and revitalize older Toyota vehicles—without having to throw out the entire car.
In respect to Toyoda-san, here are his remarks on these cars in full:
“I believe that 2023 is the year Japan will have a chance to share the thoughts of car lovers with the rest of the world. And the message is... ‘There is a carbon neutral path we can take as car lovers!’ ‘We don't want to leave any car lovers behind!’ This messaging begins with Auto Salon and continue on to the G7. This AE 86 Trueno and Levin... These are symbols of this belief.
“This Trueno has a hydrogen engine vehicle. However, this is not the engine from the Super Taikyu GR Corolla. We converted the original 4AG into a hydrogen engine. The Levin on the other hand, is a battery EV. The name has been around for half a century, but the two letters ‘EV’ have always been hidden within its name. So, it took 50 years for us to finally install a battery and motor to LEVIN. The original 4AG is a treasure so we removed it with the greatest care. However, the manual transmission is untouched. Clutch and shifting operation can still be enjoyed.
“The challenge is: To continue to drive our beloved cars…Even in an age of carbon neutrality!”
Better still, both have already been to the track for some hooning—video below in Japanese. (Auto-translate to English works…but is patchy! -M)
