Toyota drives G8 summit
June 19, 2008 by Alborz Fallah
Toyota will provide cars to world leaders at this year’s G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit starting next month. The company will provide 78 conventional hybrid and other environmentally friendly vehicles for official and demonstration use during the event.
Toyota says it offered its services after the Japanese Government asked for help to ensure the G8 summit and the preparations for it go ahead with a green theme and run as environmentally considerate as possible.
The G8 has always tackled tough issues, this time around the environment and particularly measures aimed at combating global warming will be a hot topic.
The Big T will provide 11 Lexus LS600h/LS600hL sedans, 15 Crown Hybrid sedans and 43 Estima Hybrid minivans for transporting participant country officials. Five hydrogen-powered Toyota FCHV-BUS will also help out.
However the vehicle which got our attention is this battery-powered i-REAL personal mobility vehicle, which, well, looks very cool indeed.
The i-REAL is a three wheel (two front one back) little vehicle aimed for the streets of Tokyo. It is relatively flexible, for example in low-speed mode it can shorten its wheelbase to allow it to maneuver naturally among pedestrians at similar eyesight height.
When you want to get going however, the wheelbase lengthens for better centre of gravity and better driving dynamics. It even comes with monitoring sensors to detect all around the car, so you don’t run over unsuspecting pedestrians. Currently the i-REAL’s sensors will warn the ‘driver’ with a noise and vibration while those on the outside get a “pleasant use of light and sound” as a warning!
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*****PRIMO!*****
Mmmmmmm, maybe we can get to see the ToyotaCentury, all V12/5L of it?
Its the best Toyota ever hand-built, very expensive and makes Lexus quality look slapped together.
Almost unknow excpet by people in the know and Yakuza Mafia types.
Bring them on!
Cheers
F-0
Cant think of a better way to assist the worlds obesity problems.
The i-REAL chair does look cool however, walking is not that hard.
it is for some people
it sholudn’t be
it shouldn’t* be
Woops
Ross – “it is for some people ”
Agree, think of the disabled people.
Yep I love the mobility chair, you could even make it reclining and then you wouldnt even need to get out of bed – just cruise into work put it in upright position and sit at your desk
actually here in the states, those people mobility “carts” are very common, you see about 4-5 of them every time I go grocery shopping…
And about the Toyota Century…
Well, everything is pretty much assembled by hand.
Its by order I think, even the badge is hand carved.. haha, its technically even more prestige than some of the worlds most expensive cars since literally its very rare and as someone stated eccentric rich people order them.
An exclusive Toyota how dandy. The top model is called a Toyota?
Does the Toyota Century use the Camry platform?
Any ANCAP results for the i Real?
When we visited a trade show a few years ago in Vegas, we noted that a good few of the salad dodgers were in those “mobility carts”… We had a name for them ourselves “Chubby Wagons”. We loved how they had a little baskets on the front of them with high sugar drinks and snacks in the front, cause it must be hard work moving that throttle back.
I think the i-REAL will go the way of the Segway, a nice toy, but not much use for anything else.