Powertrain Diversity

The minor earthquake that momentarily jostles central Honshu during the 2005 Tokyo Motor Show press preview is a reminder that power comes in many forms.

Not that show-goers needed reminding.

As auto makers pull the sheets off 79 never-seen-before vehicles and 120 others that had never been viewed in Japan, a powertrain pattern emerges. It goes something like this: hybrid, hybrid, fuel cell, hybrid, diesel.

While the traditional gasoline engine is far from dead, the end of its dominance can be seen on the horizon.

Having already announced Toyota Motor Corp. wants to sell 1 million hybrids around the globe, annually, President Katsuaki Watanabe reaffirms the auto maker's commitment to gasoline-electric powertrains. Minutes later, Toyota's Lexus brand takes the wraps off a hybrid-powered concept — the LF-Sh — that company insiders describe as the next-generation LS flagship.

Toyota also shows the production version of its new Estima hybrid minivan and the 4-seat Fine-X fuel-cell vehicle concept.

Honda Motor Co. Ltd. rolls out its FCX concept. It represents the next generation of an experimental fuel-cell vehicle the auto maker is leasing in small numbers. One of 25 new vehicles Honda displays here, it features a vertical powetrain layout to improve packaging.

Mazda Motor Corp. announces it is pulling ahead by six months its testing of a hydrogen-powered rotary engine as Mazda President and CEO Hisakazu Imaki says the auto maker is making significant progress in research and development.

Expect the auto maker to start leasing the RX-8 RE hydrogen sports coupe next spring, Imaki says.

DaimlerChrysler AG's Mercedes Benz Div. announces it will introduce a pair of new diesel cars in Japan next year. At present, only 1% of cars in Japan are powered by diesels, according to Denso Corp., a key supplier to Toyota.

Mercedes also debuts a new fuel-cell concept car, the F600 Hy-genius, in which the fuel cell is 40% smaller than the auto maker's previous-generation unit, and consumes 16% less energy while producing 115 hp.

Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. generates some buzz with its flashy GT-R PROTO concept. Nissan admits jumping the gun because the next-generation production GT-R — a favorite in Japan — isn't due in showrooms until 2007.

The Volkswagen AG brands, Volkswagen and Audi, display a pair of concepts that take a back seat to none.

Volkswagen unveils the Ecoracer, a carbon-fiber sports car that tops out at 143 mph (230 km/h) but gets 69 mpg (3.4L/100 km) from its 134-hp 4-cyl. turbodiesel. And Audi shows its Shooting Brake sport wagon, based on the aluminum-steel chassis of the next-generation Audi TT. It also featurues carbon-ceramic brakes and a navigation screen that can be controlled with finger-writing.

These cars, arguably, shook up the party more than the tremor — which measured 6.5 on the Richter scale.