E-Power, Autonomous Driving Take Centre Stage At Tokyo

Wild, over-the-top concepts cars, exotic design studies, cutting-edge technologies that may never see the light of day, and more glitz and glamour than you’d see in Hollywood – for years, that’s what the biennial Tokyo Motor Show (TMS) has been all about. The 45th edition of TMS concluded in the last week of October this year and its tagline of ‘Beyond the Motor’ provided more than a hint of what to expect. Sure, the glitz, glamour and exotica was all there and accounted for, but this year, the TMS also mirrored the automotive industry itself, which is currently in a state of flux, undergoing massive changes.

- Sameer Kumar

As reported every day in the media, the automotive industry is gearing up for the post-IC engine era, readying itself for the next stage in personal mobility, which will be driven by electric power and advanced driver assistance systems, including fully autonomous driver. Earlier, at global motor shows, OEMs used to focus on showing beautiful, high-performance cars to driving enthusiasts, and wowing people with V12 engines, big horsepower and dramatic styling. Now, the V12 is a rarity (the V8 has sort of taken over, and soon, the hybrid V6 will be baying for its blood too!) and manufacturers choose to focus on lowering emissions, increasing efficiency and building better, more improved ADAS. This was also the primary focus at this year’s TMS and here we take a look at some key factors that were the primary drivers for this year’s event.

ELECTRIC POWERTRAINS

With the governments in various countries already announcing deadlines for ending the use of the IC engine, OEMs are now scrambling to ramp up the development of advanced batteries and electric motors that will progressively replace the IC engine over the next 10-20 years. With more compact, lighter, longer-lasting batteries in development, and highly efficient electric motors that produce relentless torque with zero emissions, motoring is in for a big revolution that’s coming soon.