Japan's automakers unveil EVs galore at Tokyo show to catch up with Tesla, other electric rivals
Toyota, Honda, Nissan and other Japanese automakers are serious about rolling out battery electric vehicles to catch up with the world's frontrunners like Tesla and BYD
TOKYO — TOKYO (AP) — “We love battery EVs.”
Takero Kato, the executive in charge of electric vehicles at Toyota, said that not once, but twice, to emphasize what he considers the message at this year’s Tokyo auto show.
It’s a message ringing clear at the Tokyo Mobility Show, which will run through Nov. 5 at Tokyo Big Sight hall and where battery-powered electric vehicles are the star at practically every booth.
Mazda Motor Corp. is highlighting a sportscar concept that is a plug-in EV packed with its signature rotary engine. Honda Motor Co. is showing off its Prelude sportscar EV concept. Toyota Motor Corp.’s lean angular Lexus concept, set to go on sale in 2026, is an electric vehicle running on lithium-ion batteries.
Journalists got a preview Wednesday ahead of the show’s public opening Saturday.
U.S. automakers like General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. aren't exhibiting at the show and have not taken part for some years. The Americans make up a very tiny fraction of Japanese auto sales and have had a hard time cracking a market where domestic makers remain powerful.
Among the foreign makers taking part are Mercedes-Benz, a perennial Japanese favorite, and China's BYD.
Kato denied he repeated his words because he is worried Toyota isn’t perceived as loving EVs enough.
Toyota executives have acknowledged that Japan’s top automaker has fallen behind rivals in EV development like Tesla of the U.S. and China’s BYD Auto. That is partly because of Toyota’s past success in hybrids, exemplified in the Prius, which have a gasoline engine in addition to an
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